House as fortress

I think the best way is sit outside your home and pretend you've just looted it, or hide your food stuffs not in the house. If you get raided, they'll see you have nothing and will try the next house.

If a real SHTF situation occured, I'd burn down a neighbours empty house and hide the stuff there.

Making your home into a strionghold only acts like a prison, they could just smoke you out, kill you for putting up a fight and take your food.

I purchased 3 250 gallon plastic tanks that were full of corn syrup. they have metal cages on them. I cut the lid out of one of them and filled it with canned goods I then put the top back on and sealed it with ac metal tape. the kind you use for ducts I then picked an area behind my garage between the fence and the garage and buried all 3 one is full of water, one is full of gas with stabilizer, one is full of canned goods. they are buried just under the dirt enough that grass has sprouted over them. I also have enough in the house /attic for about a week. The attic has been decked so that you can be up there and there is a radio electrical outlet and 3 sleeping bags. I also have some tools and my guns. I have cut the 3/4 plywood to cover the windows and doors from the inside and have a dewalt drill with lag bolts and a driver to install them. My house is a peir and beam I have dug out underneath and have a generator under it the exhaust is run through black pipe to the back of my property (buried) and underground there are 3 mufflers adaped into it from outside it is completely quiet and you ca barely hear it run inside. I have all the controls mounted in a square d box in the attic and can be started easily.

the most important thing I have besides my guns isa 2x4 so when in the attic I can screwit across the door so that it will not open from the inside.

I think im ready

The best way to protect your house is first, make sure everyone knows that the inhabitants are cannibals. Put a sign out front, Jeffrey Dahmer residence.
If you are a guy, answer the door with a bad lipstick job and a wig (it helps to be white). BEG an intruder to come in!
Make sure there is the smell of urine and rotten meat greeting all intruders.

If it doesn't work, learn to marinade human flesh, you might have to learn to like it.

Originally posted by Tykonos

I think the best way is sit outside your home and pretend you've just looted it, or hide your food stuffs not in the house. If you get raided, they'll see you have nothing and will try the next house.

If a real SHTF situation occured, I'd burn down a neighbours empty house and hide the stuff there.

Making your home into a strionghold only acts like a prison, they could just smoke you out, kill you for putting up a fight and take your food.

edit on 2-11-2010 by Tykonos because: (no reason given)

This is the good part about living in a close knit residential neighborhood. Anyone standing in front of a house has 3 houses across the street with a good line of fire. Anyone standing behind a house has 3 houses back there with a good line of fire. Such a neighborhood, properly armed, is a killing field. That's a neighborhood watch!

one thing your fuel tank can easily be drained with a screwdriver and a hammer. for a bug out vehicle when the home fort doesn't work race spec fuel cells are the answer. They can pretty much withstand anything and they also reduce the risk of fire and make the car lighter.

I've been going over my drawings and plans for situation SHTF home defense, and I came across a weak-point that I can't figure out:

• How do I fortify a full length, sliding glass back door?

Replacing it with a regular style door is out of the question, too costly for me to convert it over.
I was thinking of just boarding it up from the outside, but then I would loose my only rear exit to the house.
Can you guys think of a way to reinforce and fortify the sliding glass door, while retaining it's functionality?
I'm really stuck on simply boarding it up....


P.S.
To those saying a conspicuous fortress is a bad idea... is it really a bad idea if you have weapons and several family members familiar with firearms? Because in an urban area, I only expect many small, disunited groups that will already be clashing with each other on the streets. So at any given time about 10 people or less attacking. In a fortified situation we could easily pick them off with rifles and arrows.

I read most of the posts on here, but skimmed over a few so I might be repeating what has already been said.

First of all I would remove all of the interior doors on the house, and use them to board up exterior windows and doors. This is assuming you have real wood doors, the ones in my house are pretty strong, but I know most all newer houses use those flimsy cardboard like doors. If that's the case I wouldn't bother, and would look for anything else made of wood, be it floor boards or furniture.

Taking a page from Max Brooks I would then destroy the stairs to the upper levels, and get a ladder for access. All supplies would be moved upstairs. I would set up a schedule for sleeping and keeping watch with whoever I was with.

I'd make sure to have some BOBs ready to go in case things got crazy. Then I would begin the fun of raiding pharmacies and other houses.

I also love the idea others posted of some psy ops to deter people from trying to get in. Find (or make) dead bodies and put the heads on stakes out front. Burn some bodies and put a sign over them that says "last night's dinner"

All but the most hardcore raiders would probably pass you right by.

reply to post by Sahabi


I keep pre-cut plywood sheets stacked in the garage. You can put hinges on them, with re-inforcement and a simple bar that locks in place, but can be drawn from the inside. The trick is not to make it bullet proof, just less of a tempting target.

Failing that, cover it with a loose tarp. Criminals hesitate to break into a room they can't see inside. Covering the picture window makes it look like you've already been damaged/looted, and so would invite a bit less mischief.

reply to post by rushunt


Remember to make sure that you make sure that the cans are still good, after all if your canned food in those drums is bad the food is useless. Check once every year or 2, the grass can be replaced and with a little watering will be good as it was.

Have some plywood/2x10's and appropriate length screws or nails so that you can cover up your lower windows, as well as reinforce your doors (make holders for 2x10's cut down to 2x4's or actual 2x4's) it may not stop a determined person, but it would make it take them longer and buy you some time. The nails in the door is a nasty, if obvious defence. Tarped up or taped up windows would indicate looting, which makes you less likely to be looted. Get a gun (the 12 guage is good but a 20 guage, even a .22, would still ruin someone's day). Aquire knives, they can be used for skinning if you hunt, or even in close melee defence (not ideal, but prepare for the worst) no one likes being stabbed by even a small hunting knife. Get comfortable with your weapons, whatever you choose, this will help when hunting or defending. Set up a little garden, year round it will save money, and if your lucky you can suppliment your food with it. Get up to a month's worth of food and be able to set up a rain catch and water filtration system. Aquire a grill of some sort as well as at least a month's worth of fuel.

Most SHTF situations will be the worst at the beggining, If it is going to last more than a month there will probably be some sort of government action that will cut back on looting, and if the government is gone there will probably be a huge die off, so looters will be able to find easier pickings for a while at least. Conserve your ammunition as much as possible if you have a gun.

Those who don't have access to guns should aquire a sort bladed weapon (under 18 inch blade, over 6), this will allow for defence in close if it comes down to it. You can also buy spear points that can be attached to a study stick with some cord that can be used as a weapon with a little more reach, don't throw it unless it's desined to be thrown. Another alternative is a hachet, which allows a good concentration of power and can be used as a hammer and to split wood.

Depending on the time of year heating will be important. If at all possible have a wood burning stove, this will allow you to keep the house at least a little warm, and seeing as to how wood is the cheapest sourse of heat it will save you money over the long term, even without a SHTF situation, you just need to make sure you get well aged wood, idealy cut in the winter, to minimise creasote buildup in your chimminey which can cause fires (voice of experience here).

Use the house mostly as a home base. Most houses aren't very bullet resistant and the bullets will pace through to injure the occupants. Don't act like you have lots of supplies, and see what you can do to be unobtusive. Set up caches that have some supplies that aren't to close to your house or very odvious.

reply to post by James1982


If I was looting a house, I would go al through it, if you hang a body from a tree or lay it in the yard, I will know that you must have things that I want, you killed to protect them and so you must have food, water, and ammo/weapons.
I would want to get upstairs, and see whats there. I would watch the house from a distance for several days and wait to see you in the window or in the yard arranging the bodies(maybe)...then I would set up a plan and see what I wanted to see...the second floor.
A simple bottle with gas/oil in it and a rag....nice cocktail!!! Anyway, your upstairs, the fire is down stairs and so am I. Now what are you going to do?
Or I could just shoot through the floor and or the walls where I please and the walls and floor are not bullet proof.
I would hear you walking around upthere and have a good idea of your loctation on the 2nd floor.

Never ever limit yourself and not have an excape and evade plan...2nd floors suck, good for shooting but bad for staying alive...

Originally posted by amazing

What are your first preparation steps? What is the most important thing? How do you prepare without going overboard?

By considering that water my cover the area I am trying to fortify, and keeping in mind that safe places will be changing continously for a while if not for good. Also consider the scavangers mentality and keep it moving..........

why would anyone place the limitation of what they can carry on themselves?

think about it.. if i were in charge ( or a part of) a looting/raiding party, i would have walkie-talkies to communicate, and have a scouting party of 1-5 people.. who would be armed.

how long after this party finds your house till they radio back for reinforcements, or cant radio back at all because you've killed them, thus making the main group come looking.

my plan would involve a house,and supplies, and defense sure... but the bug out gear and everything else would be stored in a 4x4 vehicle somewhere else. in the garage would be a car that is fast. with run flat tires, and maybe some cheap bulletproofing like old phonebooks in the door panels and everywhere else i could stick them.. a steel plate under the hood to protect the engine, and some way to protect the radiator, and somehow bullet proof windows

these guys come.. fend them off or kill them, your gonna have to move fast... i doubt youd be the only one with a vehicle. you get to the car, you jump in and GTFO, no worrying about bags and what not, maybe have a way to quickly stash what you have at the house..

then after that take on nomadic tenancies. just remember that store owners more than likely will hold out in the stores, with guns... ask nicely for supplies, he may spare what he can.. come in like a raider, he shoots you

Also consider no electric communication......
Be well

reply to post by saltdog


Thank you very much for that post.
I was so bent on just trying to dig in as deep and hard as possible, that I forgot to consider the plotting and mentality of a person or group seriously bent on trying to attack/loot. I'm going to definitely hide and conceal my defences as best as possible without advertising.

Now that you've mentioned staking out a house, I'll definitely try to limit all hiding places within good vantage point of my home/base/camp. Whether this means knocking out some windows in surrounding homes/buildings, or making areas around objects, trees, and bushes unpleasant (human waste, glass shards, etc.).






reply to post by Kingbreaker


I didn't consider the actual mentality of organized groups!!
Much to consider and readjust.





How about you guys give more plans and ways you would attack and loot, so we can figure out what to consider and protect against.

reply to post by Kingbreaker


The thing that has to be considered of course is that anyone that can take out your 1-5 person scouting party would be a threat even to a larger group, which has no intel on you. You know the general area your scouts where supposed to be in and you have to wait to confirm that they truely are gone (most people's batteries would run out before long, crappy radio disipline, and there probably won't be electricity to charge them). Also the purpose of scouts is to go distances, so unless your house is at the very beggining of their route, and as time passes this is less likely, there is going to be at least a 10 min. distance to travel, though gun fire would probably attaract attention, but even under a worst case situation, you should have time to grab a bag and leave, get concealed, within a couple hundred yards of the house and see who investigates.

reply to post by saltdog


Also, if you are a looter, you won't be throwing molatovs into the house you want to loot (unless of course you are brain dead, always a possibility) as this will destroy any potential loot. You certainly wouldn't follow it in, even if you are brain dead, and i would have no difficulty escaping out of a different side of the house, after all unless you have a mob there will be openings. And if you came at my house with a mob of people, you would have lost quite a few of them before you got withing molatov range, just saying. With a good sized group, a house is great for defense though you really should head to a more secure building (like a library www.abovetopsecret.com...)

reply to post by amazing

What are your first preparation steps? What is the most important thing? How do you prepare without going overboard?

Get some weapons!

What good is being supplied if you lack the means to hold onto said supplies?

Get friends to come help you...with defense, hunting, gathering, farming, raiding, guarding, etc.

I was going to chime into this one earlier with some experiences but I put it off…

Anyway, I have been in more firefights than I care to remember in all sorts of conditions and can tell you that a modern home of basic materials will do little if anything to protect you from any caliber of round without considerable reinforcement.

Actually the adobe like homes in Afghanistan stand up better to small arms fire than anything we would have constructed here.

I found this video to make my point since a lot of people here don’t accept people’s experiences at face value. It is a little long but it goes throguh tests with all the common rounds from 5.56 to .50 including some rockets and grenades against plywood, cinder blocks, brick, furniture and frag vests. In summary the only rounds that didn't outright penatrate all materials was the 5.56.



You do not want to get into a firefight in your home with an intruder unless you have the proper rounds – preferably sub sonic hollow points or you will likely be placing your loved ones in more danger than you are solving.

So many friendly fire incidents happen down range inside structures because people think they are protected and lose track of muzzle discipline.

Sure they are more of the ricochet and brick/mortar fragment variety than lethal kill shots but having had a calf full of brick debris it’s not something you want to have. I still have problems with fragments working their way to the surface three years later.

They work their way to the dermis and then white blood cells attack and make them into little tumor like things that have to be removed.

Cheers.

reply to post by Golf66


That is why you don't hunker down at home, go to a more defendable position. Like an old library, they are usually made of brick or stone (in my experience) and no one loots libraryies