Outdoor vs garage below-ground storm shelters???

[Aku]

I hired Ground Zero to install an in-garage shelter. Had to fight Del City for the permit. At the time, in-garage ventless shelters were not allowed. Unknown whether they continue to be prohibited. This has been some time back now. But actually had to talk with the fire chief, city manager,and city counsel, to get it done.

 

[Hangfire]

We pondered on in ground vs above ground in the garage for awhile then the people across the street had a in ground 6 person size installed in their garage floor and one day mama and I walked across the street and ask them if we could get inside of it just to see how we felt......when we got down in it and slid the door shut we both new instantly that it wasn't for us and apparently we're both claustrophobic.

After getting down in theirs I also thought about what if one of us had gotten hurt, had a recent surgery or was in a wheelchair or on crutches before we needed to climb down inside of it......couldn't do it.

We ended up having a above ground in the garage installed by Ground Zero 1-24-2014 and we both feel comfortable sitting in it with the door closed.......I don't know the 'how many person rating' it is but it's 4' W x 6' L x 6 1/2' tall inside and there's more than enough room for both of us and the things that we want to have inside with us.

Above ground or in ground is up to each individual but I feel based on Oklahomas history for tornados everyone needs a shelter of some sort.

Ground Zero Storm Shelters - Storm Shelters & Tornado Shelters in the US

 

[yukonjack]

Well there are reports of people drowning in the garage shelters and natural gas poisoning if the house gets destroyed over top of them. But the outdoor sloped shelters are partially above ground and I just don't know if that concrete slope could handle a direct hit by an airborne Chevy Suburban from an F5?

I saw the sloped outdoor shelters take a direct hit from a Ford F250 in the May 2011 EF-5 tornado that hit Piedmont. The shelter survived intact as did the occupants. I have one of these in my backyard now. The selling point for me was the fact I can stand upright in it.

 

[1911Sooner]

We pondered on in ground vs above ground in the garage for awhile then the people across the street had a in ground 6 person size installed in their garage floor and one day mama and I walked across the street and ask them if we could get inside of it just to see how we felt......when we got down in it and slid the door shut we both new instantly that it wasn't for us and apparently we're both claustrophobic.

After getting down in theirs I also thought about what if one of us had gotten hurt, had a recent surgery or was in a wheelchair or on crutches before we needed to climb down inside of it......couldn't do it.

We ended up having a above ground in the garage installed by Ground Zero 1-24-2014 and we both feel comfortable sitting in it with the door closed.......I don't know the 'how many person rating' it is but it's 4' W x 6' L x 6 1/2' tall inside and there's more than enough room for both of us and the things that we want to have inside with us.

Above ground or in ground is up to each individual but I feel based on Oklahomas history for tornados everyone needs a shelter of some sort.

Ground Zero Storm Shelters - Storm Shelters & Tornado Shelters in the US

View attachment 353433

View attachment 353434

That's the one I have just a little bigger.

 

[turkeyrun]

Our garage is 2 car. The outer space is the car garage. The inner area is workshop / storage, no garage door, but brick wall.

The hidey hole door is in the garage, the box is under the driveway. The door lifts out to open. The door has a 4" lip to prevent flooding. I spray around the door and turbine for bugs, every 90 days.

The box is 10'x10'x6.5'. Wind turbine vent. Battery fan. Battery lights. 2 large, hydraulic bottle jacks. We have had 10 adults and 4 dogs comfortably set out several storms.

I have used an underground, away from the house, several times. Middle of the night, in blowing, torrential rain is not fun, but we had shelter.

Inside, above ground gets more appealing, the older I get. The last big storm, getting Mom into the hidey hole and then back up the steps was a chore.

Type, location is personal choice, but research the structure and installation.

I had looked into and designed an above ground, DIY shelter, gun room, loading room; but moved here before building it.

 

[hammerdown51]

I have an above ground shelter in my garage like this one.

View attachment 353314

Me too.

 

[CST]

We had a custom built one put into the under stairwell closet.

 

[sh00ter]

They flat out installed the below ground incorrectly then. They joys of the water table in Oklahoma… it’s why all good in grounds have a sacrificial anode. Depending on time of year you hear water squishing around under ours. Had it 10 years now, no problems. Has been great for working on the brz.

My parents had an in-ground hole dug and the water table was too high so the company had to re-fill the hold with concrete and sold them an above ground instead. The garage floor looks weird now with the big mis-matched square.

 

[trekrok]

I remember flying out not long after the 1999 tornado. It looked like a giant eraser path. Sections of asphalt roads and parking lots just gone.

Each version of shelter has pros/cons obviously and will depend on the person or families particular situation. For me, I don't want it outside because I don't want to deal with hail, lightening and rain getting to it. I just can't trust above ground after seeing the path of the Moore F5 from the air. I'm sure they are fine, but for me, I want to be under ground.

 

[Birdseed]

We have an in ground sloped storm shelter. We had a F3 tornado go thru our back yard not 30 feet from the shelter, we felt safe enough, but I was still scared sh-tless! Anything storm shelter that you are happy with, is the right one! Be safe this tornado season!