I’ve thought of a culvert pipe to crawl into.

I think for a shelter to be used, it needs to be close and easy to get into and comfortable enough to stay in for several hours if needed. If it's not close, clean and comfortable folks won't go in or stay in it until all the storms/dangers pass.

In-swing vault door on a concrete and rebar enforced room. Pay once cry once. If you know you’re gonna live there forever it’s worth the investment.

Yep, to decrease risk, you have increase comfort as much as you increase “hardening”’

I dug hole 12x10 . Poured 6” floor concrete with rebar . 12” blocks for walls 8ft tall . Built form for top was hardest thing. Lots bracing under bottom before pour . Pour the walls full concrete and 10” on top with lots rebar . Put a pvc pipe in center of roof for some vent . . Drain in floor also . I built a huge thick door out of wood that opens to the inside . I need get a fema approve metal door a get the shelter approved by them an i get cost off state taxes . Bout 4k total cost but it was friends a family deal on the block laying a concrete . It’s bout $ 150 a yard here . I put mine up aganist any tornado . I also seal the outside before I covered it up an put drain around bottom on sides

How do you “get cost off state taxes” by building a tornado shelter? I’m not familiar with that, but definitely interested to know more about it.

Could you make a storm shelter from a 20 foot shipping container? Set the container on a concrete slab and anchor it. Reinforce the doors.

Im leaning toward burying a 20ft container in bank....researching now.

You could put it in a hill or bank and use the existing door or put a steel door in the end. Don't see why you couldn't leave 2-3 feet sticking up out of the ground and put a couple of vents in it. If you bury it only leaving one end slightly exposed , you could still put a vent in the end. Just make sure the exposed end isn't facing west .

Good redneck Idee, a box off a milk truck would be great .

I have one that I got one installed a few years back from Lake Martin Storm Shelters. It is a above ground 12 x 12 with a reinforced steel door $8500.00 all in. It weighs 22,000/lbs and is anchored to a concrete pad F5 rated. I live in outside Childersburg not far from Winterboro where I went to school. Lots of memories in that gym. You can get a tax credit from the state mine was $3000.00 for having it installed. It was money well spent.

make sure you account for torrential rain/flooding

Several old milk trucks are buried around here too.
Really guys it’s hard to plan for an F5, but you’d like to build one that’s safe from “most” tornadoes that come through here. “Most” are not that large. My FIL built one out of block in a bank at their house. He built it with a corner to help shield from debris and suction (he said). You have to go in, walk down a small hallway to the left, then there’s the door to the shelter. The doors hidden behind a block wall also.

What I read up on it . If u build a fema approved shelter the cost is tax deductible on state return . After construction fema sends inspection to ur place and they have approve it . I know mine won’t get approval right now because I don’t have metal door yet . I think there are specs on their wed site with details how to build one to their specs

Like someone said the credit is maxed out at $3k for state of al. Most only pay 2500. I forgot that part

FEMA inspector onsite….

we had a spetic tank put into a berm in the back yard and had a steel door built that open to the inside and had steel tube top and bottom that set into shackels like a old barn door to keep it closed. Was about as cheap as we could come up with. Just make sure to set it so as the water can drian away from it. We needed to have added about 6" more rock under it then we did cause it saddled more than we thought it would.

You my man have won the internet today.

I went to Winterboro as well.

From what I've been a reading, you can encase a cardboard box in concrete but it must have a fema approved door.