If you’ve ever longed for a bunker or underground shelter, the fallout shelter designs from the Cold War era offer a variety of blueprints to choose from.
I’ve always wished I had one, a hidden, underground room that no ones knows about besides the immediate family. If SHTF, we could just retreat to our stocked, secret room to ride out the mayhem happening above. The dust would settle, and then we would emerge. Survivors.
I have assembled what I believe to be a complete list of fallout shelter designs that exist in the public domain. If you know of designs not listed here, please leave a comment at the end of the article. That will assure the list remains comprehensive and complete.
The whole idea of fallout shelters and bunkers has fascinated me for years. In fact, I’ve made it a point of seeking them out, touring everything from a homemade bunker in Maine to arranging private tours of a Nazi WWII bunker and a multi-million dollar bunker in Las Vegas.
So You Want to Build a Home Fallout Shelter
If you’re like me, you’re interested in these fallout shelter designs because… well, they’re interesting. They’re a look back in American history when the Cold War fear of nuclear annihilation was real, when people were taking legitimate steps to protect themselves should a nuclear exchange between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Not only were people doing this on their own, but the U.S. government was encouraging it! That’s why they published the designs in this article, through the Department of Defense and Civil Defense and FEMA.
If you’re here because you actually want to construct a fallout shelter, and are looking for designs to make it a reality, I’m jealous. Granted, living in an underground shelter designed to survive nuclear fallout wouldn’t be a joyous time, crammed in a small space, waiting in uncertainly, taking turns to use a bucket in the corner as a toilet, but – should you need it – it would be better than the alternative above ground being exposed to radioactive fallout.
What is Radioactive Fallout?
When a nuke explodes at the ground level, dirt and debris are sucked high up into the mushroom cloud where it all picks up radioactivity from the explosion. The bigger particles will eventually drop back to ground near the impact site, but the lighter pieces will be carried by the winds for many miles before falling back to earth spreading a thin layer of radioactive particles (fallout) far and wide.
The fallout would settle all around, on the ground, trees, vehicles, houses – everywhere. It would look like a fine dusting of sand, and wherever it landed, radiation would emanate, wreaking havoc on the bodies of anyone not protected. You would need Geiger counter to measure the exact level of radioactivity. You can buy a digital Geiger counter or you can buy a more affordable NukAlert Radiation Detector.
- Always "ON" 24/7, Includes long-life 10+ year battery
- Detection Range: 100 mR/hr to 5,000 R/hr, Gamma and X-rays from 20 keV to above 2 MeV
- 2 year regular warranty, 10 year prorated warranty
- Meets DoD EMP immunity standards
- Made in the U.S.A.
The former will give you the levels. The latter will just alert you that radiation is nearby. Either would make a good addition to your fallout shelter.
Another option is the MIRA Safety Geiger-2. It’s a portable dosimeter/geiger counter which is compact and well-built. It’s the perfect option if you need to be on the move because it’s small and lightweight.
Keep it Secret. Keep it Safe.
If you have the time, space, and budget to construct one of these shelter, lucky you! Once you’re done with it, you’ll have to resist the urge to show it off to your friends and neighbors. A secret shelter is a safe shelter.
Keeping your shelter secret is critical or, should you actually have to use it, you run the risk of people knocking on your door suddenly looking to become your subterranean roommate. This is the situation faced by suburban family in the old Twilight Zone episode The Shelter (watch the episode).
What You Need in Your Fallout Shelter
You can’t just run into a nuclear fallout shelter and just wait it out. Your shelter has to be prepped! The minimum necessities include:
Water – The widely accepted standard is a gallon of water per person per day, but you may be able to get by with less than that in a shelter where you will be exerting minimal physical effort. You can move up or down from this standard depending on the climate where you live, whether you have freeze-dried foods that need to be rehydrated, etc. Make sure you have the storage needed for the amount of people and the time you anticipate being in it.
Food – All of your fallout shelter food should not require refrigeration and should be stored in the shelter in advance or brought there in airtight cans or containers. Here again you will probably require less food than normal. You will not be moving around much. Still, the long-term foods you store should have high nutritional value and little bulk (i.e. canned meats, fruits, vegetables, hard candies, etc.).
Sanitation – You won’t have to wash up much – unless someone has to leave the shelter and return. They’ll need to be washed down before reentry. Your biggest issue here will be human waste. A 5-gallon bucket with a tight-fitting lid can be used as a toilet and you can buy a toilet seat made for the bucket. Keep plenty of plastic bags on hand. When someone needs to poo, poop in the bag, tie it up tight, and toss it in the entryway. Stash toilet papers inside, soap, sanitary items, etc. in advance.
Medical Supplies – Keep a first aid kit inside or have one ready to go with all of the basic plus any personal medications needed. Any easy solution is to have this already stored inside your bug out backpack, and WTSHTF, grab your pack and head into the shelter. Invariably, your bug out bag gear will double as bug in gear.
You also need plenty of Potassium Iodide, particularly for children. Potassium iodide – also known as KI – works by protecting the organ that is most vulnerable to radiation damage – the thyroid. The thyroid likes to absorb iodine, but it can’t differentiate between radioactive and stable iodine.
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Clothing and Bedding – You’ll need to sleep. It’s one thing to grab your bug out bag on the way to the shelter, another to grab pillows and bedding. Keep it stashed inside. Any easy way to do this at no additional expense is to simply save old bedding and pillows when you would otherwise throw them out with new.
Portable Radio – You’ll want to know what’s going on up above, whether everyone is turning into zombies or whether it was all just a false alarm. Reception will be weak underground, so plan some type of antenna situation.
Government Fallout Shelter Designs
Some of the plans that follow are from the Civil Defense era, some are from Department of Defense, others are FEMA. I have also included a few designs freely available from the University of Maryland.
Aboveground Shelter Designs
Aboveground shelters may seem like the easiest to construct, and depending on the design that might be the case, but whenever you construct above ground you are losing the natural protection earthen walls provide. Thus, you are often in the situation of trying to mimic a subterranean environment above ground.
Earth-Covered Lumber A-Frame Shelter
This design will provide protection for up to 10 persons. While it might fit 10 people, it is small, offering limited standing space. The advantage of this shelter is that it can be constructed without excavation. Being aboveground, it works well where there is poor drainage or where the water table is close to the surface. However, this shelter is not a cheap structure to construct. You will need footings or thrust ties where the earth is too soft to support the load.
Home Shelter
This family shelter is intended for people who need or prefer an aboveground shelter. In general, belowground shelters are far superior and – in some instances – can be more economical to build than an aboveground shelters. This shelter, like most others, can also offer protection from the hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes. It will offer only limited protection from the blast and fire effects of a nuclear explosion should you be unfortunate enough to live near the point of impact.
Semi-Mounded Plywood Box
This plywood shelter is principally designed to provide low-cost protection from the effects of radioactive fallout. The materials are all readily available and it can be constructed with relative ease and speed compared to other designs. It will offer up to 3 persons adequate protection from fallout radiation, but only limited protection from the blast itself.
Semi-Mounded Steel Igloo
This shelter design is unique in shape. Think of it like an underground yurt. This design also has low-cost protection as its priority. It is easily assembled compared to other designs, requiring only 4 man-hours to assemble not counting excavation. When coated with mastic, it should last around 10 years.
Basement Shelter Designs
Basement areas are an ideal space to provide the best shelter against the fallout because they are already belowground. This gives them a natural earthen shield. If nuclear fallout is heading your way and you don’t have a shelter, head to a basement. You can provide additional shielding for your basement by constructing:
- Permanent shelters – turning part of your basement into a shelter area or by building a permanent shelter which might appear as a normal part of the home that also serve other purposes.
- Preplanned shelters – locating shielding materials so that should disaster strike, you can assemble your improved shelter quickly.
- Improvised shelters – by taking last-minute actions to assemble additional protection if an emergency warrants it.
There was an entire booklet published by the Department of Defense – Office of Civil Defense on this very subject. That too is available for download.
Download Fallout Protection for Homes with Basements
This booklet tells you the amount of protection your basement offers and what you can do to increase this protection to provide for your family’s safety. If you own a home with a decent basement, a fallout shelter inside your basement almost certainly makes the most sense compared to any other designs.
Concrete Block Shelter
This concrete block, compact shelter is an easy way to provide low-cost protection in your basement. A shelter as tall as the one pictured will not serve many additional purposes beyond maybe a kids’ playhouse, so I prefer some of the other designs here. Still, it’s a simple design that offers speedy construction.
Corrugated Asbestos-Cement Lean-To Shelter
Warning: These fallout shelter design plans call for curved, corrugated asbestos-cement sheets assembled in overlapping fashion. You cannot use or purchase asbestos products because the dangers of asbestos are better understood today. You will have to improvise.
This unique shelter also has the principal advantages of low-cost, readily-available materials. It can be sized to fit your basement and needs. It can also be disassembled, perfect for constructing during times of greater nuclear risk and taking back down when the threat passes or it’s time to sell your house.
Sand-Filled Lumber Lean-To Shelter
It’s hard to get any cheaper than this design. On the flip side, it’s also hard to get any smaller. It’s listed as being able to house 3 persons, but that seems tight to me. It can be scaled, however. Here you have ease of construction, low-cost, and easy to disassemble.
Expedient Shelter Designs
If you cannot or do not want to construct a shelter today, but want the option to construct one quickly should the need arise, expedient fallout shelter designs are for you. Every prepper should at least download (and save) these. Print them off and add them as electronic files to your bug out USB.
Although these shelters are very austere, they can save your life. What’s more, there are a number of things that can be done to improve the comfort level after they have been built. Some additional changes that can be made include:
- Constructing seats, hammocks, or bunks.
- Covering the floor with boards, pine boughs, or plastic, and and draping sheets over the earth walls.
- Providing safe, dependable light.
- For hot weather, constructing the expedient air ventilation pump (plans below).
- For cooking, constructing the expedient cook stove to use in the entryway (plans below).
- In cold weather, sealing the entrance and using the stove for heating.
- Storing shelter supplies in entryway for more living space.
Note: Regardless of the expedient fallout shelter designs you download below, you will also want to download these accompanying plans on constructing air ventilations, emergency lamps, and bucket stoves.
Car Over Trench
If you used a vehicle the site of a big station wagon, the shelter can provide protection for up to 6 persons. This shelter will not work in areas where groundwater or rock is close to the ground surface. Two persons working a total of about 8 hours each could excavate and construct a shelter of this type. Just make sure the ground is strong enough so that it doesn’t cave around you from the weight of the vehicle. This is probably the least comfortable design here.
Crib-Walled Shelter
This shelter is good for areas where there is an abundance of small trees. Think of it like a bushcraft fallout shelter. The shelter has a capacity of 5 persons and will take approximately 5 persons working a total of 18 hours each to construct.
Door-Covered Shelter
This shelter is designed for areas where going belowground is impractical or impossible. The materials needed are a few old doors, lumber, and dirt. This shelter can be built by 4 persons working a total of 10 hours each.
Log-Covered Trench Shelter
This shelter is another type of bushcraft fallout shelter, designed for areas where there are plenty of small trees to use and the groundwater level is below the bottom of the trench. The earth must be sufficiently compact and firm enough so that the sidewalls will not cave in. This shelter with a 4-person capacity can be built by 4 people working 12 hours each.
Ridge Pole Shelter
This is the last of the bushcraft-style shelters, again designed for areas where with an abundance of small trees. The upside to this shelter is that you do not have to excavate, but you will have to shovel lots of earth onto the roof and walls. The shelter has a 5-person capacity and can be built by 5 people working 18 hours each.
Tilt-Up Doors and Earth
You need a masonry wall for this design, ideally located where the ground is level or slopes gently down and away from the wall. It is a 3-person shelter that can be constructed by 3 people working 6 hours each. Simple and quick.
Department of Agriculture Shelters
The Department of Agriculture published documents during the Cold War that instructed farmers on how to build fallout shelters for themselves and even for farm animals.
Bunker-type Fallout Shelter for Beef Cattle
More than just beef cattle or other types of farm animals, this large structure could be built as a community shelter for larger numbers of people.
Download the Bunker-type Fallout Shelter for Beef Cattle Plans
Dairy Barn Fallout Shelter
This building design was built with a dairy farm in mind, but it can also be used to protect a family. Six people could shelter in place with the herd. Sand two-feet deep is used for overhead shielding. In a crisis the doors are shielded with wet baled hay. The design could be employed to shelter large numbers of people if you didn’t have to account for a herd of animals.
Fallout Shelter for Six People
This is a shelter intended to be built the same time the associated house is built. By building it with a new home, the space is more usable and construction costs are lower. The shelter more appropriately fits with the home rather than a standalone structure.
Fallout Shelter in a Farm Potato Storage
Underground potato storage is nothing new to farmers who grow spuds. It’s the oldest potato storage technique that exists – and it’s effective. This shelter design outlines how convert a potato storage space into a fallout shelter for a small family.
Fallout Shelter Stall Barn
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This barn is an interesting design because it makes use of the barn’s contents to provide gamma radiation protection. It is partially underground and has the food stored against outside walls for additional protection, as an example. The family shelter is built near the silo.
Farm Fallout Shelter and Storage
This is a dual-purpose structure similar to the Storage, Storm, & Fallout Shelter design below that serves as both a shelter and a fruit/vegetable root cellar. It can accommodate six people in a crisis, but the design can easily be adapted (lengthened) to allow for more people.
Storage, Storm, & Fallout Shelter
This is a dual-purpose structure that was created to have everyday use as a root cellar for fruits and vegetables. Then, in a crisis, it could offer a farm family fallout protection. The fact that it would already be serving as a root cellar means that family could enter with food supplies already in place. The design is simple and effective.
Underground Shelters
Permanent, underground fallout shelter designs are the Cadillac of all designs. Going below ground is the single best way to protect you and your family from nuclear fallout and even – potentially – the nuclear blast itself. There is a reason the best fallout shelters are bunkers deep underground.
Concrete Home Shelter
The concrete home fallout shelter, designed primarily for homes without basements, is a permanent shelter constructed in the yard where the family can retreat to quickly if the need arose. It is designed to have a protection factor equal to the minimum standard of protection for public shelters in the United States. This assures anyone inside will be protected against radioactive fallout and will also have some protection against the blast and fire effects of nuclear explosions.
Corrugated Steel Culvert Shelter
We wrote on building a bunker from pre-cast concrete culverts and even septic tanks, but this one is far easier (though tighter quarters).
This shelter will provide low-cost protection from the effects of radioactive fallout. Its primary advantage is that most of the structure is generally available as a prefabricated unit. You can order it, excavate, and simply lower the culvert into the hole. The only thing left then is connecting and covering the ends.
New Construction Clay Masonry Shelter
Building a new house and want a fallout shelter to accompany it? This design is for you. This shelter will not only provides protection from radioactive fallout, but it can also protect from limited blast effects. The shelter is located belowground and outside a house but is accessed from the basement. You can shape it to suit your needs and tie it into the construction of a new house. Because of the abundance of space here, you can use it for other purposes, like maybe a gun safe room, cold storage room, etc.
University of Maryland Fallout Shelter Designs
These few fallout shelter designs were drawn in 1963 by the Cooperative Extension in Agriculture and Home Economics at the Department of Agricultural Engineering at the University of Maryland. The U.S. Department of Agriculture participated in the work.
Above and Below Grade Shelter
These plans include 2 pages, one for an above grade design and the other for a below grade designs. Simple yet effective.
Cast Concrete Storage and Fallout Shelter
I like this design. It’s like a root cellar meets fallout shelter. This is great for the prepper homestead where you want both vegetable storage and fallout shelter options. If the shelter is to be used by more than 6 persons you must provide mechanical ventilation.
Fallout Shelter Designs Summary
Some people claim Cold War nuclear fallout shelters were never going to work. There is a strong argument there when you look at the mismanagement of large-scale public shelters, but that’s not what these designs are. These are fallout shelter designs crafted with the homeowner or individual in mind. Most people, of course, did not actually build these, but some people did and you can still find them in existence today, remnants of a bygone era when people lived in fear of nuclear annihilation.
Times have changed, however… or have they? More countries today have nuclear capacity than during the 1950s and 60. Iran and North Korea are racing to get their own nuclear arsenal. Will we see a time when the government begins advising citizens to construct their own fallout shelter again?
Let me know your thoughts in the comments section, and again, if you know of plans not listed here, let me know so I can add them.
19 comments
The reason the government stopped worrying about protecting the general population is the 10-year nuclear winter will kill off most plant life and the animals including humans that depend on them. Fallout shelters just allow you to live long enough to starve. Ten years is a long time and few can stock that level of food. An individual could possibly use hydroponics, UV lights, and some power source but not the population as a whole.
That is assuming that the attack would be a full sized weapon and that it would result in all out nuclear war. There is an off chance possibility that the attacked country would actually decide to forgo protocols and actually not respond in kind, in the hope of potentially saving the planet… even if it would mean being taken over by a horrible regime.
There is no such thing as Nuclear Winter, it was an anti-war myth started by Carl Sagan back in the 80s using a flawed computer model that had fires that burned forever.
Thank you~~
This is South Korea.
They are at war in Ukraine now
I think there will be a war in Taiwan next year
North Korea and China have signed a mutual defense treaty
When the Taiwan War breaks out, the Korean Peninsula is also at war
It would be a nuclear war
We are living in a frightening time
We need a nuclear shelter
Thanks SHTF for putting these designs in one place to find. Although our risk on this part on the planet is probably negligible it certainly isn’t zero ….
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We are developing an app that helps you get prepared for a potential nuclear conflict. As you know, international relations have become tense, and big countries that possess nuclear weapons may use them against each other. We have discovered that many of us have no idea what to do in the case of a nuclear attack or THE DOOMSDAY! To possess the essential knowledge and skills that can help us to survive, we are creating the DoomShelt! We will collect and structure all the scientifically proven and relevant information that will rise our chances to stay alive.
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Most importantly we want to have our hearts right with the Lord our Creator. To have wisdom to be humble, pray, seek and turn (repent). He is my Shelter!
Today October 26, 2022. Nuclear war is at any time. Russia has joined China, Ukraine is trying to get the golden iron lid or something to fight back Russia. Cuba will be asked India say yes but won’t fight, North Korea is in. Russia wants Ukraine, China wants Taiwan, Korea wants everybody starting with Hawai’i. Russia is evacating 50,000 people 10,000 a day out of the one town in Ukraine they say they have. Russia has been bombing the nuclear plants in the Ukraine. China joined Russia so they want Taiwan and with Korea all three hate the U.S. and us supporting the Countries they want. If you are not ready get ready. No power, no gas, no government to help us. They say Nuclear war happens everyone but 5% of people around the world will do the ones who survive will die from radiation poisoning 20 years of winter frozen, nothing will grow for at least that long. Find out what the Federal government says what you should do to prepare. They have been posting poster all over New York Subways that say what to do in case of a nuclear bomb should land. Get your tarps for windows get iodine tablets, get proper face mask covering your eyes, nose, and mouth. There are channels on you tube that tell you what you need to do, what to stock up on even where to go watch. Or if you have faith and give yourself to your faith that’s fine to some don’t want to suffer. One thing this is going to happen and it will be soon. I don’t think aliens will help us. I pray for you all and I pray it doesn’t happen but we are out of time and people have been warning us along this is what they will do. The signs are all there just watch read, look it up. Our government will not be there for us 911 will not be there for us. So best prepare and be ready.
Nice collection of fallout shelter plans. You did miss a few nice ones by the USDA for farms.
They’re here on Archive.org in the link below
https://archive.org/search.php?query=Fallout%20creator%3A%22United%20States.%20Department%20of%20Agriculture%22
Thank you!
Has anyone been able to find any information on the ‘semi-mounded steel igloo’? I’ve seen the manual, but that’s all. No information if it was ever made or by who.
Epstein was well prepared to be the next adam with many pretty eve’s
To restart life on planet earth after the dissaster.
How will you pass the 10 year nuclear winter in your crumbling fallout shelter.
There is no Nuclear Winter.
Stop believe what movies tell you.
I miss two things in this blog: One; How long should you stay under? As far as I know 2 weeks is sufficient. Two: How much weight can you place on a regular basement floor when you use concrete blocks as walls.
Two weeks is good but make sure you know the status of things above/outside. On your second question, that’s not something I can answer. Use your best judgment based on the depth of your slab and the weight you’re putting in or speak to an engineer.
I’d like to have my email added to your mailing list. I’m 67 yrs. old, and I’m trying to learn how to be a prepper. Thank you!
Today’s ( January 2024) news are chilling, with wars happening all around the world and rumors of invasions and a third world war scrambling nations in gearing up for the biggest one. Are we seeing the beginning of the end of civilization? Most people don’t have the capacity to construct a structurally decent shelter what more in this hyper troubled, agitated time. Good for those who have prepped a long time ago. I hope there’s still time for the new preppers. But only God’s intervention will save us from man’s foolishness.
[8-17-24, 13:35 hours, EST]: Very informative article on Shelters by the author. Those who are Christians know that it is to come [horror of nuclear war on a global scale]. One’s who are awake can see the political chess pieces being put in place for this calamity to unfold. What is frighting is no one will have warning; it will just fall upon all that are still here on earth that have not passed away.
Prepare for the long-term. Depending on where you are geographically located should tell you what type of shelter you should consider i.e., If you are close to a military base, major airport, tech hub, communications hub, transportation hub or industrial center etc… most likely that installation will be nuclear targeted. So, build your shelter accordingly.
In closing, preparing for this eventuality will require one to expend a lot of resources, money, time, and anxiety in hope of surviving, but can be done. May GOD bless and bestow his mercy on all of us in the hope that we can survive this promised is calamity to come.