As we mentioned before, buying a pre-built bunker or building your own are the two main ways to go about it. Both can cost quite a bit!
If you don’t have a ton of money to spend, then designing and building your own survival retreat may be your best option. Fortunately, there are some very affordable options out there that anyone can use as their base.
A few years ago, only one really good option existed at this price level – the Coleman Total Protection Life Bunker. It was also one of the more elaborate designs at the time.
Since then, however, several companies have designed similar bunkers that are much cheaper. Some even offer free shipping too!
So how much does it cost to build your own personal refuge? We will compare some popular budget options here! Read on for our findings!
Disclaimer: This article should not be used to determine whether a self-defense measure is necessary or not. Only an expert in land defense techniques could make that determination.
What is the cheapest type of fallout shelter?
The most basic kind of fallout shelter is just a plastic container with a lid. A lot of people refer to these as “tin cans.” They are usually marketed as being earthquake safe, which is why they are so common.
These are definitely adequate shelters if you know what use them for. Unfortunately though, they are pretty poor quality.
Why Build a Fallout Shelter?
Having a safe place to go during or after a major disaster can save your life! While some people think building a bunker is very expensive, what really costs a lot more is not investing in one.
A decent quality blast proof room will cost around $10,000-15,000 dollars. The additional supplies like food and water can easily add up to double that price tag. It’s important to remember that you don’t have to live off of the snacks and bottles of water for two years!
Many people also underestimate how much electricity it takes to run basic electronics in a protected area. A small amount of power can help keep you connected to the outside world.
The last thing someone in a destroyed home needs to worry about is whether they have enough batteries to watch their favorite show. Luckily, technology has advanced so we can find plenty of ones that are no longer needed discarded year round.
A DIY Guide to Building a Fallout Shelter
Finding a place to park your car during a major disaster can be tricky at best, let alone figuring out how to safely store all of your survival supplies!
Luckily, you do not have to go into debt buying a pre-made bunker or paying large monthly fees for a safety room anymore! In this article, we will show you how to build your own underground shelter using only readily available materials.
By practicing these steps, you will know what goes in yours and someone else’s shelter. This way, you are supporting a community effort while also ensuring that everything you need to survive a nuclear apocalypse is within easy reach.
To make it even more practical, most people who built their shelters took around a month to complete. During that time, they could save money by learning about the needs of the shelter and gathering needed items from various sources.
What makes an adequate shelter depends on whether you expect a short term or long term stay so there are no hard and fast rules. What works for one person may not work well for another depending on where they live and how much food they have stored up.
Where Can You Build One?
The easiest place to start building your own bunker is by buying or renting an appropriate-size plot of land. If you have enough space, build a wall around it and make it your new home!
That’s not practical though unless you are very rich. So what else is possible?
You can also take out loans to pay for equipment and supplies to build your own underground survival retreat. A good source for information about doing this is the Government. They may even help you find lenders that will loan money to individuals or groups to do it.
A great way to save money while starting up your bunker project is by sourcing used items instead of brand new ones. There will almost certainly be people with old bunkers that no longer work so check those out!
Another option is to see if anyone else has a bunker they are no longer using and try to borrow gear from them or rent some equipment before investing in your own.
Is There Any Benefit to Having a Fallout Shelter?
The short answer to this question is yes, there is some small benefit in having a preparedness tool like a self-contained survival shelter. But it’s so little that most experts agree you don’t need one unless the area around your home becomes too dangerous due to a nuclear attack or other disasters.
Some say that stockpiling food is the better way to be prepared because even if you run out of food, you still have survived. Others argue that putting up a barrier can help protect yourself from any contaminated areas outside of the shelter.
But none of these arguments justify spending large amounts of money on preparation. Because while it may not make much sense to spend lots of cash on a bunker, there are ways to get good quality shelters for a price that are affordable.
When Should You Build a Fallout Shelter?
The average person should have a 1 foot by 1-foot concrete slab as their basic structure, says Barry Bruchac, director of marketing for Impact Systems, a company that manufactures low cost survival shelters.
This small space can be packed very densely with enough food to last you several months and a few candles. It’s also easily accessible so if there’s an emergency, you can get into it quickly.
If someone really wanted a better quality fallout shelter they could spend around $1,000 or more, but most people don’t need something like that yet!
Bruhac recommends buying a one square meter (10 sq ft) plastic tarp and putting up a dry wall barrier in your basement to create your bunker. This will keep out rain and snow, and you can use it to cover yourself or make a bed.
Fallout Shelter Cost Calculator
As we have discussed before, investing in a bunker or a survival kit is a great way to prepare for disaster. However, how much money you need to invest really depends on your budget and what kind of coverage you have now.
If you are living paycheck to paycheck, putting aside some cash up front can be difficult. It is not recommended that people with no savings purchase a pre-made bunkers at this time.
Luckily, there are ways to know how much a quality bunker costs so that you do not have to spend as much money as others who buy ready made shelters! There are many websites that offer cost calculators to determine if a preparedness plan is worth it for you.
By using these cost calculators, you will know whether or not buying a ready made shelter is affordable for you.
Build a bunker with concrete walls
The next step in building your underground survival space is deciding where to begin. This will determine how much money you spend, as there are costs for every component of the shelter.
The most important thing to know about creating an effective shelter is that it’s not enough just to have a roof; you need to ensure that no rain gets in. This would cost more than just buying a bag of plastic sheeting!
Instead, use heavy duty tarp material or waterproof canvas covers. If possible, sew these into one large cover so that they can be taken down and re-sewn if needed.
Because this will reduce insulation, you may want to invest in extra blankets to layer up underneath the tarp.
You also do not want water getting in through windows or doors, so make sure those are well sealed. This could include using caulking or other materials to fill any holes.
A second option is to build an earthen floor, but again, make sure it is completely dry! Porous mats are inexpensive ways to achieve this.
Find out how much it costs to buy land
Buying or renting an adequate home base is very expensive, even more so if you don’t want to live close to other people in general and can’t afford to be isolated at times.
Fortunately, there are ways to purchase or lease an acre of land for your survival retreat that cost less than $20,000! And some will only set you back one or two thousand dollars more per year to use it every month.
These free and low-cost options include educational institutions, state parks, national forests, and military bases that offer part or all of their land to anyone who lives within a certain distance. Some even have community resources like gyms, libraries, and swimming pools available to use.
We will discuss several such alternatives in this article, along with some others that may seem weird but could actually help make your life after a pandemic as good or better than before it happened.