Safe rooms are rooms in a house that have reinforced and doors and a way to secure the entrance to bar virtually any entry – be it from humans or in the event of a natural disaster such as a tornado or earthquake.

While in some areas of the country safe rooms are mandatory in new construction, many people are opting to include them in new houses as a precaution or adding them into their existing homes.

Choose the Right Safe Room for Your Area

Build your room to address the seismic, weather and other potential hazards you are likely to face in your area. Look at every aspect of the room, including the entrance – a weak door is a fail point. A strong door in a weak frame is a fail point. I think most of us have seen tornado and hurricane debris driven through tree trunks and appliances – a standard lightweight door is not going to cut it. Make sure the door opens in, not out, in case debris blocks the exit.

Safe Room Crossbracing and Foundations

Proper crossbracing/reinforcement in the walls and ceiling is essential. A safe room that collapses under load (winds, building collapse, etc) is nothing more than a death trap. Do some research before you build – don’t be that guy who just starts digging a hole in the backyard, only to run into a high water table or unstable earth. Don’t think you can just bury any old container in the yard and call it good. Soil is heavy, and wet soil is even heavier.

Whether your safe room is at or below ground level, make sure it is securely tied in to a foundation.

Adding a safe room to your home design or to your existing home is CRITICAL to ensure you're protecting yourself and your family from whatever potentially dangerous or harmful situation that comes your way. We all hope that we'll never need to use something like this, but in the event of a SHTF scenario you'll be glad you thought ahead and prepared because that forethought kept you alive!

To learn more about what to cover when making a decision to build or add a safe room to your home, please visit Common Sense Homesteading.