
Doomsday bunker companies enjoying big increase in business since pandemic began - bookofjoe
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/26/realestate/could-doomsday-bunkers-become-the-new-normal.html
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LinuxBender
Use care when considering these companies. I have been researching these for a
couple years now, and thus far I have seen some pros and cons. I won't name
names.

Pro: They can help you with getting permits and they are all-in-one for some
features you would expect. If you just need a fairly quick installation of a
safe room for your family to evade a tornado or hurricane, these are probably
the quickest path if you have $100+k laying around.

Con: They are super expensive and you are paying a premium for not getting a
local engineer to draft a plan and custom build a solution for you. These pre-
built containers are small and meant for short term usage. Their air
filtration systems are extremely expensive and yet still noisy. Their
generators are noisy and too close to the living quarters. They are not
designed to protect against civil unrest, as attackers can block / lock you
inside. They assume ground level is not a flood zone, so you have to ensure
that all water will run past your hatch. I mention this because even their own
videos show them building in flood zones. They have a ladder and hatch which
is not compatible with the elderly. You need to plan in advance for conduits,
welding and wiring for solar panels. The hatch is very small, which means
equipment has to be broken down before installing or replacing. Adding things
after the installation is completed may be problematic. Their sales people are
very pushy and make aggressive videos trying to take down their competitors.
Each claim to have a secret sauce which is a warning sign to me. This suggests
they are not following best practices that military bunkers have used for many
decades.

In my opinion, it might be better to research this well in advance and look
into existing plans created by people that have built "earth ships" and other
environmentally friendly geothermal optimized homes that are either partially
or completely under ground. There are thousands of videos on youtube of people
that have done this for about the same cost as these all-in-one solutions that
provide more living space, storage space, less dependency on generators, and
the list goes on. You may even be able to get a grant in some locations to
offset the cost of an earth ship.

