Storm shelter questions, answered straight

Both are rated to the same FEMA 320 standard. In-ground (slope-front or garage-floor) shelters are the classic Texas storm cellar, stay cool, and disappear into the yard or under the slab. Above-ground safe rooms bolt to a slab inside the garage or a closet — no digging, no stairs, and the right choice for a high water table or anyone with mobility issues.

Most Hausner in-ground shelters are delivered, set with a crane, backfilled and finished in a single day. Garage-floor units take a little longer because of the slab cut. We handle excavation and cleanup ourselves.

Yes. Hausner precast concrete shelters are engineered and tested to the FEMA 320 / ICC 500 safe-room standard — the same standard used for public school shelters — and carry American Tornado Shelter Association (ATSA) certification. We're the North Texas Hausner representative.

Usually not for a residential shelter in the county, but some cities require one and most counties ask you to register the shelter's location so first responders can find it after a storm. We'll tell you what applies at your address and handle the paperwork.

We install two slope-front sizes: the 6×8, which fits most families, and the 6′10″×10′ Jumbo with 6′3″ of headroom for bigger households. Tell us how many are in the house — including grandparents and the dog — and we'll size it.

A properly set precast shelter with sealed joints shouldn't, and ours carry a 10-year leak warranty. If your lot has a high water table or standing water after rain, we'll steer you to an above-ground safe room instead of putting a cellar where it doesn't belong.

Installed pricing depends on the model, the site and the crane access, so call for a current number — it takes five minutes and there's no obligation. Some Texas counties run storm-shelter rebate programs; ask us what's open in your county right now.

Yes — either a garage-floor unit set under a cut in the slab, or an above-ground safe room bolted to the existing slab. Both let you shelter without going outside in the storm.

Before storm season. Lead times stretch out every spring once the sirens start; ordering in fall or winter means it's in the ground before you need it. Ask about current lead times.