Under ground shelter/root cellar

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I poured the top ledge to retain the dirt on the roof and removed the form for it. I also got a warm enough day to put the final coat of fibered coating on the outside of the shelter. When it's dry I will do a topcoat of roof cement and put tar paper onto it, glueing it to the sides and top. I still need a retention along the front of each side to keep the dirt in place. I guess I'll form and pour it shortly. I'm really looking fowards to covering this thing up with dirt!View attachment 4147View attachment 4148 View attachment 4149

Very very nice! it also looks (background) as if you have another project going?
 
Been a while since I posted any progression on this. I finished sealing the outside, with 1 coat of fibered foundation coating, a coat of roof cement and 30lb roof felt, and finally a sheet of plastic. I'll rent a bobcat to properly bury it soon, but threw a few shovels of dirt on it to just feel good :).
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The weather is finally getting better again! So I'm back at it :). Today I got the first coat of primer/sealer on the interior of the root cellar. I also bought the hinges and bolts for the outer door, which I'm planning on making tomorrow. To help control moisture and mold I am going to apply a second coat of primer and then two coats of paint. I decided to go with a two door system. The exterior door is for strength against winds, the interior door will add strength and and insulation to help with temperature control.it felt good to start moving on the project again.
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I built the outer door this morning. It's tounge and groove 3/4" boards, with 3/8 plywood and 3/4" plywood screwed and glued together. It's pretty solid anyways. I'm letting the glue dry and will get it fitted and painted this coming week. I'm about to go out and put the first coat of paint inside the shelter. Luckily it's small and dosent take too long, as I really don't like painting.
 
The first coat of paint is on the inside, hopefully sealing out any moisture. I'll get a second coat on in the
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next couple days. I took the door to the opening and fitted it (trimming to fit well). It's back on my shop table, is sanded and caulked, ready to get primed and painted. I feel like it's painfully slow progress, but am glad to see it move fowards again. I sure wish I had more hours in the day sometimes. My 40 hr job sure gets in the way of me working on my 'projects'. I just got the door primed, and will get the first coat of paint on it tomorrow
 
hope to do something like that in the future...but will have to see.
 
hope to do something like that in the future...but will have to see.
It's a worthwhile project, but is pretty labor intensive. Which I had been born rich and could pay someone else to do the labor! I think electricity may (will) become scarce in the future, so I'm trying to set myself up to be as comfortable as possible without it. Having a place to store food is kind of high on my list. I got a good quality deadbolt lock installed tonight! I still need to install the door stop on the inside, but at least it's secured now. Can't wait to start storing wine in it!
 
even sideways.it still looks good...bet its right hard to go into and out of..lol
Yeah, and climbing back out is the fun part! That's wierd, I pulled it up from my work computer and it was sideways as well, but on my iPad at home it's right side up. Oh well, I'm better at building things than getting computers to work right!
 
i hate it when that happens..but my problem.is i can no longer resize pic's that i post,for some reason..
 
i hate it when that happens..but my problem.is i can no longer resize pic's that i post,for some reason..
There's a lot of things my computer stopped doing. Some, I found another way to work around, others I just gave up on. I wish I cared enough to learn how to fix things, :).
 
Yeah, just finished the last coat of paint/sealer on the inside of the shelter. Next step is to start some shelving. I also decided to use the shelving uprights to be extra support for the ceiling. I don't think I need it, but I guess you can't have too much strength when your taking the weight of dirt on top of the thing. I'll make the uprights heavier and use a sill and top plate tight to the ceiling. It will also make it more earthquake resistant, as the shelving will be more solidly attached to the structure. It allready stays cool inside, and it's not even buried properly yet. Can't wait to get a thermometer inside and see what I can keep the temperature at. It's definately going to be the best wine cellar Ive ever had. :)
 
The iPad auto-rotates it.

Looks great Brent! Congrats man!
 
The iPad auto-rotates it.

Looks great Brent! Congrats man!
Thanks, I'm hoping to get started on the shelves in it this weekend. I haven't put a thermometer in it yet, but it's still pretty cool, so the real test will be in August. Hopefully by then it will be buried properly.
 
I am waiting on shelves and getting it stocked up! OMGoodness, it has been a long wait, but it will so be worth it. So happy that it is coming to a close for you. And yes I am still jealous ;) dang nab you!!
 

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