Category: Retreat Architecture

Three Letters Re: The Disappearing Suburban Basement

Jim: One question comes to mind, does his basement have a restroom, or is he relying on a honey bucket? Also, how does he intend to deal with cooking odors [both good and bad?] Might be a huge tip off in a SHTF situation. Thanks, – Greg L. Sir: Most of us have furnaces, A/C and hot water heaters in our basements, and they require seasonal maintenance by outside contractors. The description from Jeff W. sounds like he may have restricted access to these devices (180 degree turn at the bottom of the steps), or they’re not in the basement… …


The Disappearing Suburban Basement–Part 2, by Jeff W.

In part one of this article, I outlined the process I used for the exterior of my home to create a hidden retreat for my family, and maybe a few lucky friends, should we experience some event in the nation which would precipitate the need to “go underground” for a short time. With the exterior of our home finished, and the basement retreat fully camouflaged from possible intruders, looters, or those looking to pillage and do harm, I turned my attention to outfitting our basement retreat into a space converted to provide shelter, defense, and storage. The only true access …


The Disappearing Suburban Basement–Part 1, by Jeff W.

Two years ago, as I began preparing for TEOTWAWKI, the first thing I did was take a real, accurate assessment of what I had and what I was going to be able to do for my preparations. One of the first issues I needed to face was the fact I would never have a true “survival retreat” located out west, far away from any major population centers, and tucked away in some forgotten corner of the country. As much as I would love to have something like this in place, the balancing act between having a family, financial commitments and …


Letter Re: Advice on Building Harder Off-Grid Houses

James, The article on perennial food sources was both timely and excellent! Kudos. We are already planning to introduce many of the species into our farm. Next, a question. Since your book “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” has caused me to re-think several things — and after I have spent 20 years being a prepper –I figured I should buy your book “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation”. Chapter 14 is of special interest to me right now as we are building a snug little adobe house on the farm we just bought. We …


Moving to a Small Town as a Retreat (And Why it’s Good to Do it Now), by Bryan B. in Alaska

Two years ago, I was a busy guy. I worked 50-to-60 hour weeks as an equipment and auto mechanic in south central Alaska. I was a Dad, delivery driver and taxi for the family, and maintenance man for our aging trailer. We lived a couple miles from a town of 15,000 on a .75 acre lot with a mobile home. My decent pay barely paid all the bills and fuel costs of going to work. To top things off, I had just “woke up” to what was going on and had no idea how I was going to prepare for …


Turning the Corner, by F.J.B.

Today there seems to be any number of reasons for the average American to turn the corner towards preparedness and being self-reliant.  Back in 1993, I would have been able to give you just as many reasons based on my observations through the 1980s.  Not surprisingly there are twice as many reasons for the average man to not start around that corner.  The reasons I have heard the most include the cost factor and objections to living so primitively.  Simply put: today’s average American is too poor and soft to endure hardships like camping, physical labor, and no TV.  These …


Letter Re: Some Useful Online Resources

Howdy, I love the blog. I am preparing for regional disasters associated with living in Los Angeles and I thought your readers might like these two links. The first one is Global Security.org where among other things, they have free e-copies of [nearly] all of the current Army Field Manuals. The second one is a bit out of context but I think is quite informative given the nature of this community, it comes from DisasterSafety.org which as it happens is a building contractor web site that certifies builders to build and/or retrofit buildings to withstand natural disasters and such. They …


A Practical, Full Spectrum Suburban Survival Plan, by JIR

Survival planning can be overwhelming and a lot of the advice you get is not practical or compatible with our lifestyles. A lot of us choose, or are forced to live in the crowded East Coast far too close to cities to survive TEOTWAWKI. I dare say, a lot of SurvivalBlog readers live in suburbs just outside medium to large population centers. Many of us have jobs that don’t migrate to small towns and would face a substantial loss of income if we moved away from our livelihoods. Some of us like our current lives and feel that hunkering down …


Letter Re: The Sustainable Rural Cabin

Many people spend a considerable amount of time making evacuation plans, but seldom are people properly prepared when they arrive to their destination. The purpose of the article is to incorporate proper site planning into your rural cabin. All factors are broken into general relationships allowing the user to adjust the factors to meet the unique conditions at your rural retreat. All factors are overshadowed with the emphasis on silent security. By incorporating these fundamental ideas, you are ensured a safer and prosperous retreat location. Selection of Property Landscape conditions vary widely. Effective site planning works with existing site conditions …


Three Letters Re: Now You See It, Now You Don’t — The Value of Concealment

Mr. Rawles, I read Joe M.’s article with great interest. The contributors to your site always seem to have creative ideas. I have often thought of ways to conceal a passageway, escape route or just a safe / storage room. Here are four links to companies that offer hidden doors or panels. HiddenPassages.com HiddenPassageway.com Hide a Door Decoradoors.com Thanks again for all you do. – John G. James, Two very good books contain a wealth of hints on constructing and concealing hidden compartments and entrances, covering evidence of work you want to keep concealed, and devising ways to guard against …


Now You See It, Now You Don’t — The Value of Concealment, by Joe M.

Unless you’re lucky enough to actually live at your retreat in case of a TEOTWAWKI event, you are probably a little concerned with theft at your home away from home. Even if your primary home is your retreat, in the event of a break-in is your cache of “goodies” safe? Sure you might keep your supply of rifles, handguns, and shotguns locked in a gun vault the size of Grandma Shirley’s casket, but if thieves are given enough time they will haul the vault and anything else they find off into the night, leaving you empty handed and even worse, …


Letter Re: Considerations for Building and Equipping the Underground Room You Need

Mr. Rawles, I hope most readers that are considering building underground shelters that are 16′ by 20′ with a 6″ cap or roof, hire the expertise of a registered structural engineer. The design of an underground structure that have a 6″ cap or ceiling as proposed by Jim O., with 1/2″ rebar is not to be considered heavily reinforced by any means, and would probably be not to any CRSI design standards, unless it is braced underneath with several columns. It does not really matter if a house sets on top or several feet of earth, when properly designed. I …


Considerations for Building and Equipping the Underground Room You Need, by Jim O.

My wife and I lived in place with no underground  rooms (such as a basement of a cellar) since we have been married.  As I have matured and my desire for disaster preparation has increased, I began to realize the importance of having an underground room for storage (particularly food storage and other things necessary for survival in the event of a short term or long term TEOTWAWKI) and protection from disasters such as heavy storms, tornadoes, nuclear activity, etc.  My career in construction, specializing in masonry and excavation, made this goal one that was easily attainable and I would …


Getting Medieval in London–The Planned New U.S. Embassy

Jim, I recently read the paragraph in your most recent book “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” that when we consider retreat architecture, that we should “think medieval castle”. Well, evidently the U.S. State Department must have read your book too, and taken that passage to heart, because an interesting new feature in the proposed US embassy in London is a moat. For some details, including a photo of an architectural model, see this article. That piece includes a link to a Times of London Online article. All the best, – Yishai


Letter Re: Terrain and Arboreal Camouflage for Retreats

Mr. Rawles, Well, we survived this latest storm but it gave me time to finish your novel “Patriots”. It was a very easy read and full of useful information. I know I have so much to learn. It really has helped me put things into perspective as far as priorities and what is or isn’t important in life. I can only think of two areas that were not covered well enough that I feel would help in this type of environment: The first area is the design and use of landscape and terrain to help conceal a retreat. The impression …