One of my buildings is block on slab...

I have collected salvaged concrete and brick from city sidewalk work and construction sites that I have worked on.

I stacked the 40-100 lb pieces of rubble, not mortared, 3 feet tall and 3 feet wide around the base of my building. It helps with drainage... (the slab doesn't stay wet anymore) which was one of the main reasons this particular building was abandoned... and it heavily fortifies the structure from, say, a car coming off the main road or bullets from urban combat. Flowering vines over the rubble keep code enforcement officials at bay.

Personally... I'm headed out of downtown very shorty...


Off to build log cabins in the hinterlands.


I am,

Sri Oracle

An underground home, I really like that idea. Could also incorporate some of the other ideas into that because even an underground house has to have an exit or two to the surface.
I'm learning more and more everyday
Thank you all.

Originally posted by reluctantpawn
Personally I think it is better to be able to move about freely in a defensive situation. You will always need an out. In my opinion it is better to hit and run even if you are retreating.

Well and true... but sometimes you are out weeding in the garden and a tornado skips through your neighborhood....


...having a good brick and mortar bunker with a heavy wooden door to count on comes in handy...

even if you do not "own" it... it is good to have a place you know you and your family (and pets) are personally welcome to seek immediate shelter when and if... a temple

...been through 2" hailstorms, icestorms, blizzards, tornadoes, and hurricanes. I've seen the SHTF... I've seen clear and present, life threatening, evil; at times living in a tent.

If you're going to live above ground and you wish to fortify what you have... I recommend salvaged plank walls, floor, and ceiling; screwed together with deck screws driven by 850rpm drill. For the most part; the older the lumber the better.... trees were bigger back when. A brick, stone, or masonry exterior is good.... else encase the exterior in logs. Something "in the spirit of" simpson strong ties on all of your rafter tails... Masonry Piers weighing at least 650 lbs each.


I restore condemned buildings... structurally unsound becomes habitable when I leave.


I am,

Sri Oracle

Originally posted by Hypntick

An underground house would solve almost all of these problems.

3 men can comfortably fit in a 500 gallon steel fuel tank for a short period.

On low budget such a container could be obtained and then encased in concrete below grade.

Approx 1.5 meter diameter, 2 meters long.


An underground house is a great end goal; having something small, doable, affordable, and tangible, here and now, safe and sturdy, is also very important.


Sri Oracle

Originally posted by Sri Oracle

Personally... I'm headed out of downtown very shorty...


Off to build log cabins in the hinterlands.

the best idea i have heard so far. why stick around town where all the gun-toting desperadoes hang about, fueled by greed and desperation, looking for any poor chap to waste away just to have a bite to eat, or some tastey medications to keep them going.

just bugg out to the country, live on a wooded hill where there are no building codes or bureaucrats halting your endevours of bunker building. plant a farm, set up a water collection tank, or use a local stream or river, learn some carpentry and other DIY trades. the more you know about the home you live in, the better.

Originally posted by funny_pom
just bugg out to the country, live on a wooded hill where there are no building codes or bureaucrats halting your endevours of bunker building. plant a farm, set up a water collection tank, or use a local stream or river, learn some carpentry and other DIY trades. the more you know about the home you live in, the better.

Now if I could just figure out how to cover the half million in debt I owe to "society"... I'd be on my way.

Sri Oracle

What are we 'hardening' our homes against?
If it's a martial law thing, your best off getting away from towns and cities. If you're rural, you make yourself invisible. Build a shelter somewhere. Don't stay in the house.

Then head to land where there people will think there is not much food! They can't irradiate all the country, can they?
I think if things descend to that level, I'll be hijacking a boat outta here.

4" nails driven into tarmac drives and walkways around the premesis so they protrude 2" above the surface will shred tyres and boot soles of approaching attackers and their vehicles.

Barricades can be made from gabions constructed from scavenged chain-link fencing and packed with rubble and will 'give' under vehicle impact

Also, consider digging deep 1mtr+ pits around the immediate perimeter of the property, lining with heavy-grade garden waste bags and filling with water to provide a system of cisterns to add to your water supply, and to act as pitfall traps to intruders

Another neat trick is to remove the putty from your windows and replace with silicone sealant instead. This will flex and hold glass shards in place if a window is broken, making it even more hazardous to those who try to break in by this route and save the window so it can be repaired using fabric tape soaked with silicone sealant, much like how stain-glass windows are constructed, but with more flexibility and resilience