Underground Ideas

Hello RIU, i would like to build an underground growroom. I plan on digging a huge whole in the ground. Pouring a concrete slab. Then use cement blocks for walls. I will then insert rebar in the walls, then fill will cement. I am looking for suggestions on how to construct the ceiling as well as the door. This will be completely underground, so i need it water tight. Depending on how big i make the room will determine what size tent(s) i will be using. I plan on going all out with 4-6 1000w hps' w/cooltubes, carbon filters, co2, and ebb n flow system. I plan on using a silent diesel 6000w generator to power everything. I would greatly appreciate ANY comments and ideas. Seriously if you think you have a good idea to supplement my plans, please let me know. I want to go all out but, i want to be stealth about it. Criticism is welcome! Thanks and happy growing!

Are you looking a putting something small in the ground, like you would open the top and work on it or a ROOM that has stairs and a lot of dirt on top so there is no sign form the air? The room idea is a dream of mine, notice I said dream...Here are some links for the latter.......JR

Get out the wallet
http://www.hardenedstructures.com/underground.asp

This one is way more survival but you can't tell your neighbors your building a room to grow weed in can you
http://www.alpinesurvival.com/nuclear_bomb_shelters.html

Or move to Tennessee and live here (Don't jump on me I know it sold already)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hg2TyjWjCls

Nice man. I wanted to do an underground room but the costs were just to high, and the logistics were terrible (Mountain side bk in the woods 1/4 mile...hard to get a CAT in there, yknow?)
It sounds like you are going to be building a fairly large room, and when it comes to a ceiling the strength you need depends on the depth which you didn't specifiy.... http://waltonfeed.com/old/old/cellar2.html <--That is the plan I wouldve used...I would recommend doing some inner walls out of blocks to support your ceiling.

Best of luck. If you aren't worried about stealth, I would consider just making the ceiling ground level and installing a greenhouse roof. Underground ftw!!! Much more stable temperatures.

Completely underground so it is invisible. I'd like to have a door in one of the walls. I plan on covering the ceiling with at least several inches of dirt, then lay grass. What i'm thinking is the best way would be build it into a hill, at like a 45 degree angle, so maybe only one partial wall with door is exposed. I can always camoflauge it somehow. I have over ten acres so i'm not that worried about someone seeing me construct this room. What do ya know, i might be in Tenn but as far as i know i don't live on top of a f ing huge cave like that.

I appreciate the information guys. I plan on doing this by myself so i have peace of mind. It might be expensive but it is gonna be well worth it.

Get a used sea-land cargo container. Standard size is like 10 feet wide by7 feet high, by 40 or 45 feet long. All steel, wooden floor, dirt tight. Cost about $2000.00 to $3000.00, they will deliver them. Rent a good sized track hoe. (they will deliver that too) about $400.00 a day. Dig big hole. Lower container into hole. (with chains and track hoe) Cover with dirt. spread left over dirt around, call to have track hoe picked up, light a fat one.
Of course there would be some prep work before covering with dirt. What with an access hatch and vents and elect. wires and water lines and propane lines and such. Put most of the grow op stuff in before you bury it, easier than bringing it down the hatch later. You could even set most of it up inside while it's sitting on top of the ground. (just a suggestion)
This is my dream, this will happen, someday.

Thats going to be hard...Digging the hole that is.. Are you going to rent a CAT or something?....Just the logistics of digging a basement are complicated.

With a back hoe and time you could do a lot, you would need steel beam for the roof. If you where patient you could find them second hand. Not to bring up ta-bu, because we are all law abiding citizens and this is all fiction, with no codes to follow and no one to answer to is the way to go, Just follow some sort of plan, and be safe......JR

By the way...you own land in Tennessee? I really want to buy like 4-5 acres to live on somewhere...any tips for someone hoping to buy some acreage?

kaiserAxel said:

By the way...you own land in Tennessee? I really want to buy like 4-5 acres to live on somewhere...any tips for someone hoping to buy some acreage?

Click to expand...

u get charged taxes for owning land

spartree said:

Get a used sea-land cargo container. Standard size is like 10 feet wide by7 feet high, by 40 or 45 feet long. All steel, wooden floor, dirt tight. Cost about $2000.00 to $3000.00, they will deliver them. Rent a good sized track hoe. (they will deliver that too) about $400.00 a day. Dig big hole. Lower container into hole. (with chains and track hoe) Cover with dirt. spread left over dirt around, call to have track hoe picked up, light a fat one.
Of course there would be some prep work before covering with dirt. What with an access hatch and vents and elect. wires and water lines and propane lines and such. Put most of the grow op stuff in before you bury it, easier than bringing it down the hatch later. You could even set most of it up inside while it's sitting on top of the ground. (just a suggestion)
This is my dream, this will happen, someday.

Click to expand...

Not a bad idea, but i would like a more square room. Also i don't want to draw ANY attention. Personally if i saw a shipping container being dropped off at someone's house, the first thing that comes to mind is grow op. I know probably 90% of people wouldn't think that at all, but theres still that 10%. Not to say its a bad idea, but not for me. I would rather someone see a truckload of cement blocks. I plan on digging the hole with a bobcat, return it then bring the blocks and other materials at night. The spot i picked is under big trees, so i know this sounds far fetched to some, but no satellite would notice disturbed earth. I am also doing this on my own, so i don't need to worry about loose ends. I may seem overly paranoid, but i'de rather be safe then sorry. I will get a diagram up soon to show exactly what i'm thinking.

jrinlv said:

With a back hoe and time you could do a lot, you would need steel beam for the roof. If you where patient you could find them second hand. Not to bring up ta-bu, because we are all law abiding citizens and this is all fiction, with no codes to follow and no one to answer to is the way to go, Just follow some sort of plan, and be safe......JR

Click to expand...

Could you be more specific about steal beam please? I planned on making a platform just below where the ceiling is going. Pour concrete and reinforce with rebar so it overlaps the walls for support. Then remove the platform underneath after the cement dries. Does this make sense?

kaiserAxel said:

By the way...you own land in Tennessee? I really want to buy like 4-5 acres to live on somewhere...any tips for someone hoping to buy some acreage?

Click to expand...

Depends on what you are looking for as far as land, i'm assuming woods? Also how far from the city/town do you want to be. I haven't lived here all that long but i love it, very nice and not to much police presence compared to where i'm from. I'm kinda NE i guess, sorry i don't want to get to specific. I don't know what answers you are looking for, maybe i'm just stoned. I will try to answer whatever questions you have though. But you could pretty much disappear up here if you want, create your own electricity, raise your own livestock and grow you own fruits and vegetables.

XxGanjaXXGOD said:

u get charged taxes for owning land

Click to expand...

What, are you a 5-0 with your 1 post, suspicious.

scubadude239 said:

What, are you a 5-0 with your 1 post, suspicious.

Click to expand...

You get charged taxes on freaking everything. That's life. If it bothers you, then don't every buy anything =) Not so easy, eh?

scubadude239 said:

Depends on what you are looking for as far as land, i'm assuming woods? Also how far from the city/town do you want to be. I haven't lived here all that long but i love it, very nice and not to much police presence compared to where i'm from. I'm kinda NE i guess, sorry i don't want to get to specific. I don't know what answers you are looking for, maybe i'm just stoned. I will try to answer whatever questions you have though. But you could pretty much disappear up here if you want, create your own electricity, raise your own livestock and grow you own fruits and vegetables.

Click to expand...

I mean like how to find deals or just general tips for a first time land buyer. That would be awesome to just live on some land I bought, but how the hell to pay the thousands of annual taxes? So to pay the taxes I would need a job and thats a pain in the ass commute, yknow?

I would put steel I beams in the roof and then pour a reinforce slab on top of that. The fact that it's underground you never know what will have to drive over it. That would be an unpleasant surprise to fall into...JR

spartree said:

Get a used sea-land cargo container. Standard size is like 10 feet wide by7 feet high, by 40 or 45 feet long. All steel, wooden floor, dirt tight. Cost about $2000.00 to $3000.00, they will deliver them. Rent a good sized track hoe. (they will deliver that too) about $400.00 a day. Dig big hole. Lower container into hole. (with chains and track hoe) Cover with dirt. spread left over dirt around, call to have track hoe picked up, light a fat one.
Of course there would be some prep work before covering with dirt. What with an access hatch and vents and elect. wires and water lines and propane lines and such. Put most of the grow op stuff in before you bury it, easier than bringing it down the hatch later. You could even set most of it up inside while it's sitting on top of the ground. (just a suggestion)
This is my dream, this will happen, someday.

Click to expand...

Make damn sure you support the ceiling in that container!I would at least use 4 X 4's. One across the top with two going down the sides to the floor. Like you see in the coal mines, etc. I'd also run them every four feet. Wet dirt can be VERY heavy.

scubadude239 said:

Not a bad idea, but i would like a more square room. Also i don't want to draw ANY attention. Personally if i saw a shipping container being dropped off at someone's house, the first thing that comes to mind is grow op. I know probably 90% of people wouldn't think that at all, but theres still that 10%. Not to say its a bad idea, but not for me. I would rather someone see a truckload of cement blocks. I plan on digging the hole with a bobcat, return it then bring the blocks and other materials at night. The spot i picked is under big trees, so i know this sounds far fetched to some, but no satellite would notice disturbed earth. I am also doing this on my own, so i don't need to worry about loose ends. I may seem overly paranoid, but i'de rather be safe then sorry. I will get a diagram up soon to show exactly what i'm thinking.

Click to expand...

Conex containers or C-cans as they are called are used all over the world for many things such as industrial blast proof buildings, Bunkers, life support and offices for the military, portable diesel tanks, etc.

I can get you a good deal.

jrinlv said:

I would put steel I beams in the roof and then pour a reinforce slab on top of that. The fact that it's underground you never know what will have to drive over it. That would be an unpleasant surprise to fall into...JR

Click to expand...

Just like a large concrete septic tank.
The engineering on that would be costly but I'm sure we have a civil engineer on the site that could throw it together. I have some engineered drawings on the computer but the site won't let me load them because of the size.

The best idea so far is the C-can in the ground. 8' x 8' x 20'. Not the 40 footer. Plenty to do what you want. 20 footers cost about 3,500USD. They also make High cubes.

We stack 3 layers of sandbags on them in the middle east and surround them with Hesco barriers for military bunkers. no reinforcement required. you could bury one an easy 4ft from the surface without any structural issues. No pouring of concrete, stacking brick, tieing rebar, setting and busting forms. Just dig, place, and backfill. You can run all the utilities after it is in place.

That's just what I would do from experience is in designing entire camps military and civilian. modular, semi-permanent and permanent from ANA Batallion Camps in Afghanistan to Camp Victory Iraq.