Most people in this part of Texas have a plan for a tornado warning, and for most people the plan is an interior room without windows. It is better than nothing. It is not the same thing as a shelter built to be hit.
We install concrete storm shelters set into the ground on your property. It sits oddly next to septic work until you realize both jobs are the same skill: we already own the excavation equipment and we already know how to put something heavy into the ground correctly.
What an in-ground shelter is
A concrete shelter set below grade, with a door built to stay shut against wind and debris. You go down a few steps and you are below the level that flying debris travels at.
That last part is the difference. The danger in a tornado is largely what the wind is carrying, and an interior hallway keeps you away from windows but leaves you inside a structure that can come apart. Below ground, the ground does the work.
Where it goes on the property
Close to the house matters more than people expect. A shelter you have to cross the yard to reach in the dark, in rain, with children, is a shelter you may hesitate to use. Hesitation is the failure mode.
Practical considerations we work through on site:
- How far it is from the door you will actually leave by
- Whether the ground drains, so the access is not standing water in spring
- Where the septic tank and drain field are, since we are not excavating through those
- Where utility lines run
- Whether a truck and excavator can reach the spot
Knowing where the septic system sits is the part we are unusually well placed for. If we installed or have pumped your system, we already know.
Why the timing is backwards from what you would think
Demand for shelters rises in spring, right when severe weather is on people’s minds, and that is the hardest time to do the work. The ground is often saturated, and the calendar is full of people who all called the same week.
Installation is excavation. Saturated ground means a harder dig, more mess and a heavy machine on soft turf. Late summer and fall are the better windows: firmer ground, a shorter wait, and the shelter is in place before the season it exists for.
If you are reading this in March, that does not mean wait a year. It means call and understand the schedule rather than expecting it done this week.
What to have ready inside
A shelter is only as useful as your willingness to use it at two in the morning. Things worth keeping in it permanently, so nothing has to be gathered:
- A flashlight and spare batteries, kept in the shelter rather than in the kitchen drawer
- A battery or hand crank weather radio
- Water and something to eat
- Shoes, because debris afterwards is the injury nobody plans for
- A basic first aid kit
- A whistle, which carries further than a voice if you need to signal
Add a phone charger and keep a copy of anything you would hate to lose in there. It costs nothing to store and it removes the temptation to go back inside for it.
Decide who goes, before
Work out in advance who collects which child, who brings the dog, and who is responsible for closing the door. Families who have not had that conversation lose time to it in the moment, and the warning time you get is short.
Agree the trigger too. A warning for your county means go, not watch the sky and decide.
Getting a straight answer on your property
Whether an in-ground shelter makes sense depends on your ground, your access and where your existing systems sit. That is a site visit, not a phone quote.
We will come and look, tell you where it can reasonably go and what the excavation involves, and if your property is a poor candidate we will say so. More on the work itself on the storm shelter page, and if you want the septic system located at the same time we can do both on one visit with an inspection.
Call (903) 885-4946. Someone answers any hour, any day.
Common questions
Is an interior room as safe as a storm shelter?
No. An interior room without windows keeps you away from glass, but you are still inside a structure that can come apart, and most tornado injuries come from flying debris. An in-ground shelter puts you below the level that debris travels at.
When is the best time to have a storm shelter installed?
Late summer or fall. Installation is an excavation job, and spring ground is often saturated, which makes the dig harder and messier. Spring is also when everyone calls at once, so the wait is longest exactly when you want it finished.
Can you install a shelter if I have a septic system?
Yes, and knowing where the tank and drain field sit is part of choosing the location. We will not excavate through them. If we installed or have pumped your system we already know where it runs, which makes siting the shelter straightforward.
Need someone to look at it?
Site visits across Sulphur Springs and Northeast Texas.
Someone answers any hour, any day