(800) 853-2651
SHOP NOW

OT- Storm shelters Hey, Old

M

Mike (WA)

Well-known Member
Latest edition of Farm Show has a steel cylindrical storm shelter that you install on the concrete floor in the garage- 4 foot diameter, 3/16" steel with ribs to withstand a 15 lb. projectile at 100 mph. $1,800 plus installation.

Many in Oklahoma have storm shelters to run to in a tornado, but then, they're in "tornado alley". How about the rest of you in the midwest? Anybody have storm shelters? If not, what's "the plan" in case of a twister?

And we haven't heard from Old in awhile, and I think he's in that critical area- You OK, Rich?
 
We're still a couple of weeks out before our's is scheduled to be installed. It's pretty much a rectangle concrete septic tank with a door and vent.
 
Pretty much everyone in the midwest has a safe place to go in case of a tornado. How safe ranges from a hardened underground bunker to under the kitchen table. We were always taught to seek refuge in the south west corner of the basement of our house. Was down there a few times but never had to find out if it was safe enough or not, thank goodness! Our school had the locker rooms in an underground part of the building which was also a civil defence shelter as well as storm shelter. The local trailer park has a concete bunker built half buried/half bermed for residents to seek shelter in.
 
Not a bad idea Dave!, I have been kicking that around myself.We don't have tornadoes here ( I HOPE )but I would like to have a root cellar, to store produce in. I still havent figgured out how to put stairs, and a door on a septic tank, but a sump pump wouldn't be hard to do, or the ventelation.
 
If it happens in the day time - would head into the basement and get in a corner or under the stairs.

If it happens at night time - we will probably all blow away. Our bedrooms are all upstairs... full two story house. By the time the sound wakes us, it would be too late I assume.

In 27 years, we have only had to take the entire family downstairs once. It was for straight-line winds in excess of 90 mph (cannot imagine tornado force winds!). Our old house was creaking and groaning. Sounded like it was going to lift-off the foundation, you could actually feel the house moving. Due to the wind - rain was shooting in a fine mist about 3 feet into our living room from between the top & bottom sections our LOCKED double hung window panes. I think I felt almost as scared at our kids did.
 
I live in Southern Illinois, and there was a bad one here in 1925. My dad used to point out all of the little bermed bunkers in the back yards of the houses in the towns that it went thru. I'm a cemetery photo nut, and it's not unusual to see a whole string of stones with the death date of March 18, 1925.

To answer your question - yes we have a hidey-hole - two in fact - a basement and a concrete roofed cellar under the smokehouse. Both have outside entrances, and they are open to all of the neighbors, whether we're home or not. We've hidden in both of them - several times. Tornado parties, we call them.

Here's a link to the daddy of all tornadoes.
March 18, 1925
 
Southwest corner most likely to be facing the incoming storm. If house gets lifted and dropped, it most likely will fall in on you in that corner. Least that's what I've been told. We have a centrally located stairway in the basement. That's probably the best protection for us.
 
mike, we head for the basement when the tornado sirens go off. if you are outside, you are supposed to lay down in a ditch. there are companies that sell tornado shelters that are precast concrete with a steel door, you can bury them along a fence line in the field if you are caught out on the tractor in a storm. they say to never take shelter under an overpass as the wind and debris channel thru there.
 
We're getting one that is built and looks just like this one. Not sure if it's fema approved but it looks well built.

http://www.texasshelters.com/original.htm

Not the same company though, we're using Clint down here on I-45 by Corsicana that has the business next to the Casita factory. $3,240 installed.

We'll most likely be in a mobil home for a few more years and as much as I've been putting it off and telling my better half I'll come up with something soon...well, she saw what happened in Oklahoma and pretty much advised me when it's going to be delivered.

The only think I see wrong so far is the vents are going to blow off right off the bat and we need to make sure and add a jack inside in case we get buried under rubble.
 
How do you keep the steel tube (what they are calling a storm shelter) from blowing away? Using 6 or 10 bolts in 4"-6" thick concrete isn't going to keep in in place - especially if you get hit with anything like they got in Moore. If it stands 4' tall that's going to catch a lot of 200 MPH wind. And the "projectiles" flying around are going to be a lot heavier than 15 pounds.

A good shelter is below grade or barely above grade.
 
You need to get a NOAA Weather Radio.

http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/

We had a tornado on the ground headed to our place and never knew it until my brother (over 100 miles away) called and told us. He was watching the the weather man on TV freak out telling everyone in its path to take cover. We had gone to bed and had no idea. You can set them to go off for warnings in just your county.
 
(quoted from post at 22:04:47 05/22/13) You need to get a NOAA Weather Radio.

http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/

We had a tornado on the ground headed to our place and never knew it until my brother (over 100 miles away) called and told us. He was watching the the weather man on TV freak out telling everyone in its path to take cover. We had gone to bed and had no idea. You can set them to go off for warnings in just your county.
Click to expand...

I spent $10 on the iMap Weather Radio and it seems to be working well. I get the alerts anywhere I go for whatever cities I've programmed it to use AND where ever I'm at. Pretty much a link to noaa though the phone.
 
Rare in Massachusetts, but had one two years ago. Thankfully it died out before it hit us. The last sighting of the funnel was literally right down the road from our house.

I heard it on the radio - they were listing the towns it had gone through, well west of us, nothing to worry about...

but they'd name another town... and another... and another ... making a beeline right at us.

Threw the family in the car and drove south 90 degrees to its path.

Scary driving, but hit sunshine soon enough.

I guess seeing these things all the time happening to you guys in the Midwest, I never really appreciated how far they travel.

It's one thing to hear the numbers, or see it on a map of unfamiliar territory - but you see it in a whole new perspective when it's in your back yard with familiar landmarks for distance.

A mere windstorm compared to some of the big ones you guys get, but gave me a new appreciation for what you have to worry about out there.
a116292.jpg
 
We have a standard basement with heavy fir stairs with cubby build underneath. Holds 6 of us but not comfortable at all. My Dad had poured a furnace room with 6" concrete ceiling when we were kids but never had to use it. In 98 or 99 I road out severe thunderstom warning in the front bathroom cubbie of a 208 ton locomotive at work rather then trying to make a run for a building shelter. I figured that if debris made it through that 3/8" steel hood piece or picked THAT thing up It was destined to be my time anyway.
 
Poured concrete wall basement with a place under the stairs. tv, weather radio. also has good exit route. This is in nw alabama.
 
It might be surprising to some---it was to me---that most of the top ten tornado states are not in the midwest. The Gulf Coast states---Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina, Alabama and Louisiana---dominate the list, and, get this, the top tornado state is Florida. Go figure. Even wilder, Maryland is in the list. I'm pretty sure Texas and Arkansas just barely missed the top ten.

Granted, the midwest seems to have the monopoly on the monster storms.

Here in northwest Louisiana we have the small ones (an occasional F3, and rarely a brief F4) with disturbing regularity, during all times of the year. I have been through four or five myself, including one last week that was in the air over my house just before it touched down. Four have struck with a half-mile of my place since I've lived here.

We get in the bathroom, as I don't have a shelter or even anything that would serve as a shelter. I don't personally know anyone who has a shelter, but I'm sure there are some. I've thought of just digging a hole and putting a well curb or sewer-type box down in it, with a cover to just keep the varmints out. With all our trees, I sure wouldn't want a shelter with
a door that opened outward. I'd rather be killed in the tornado than to starve to death.
 
In Kansas you just take it as something that may well happen. One hit the house when I was growing up. Just my folks and I home. We were in the basement with a mattress on top of us. We all made it out. The debris was very interesting - you should see what it does to a golf ball (it hit a course about five miles before it got to the farm).

The basement here was originally a dirt floor cellar. I don't think it would hold up under the circumstances. With only a little warning we would get into the culvert off the dirt road. We've got neighbors with good basements with enough lead time. I don't really want to be around all of these old tin buildings when they fly apart. I'd also rather not be hit by a cow or hog.
 
Pjh thanks for sharing the link. Very interesting bit of history. Hopefully never anything such as that again but being in Illinois we are still in the path
 
When I built this place the first project was the storm shelter. It's a concrete culvert in my approach, with the nice flares, and is 34 inches in diameter. Lots of room for me and two dogs and two exits, just like most varmint holes!
 
Had a few thunder storms in the last couple weeks but nothing real bad. The plan is if I can figure out how to afford it is to build a earth home that hooks to a cave system I know if behind what I live in now. All comes down to time and $$. As it is now we live in an old run down mobile home that sits behind a hill that blocks most tornado's. In 2003 we had many bad tornado's and they all missed my place and my parents place but not by much
 
New a guy at Springerton Il. who was a 1925 survivor. It killed his dad, wrapped him up in barbed wire. He had a bad scar on his face. Said it broke both his mothers arms. Strangest thing was that they gained a mule! Our house was hit about 23 years ago, in the tornado that went from Marion to Indiana. Moved the house about 1 inch NE. Blew all the windows out and the roof off, but it is made from (Illinois pine) and has full 1 inch boards at a angle on the roof and walls. Blew the shop and horse barns away! most of the stuff is a 1/2 mile away in a woods, most still there. I was the only one home, turned green outside and got real quiet and warm (january) I went to the basement and got in the SW corner. No sooner than I got there the windows blew in with the loudest sound I have ever heard. We've been down there a few times since. Another big tornado just missed us by 2 miles. Vic
 
(quoted from post at 20:40:08 05/22/13) I have something called a basement. Is that a storm shelter?
Click to expand...

Unless the building collapses on it blocking the exit and it fills with water and you drown (happened in OK in that storm!)
 
(quoted from post at 14:56:16 05/22/13) Rare in Massachusetts, but had one two years ago. Thankfully it died out before it hit us. The last sighting of the funnel was literally right down the road from our house.

I heard it on the radio - they were listing the towns it had gone through, well west of us, nothing to worry about...

but they'd name another town... and another... and another ... making a beeline right at us.

Threw the family in the car and drove south 90 degrees to its path.

Scary driving, but hit sunshine soon enough.

JR when was this? I think I may have been there at the time.

I guess seeing these things all the time happening to you guys in the Midwest, I never really appreciated how far they travel.

It's one thing to hear the numbers, or see it on a map of unfamiliar territory - but you see it in a whole new perspective when it's in your back yard with familiar landmarks for distance.

A mere windstorm compared to some of the big ones you guys get, but gave me a new appreciation for what you have to worry about out there.
a116292.jpg
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

S
Way ot storm shelters
Replies
7
Views
2K
oleclint
O
Tractor Parts Tractor Manuals

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Copyright © 1997-2024 Yesterday's Tractor Co.

All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.

Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters
Website Accessibility Policy

Back
Top