Help building a fall out shelter

[Jason151]

Hi all, I came across this forum while I was looking for information to help me build a fall out shelter and I was hopping that some of you here may be able to help me.
I am looking to build a shelter 4.5m x 8m x 4m, i am having trouble designing and working out what materials I would need. I would rather find the information my self than pay an architect £2k to draw the plan up.
Can anyone help?

[Cougar]

If it is truly a fallout shelter you are after rather than a hidden BOL I would suggest this book, it covers in some detail what is needed for family and larger fallout shelters as well as options for air filtering etc.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Survival-Option ... 056&sr=1-1

[xplosiv1]

it really depends how you want to go about building it.

if your in the middle on nowhere then you can just excavate the entire area and build then cover.

if your in the middle of a housing estate or have neighbors overlooking your site then it's probably not a good idea to make a spectacle of your project ........ they will figure out very quick what your doing....... and if SHTF you know where there gonna come knocking...... a covert build will take at least 3 times the amount of time.

with regards to the build itself again it really depends on your depth of cover and layout.

it would be advisable to get a structural/civil engineer to just look at your plans before you start, you really dont want to get close to completion and have walls collapse, this isnt a summer house at the end of the garden this is something you want to last long after your home.

I do a lot of work on nuclear power stations so I am familiar with the basic construction techniques they use ..... for top of the line concrete shelter your looking at at least double reenforced rebar 2-3ft thick walls and roof then at least 10 to 20 ft of earth on top.

I'm and Electrical engineer so no use to you unless your thinking of alternative power or wiring options.

[Hamradioop]

Have a look at this site http://www.civildefensemuseum.com/ . An american site.

http://www.civildefensemuseum.com/docs.html this links directly to the Documents page for Family Shelter Designs Booklet H-7, Expedient Fallout Shelter Plans and la lot of other stuff.

Hope it is of use.

[Devonian]

Shelter 4.5m x 8m x 4m

That is a big shelter which is going to take a lot of engineering!

Also why do you need a shelter that is 4m tall?? 2.5m would be more than enough, unless you are planning on driving in and storing a lorry inside?

I'm assuming that you are looking at constructing it below ground, if so, then that is a pretty major engineering task, although the thickness of walls and cover mentioned by Xplosive1 are more like blast walls than those used within a fall out shelter. If its an above ground structure, then there are a whole load of other concerns....

I'm a Civil Engineer and have been involved in the design of underground storm water storage tanks of that size and bigger and so have a bit of experience, and believe it or not, one of your biggest challenges may actually be trying to keep the shelter in the ground! Think about how difficult it is to hold an empty (sealed) coke bottle under water - you'll have the same problem with your shelter, unless design it against flotation.

Next assumption is that you are also going to be constructing it from reinforced concrete (this is the only realistic option for a below ground rectangular structure), in which case you are going to be looking at over 90 cubic meters of concrete, that's 15 or more full size ready concrete lorries plus tonnes and tonnes of heavy steel reinforcement which will need to be cut, bent and fixed in place, you are then going to have to erect formwork and shuttering to contain the wet concrete etc etc......

Plus all of this is going to need to pretty heavy duty machinery, your average mini digger or JCB 3CX are just not going to be up to the job.

Regardless of where you located, urban or rural, you are not going to be able to easily hide this work, it will stand out like a sore thumb from miles around.

Finally if you are worried about £2K in fees for an architect (though you should be talking to an engineer not an architect!), then this whole project clearly is just a pipe dream and you have no intention of proceeding with it as the cost for the construction of something of this size is easily going to be £100k+

[xplosiv1]

Devonian, some great points there.

I think it could easily go above £100,000 just for the basic construction as its simply not a one man saturday/sunday afternoon job and not a structure your average DIY'er should even attempt unless there building a tomb, then taking into account, drainage, power supplies, ventilation + co2 scrubbers, water storage/ filtration, heating this whole build could easily run £250,000.

[FEISTY]

Unless they get rid of Trident from directly outside my front door, I'm putting us down as a target and probably a direct hit. If we're lucky we'll have a few minutes to say our prayers . An exciting project if you think it will help you and your family. Good luck - keep us posted with pics.

[soutie]

Unless they get rid of Trident from directly outside my front door, I'm putting us down as a target and probably a direct hit. If we're lucky we'll have a few minutes to say our prayers . An exciting project if you think it will help you and your family. Good luck - keep us posted with pics.

a direct hit may be a blessing

[Bad Wombat]

...£2k to draw the plan up.

concrete-pipe-house. Fixed it for you.

[xplosiv1]

...£2k to draw the plan up.

concrete-pipe-house. Fixed it for you.

a plan is one thing, anyone can come up with a drawing of what they want but working out the structural loadings, stresses etc on walls, roof. are a completely different ball game.

the pipe house look's pretty cool though.