RECESS, surviving the end of your world.

the project

12. 6.2009

RECESS began 2 years ago when I made my home in the southwest United States. Like much of the West, our reliance on the continuous import of vital resources (food, water, medical supplies) is unsustainable and untenable. Crisis preparedness is vital, and RECESS is my answer. It is a re-model, an insurance policy, an experiment, a test of personal mettle, and an obsession. Survival is everything.

Pouring the Roof

03. 4.2010

With the rebar grid in place we poured the roof. Nolan is out front spreading while I and a few others bring loads of concrete in via wheelbarrow.

installing the ventilation pipes

03. 3.2010

In a few days time we have made tremendous progress. The main structure has been completed and is ready for a roof pour.

Here, you can see the ventilation (in/out) pipes porting into the RECESS. The are 3" steel pipes, filtered, and easily capped from the inside. I use a hand-crank coal forge blower to provide the draw.

In this shot you can also see the initial waterproofing has been applied and the open sides have begun to be back-filled. The waterproofing is a combo of an exterior elastometric coating, and plastic sheeting.

The steel roofing, an industrial solution called Con-Deck has been attached, and reinforced this with a grid of re-bar. At this stage, the original pool is all but lost in its new incarnation.

Reinforcing the Roof

03. 2.2010

The steel roofing material required wooden under-bracing to ensure that it would not collapse during the initial concrete pour and set-up. This pour would produce a 4" roof, which on it's own was inadequate for my needs. The final deck pour would add an additional 6" of concrete reinforcement, with a layer of foam insulation and waterproofing between them.

a bunker in my swimming pool

02.27.2010

Here you can see the RECESS nearing structural completion. The steel roof will span across the top course of block. Above that, we'll pour several inches of concrete, lay an insulation layer, and pour the final deck. The exterior walls require water proofing, then we begin the challenge of concealing the entire bunker in the new landscaping.

Seeing it Come Together

02.19.2010

closing the door to your friends and neighbors

02.15.2010

Close quarters are easiest to tolerate with loved ones, and I would highly recommend leaving it at that. Your RECESS is your insurance policy, not the neighborhoods'. Once you've sealed yourself and your family in, settle in and be comforted by your foresight, vigilance, and preparedness.

Friends, frienimies, and food suppliers who are aware of the bunker may come knocking in a crisis. Your best course of action is to create your guest list ahead of time, and stick to it. If discretion fails and a hostile entity or panicked acquaintance tries to force their way into your bunker, an intimidating and adequate barrier will save your life.

The door on my RECESS is made of a mixture of plate, angle iron, and square tube steel. The design is optimized to intimidate and defend against breach. The outer layer is made of welded vertical strips of angle iron to deflect gun fire and reduce surface purchase. Behind the angle iron is 250 lb of reinforcement. The door swings in to avoid accidental entrapment, seating flush into a 4" square tube steel frame.

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Be wary of any design that is over-complicated or places you at risk of being trapped. My door uses no locks, just a simple set of U hangers and a pair of steel bracing bars.

I'm a terrible welder, so my friend Mo Mata-Hill has been helping me out with the metal fabrication. Look for installation shots in a few weeks.