Root/storm cellar water control?

S

Sid Post

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Oct 14, 1998
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After multiple tornado near misses, I'm committed to making a storm shelter at my mothers place. I also want to use this to store produce from our garden. Our land is flat so, digging into a hillside isn't an option. How do you seal an underground cellar? The place I am at now fills up with water real fast if the sump pump fails like it did when the EF-5 took out power for a week at my rental place. I'm looking to use concrete and cinder blocks but, I don't have a clue how to keep the water out. I have also considered using a large culvert at a angle to an open "back". With an elevated floor to provide a walking space and the slope to carry water away, I'm wondering if it would drain enough keep the culvert dry.

If there is a good website to study, please include the link. The FEMA website was a good start but, it leaves a lot of open questions.
 
Sounds like the water table is only a few feet below the surface. At least, during certain times of the year. IMO - You need to build something that is water tight and the least expensive material that I know of would be fiberglass with an interior gel coating. Build it above ground, dig the hole, place it, anchor it to keep it from floating to the surface cover it. You can build it in place but you will be fighting standing water every step of the way. I think any type of masonry construction will leak sooner or later. Although, they do build concrete boats. I'm not sure how they waterproof them. Design in a good dehumidifier and an alternate escape route. You might be able to use a fiberglass pool turned upside down. Epoxy a fiberglass floor on it and it should be acceptable.
 
Check out the coating they use on thiers, it called "cold tar epoxy" from Sherwin Williams, look under coatings.

http://cozycaverns.com/specs.html

Another option would be a safe room inside the house, or on an anchored, poured concrete pad. I would just make SURE that it could withstand multiple high speed hits from debris. Something like structural poured concrete, then lined with 6" x 6"s. Concrete blocks do not stand up to a 2 x 4 at high speed. I'm just sayin.
 
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Cinder blocks are pretty weak so, I know they won't take a high speed hit from debris. They also won't provide any temperature regulation when you have no power. That's part of the reason I'm looking for something under ground.
 
Find the water table depth,
then put the floor of your shelter just above that.
You can use cinder blocks for walls,just fill them with cement.
(rebar will also aid in tieing the structure together)
mound dirt around the walls of the shelter.
You could use a storm cellar "hatch" type door if the "roof"
or a regular steel door in one of the walls.
Depending on the depth of the water table,your shelters
ceiling may be only a few feet above ground level.
you basically will have an underground shelter


please also check the FEMA site
they have plans for free downloading
might get some ideas...
http://www.fema.gov/library/viewRecord.do?id=1536
http://www.fema.gov/plan/prevent/saferoom/shplans/
 
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