Storage in crawlspace?

[WildIrish]

Our MH is on a concrete foundation, and has a nice 4-foot high crawlspace. Tornado season is approaching, and I was wondering if the crawlspace would be a good place to store items that we don't want to lose, if a tornado were to strike.

We have a couple suitcases to bring the most important stuff with us (legal documents, digital files, medications, clothes, etc.). But there are a lot of things we obviously can't bring along, such as:

* Several bottles of my favorite shampoo that I bought, shortly before it was no longer made anymore (because I didn't want to spend $15/bottle for it on eBay later!)

* Things of sentimental value...like Sanrio (Hello Kitty) and Japanese anime paper goods and merchandise that I collected since I was young...which are irreplaceable.

* Some out-of-print books that aren't technically valuable, but have sentimental value for us.

I had planned to put our stuff (except for the shampoo, LOL) into those extra-large Ziplock storage sacks. Then I wanted to purchase a few plastic storage bins to take into the crawlspace, so I could put the bagged-up items inside the bins.

However, I'm not sure about this, for a couple of reasons:

1) Would this setup be enough to keep mice out of our stuff? We don't have a lot of mice around here--I've only seen two mice in four years--but one mouse can do a lot of damage.

2) The humidity here can vary widely, from 25% on a dry day, to dense fog some mornings. So I don't know if condensation would form inside the bins and bags, ruining any paper goods.

I would only keep stuff down there during the most active months of tornado season (May ~ July). But I don't want to inadvertently ruin our stuff while trying to save it!

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Norm Frechette]

from the pictures ive seen of tornados vs mobile homes, neither the items in a crawl space or the mobile home is going to survive.

a tornado will most likely shred your mobile home to bits, maybe even faster than it will take a stick built home to be destroyed.

[WildIrish]

a tornado will most likely shred your mobile home to bits, maybe even faster than it will take a stick built home to be destroyed.

Thanks for your reply.

Yes, I'm aware of how vulnerable MH's are...and I'm also concerned that our MH might no longer even be as sturdy as the average one. Because our MH has actually survived a couple of small tornadoes that did minor damage to our neighbor's stick-built home across the street, while ours only lost a few shingles.

I know that our MH would end up being a pile of rubble in a tornado, but even if a lot of debris crashed down into the crawlspace, anything is at least slightly better off underground than above ground. Particularly if we get one of the smaller tornadoes like we've had around here in the past, or just high winds. I realize that there are no guarantees, but I'm willing to try anything that might even slightly increase the odds of saving our sentimental items.

I just want to make sure I don't run into problems with condensation on any of the paper items, esp. the family photos, for instance. I've scanned them and saved them on a portable hard drive, but it would still be nice to increase the odds of the originals surviving.

So if anyone could let me know about this condensation issue, I'd appreciate it.

[Greg]

As you say, it's better than nothing. I think the real important papers would be better off in a bank vault. I have always wondered why someone does not manufacture a precast step/porch/storm shelter that can be set into the ground.

Greg

[WildIrish]

Greg, do you know if condensation would form inside the plastic bag or container, and ruin my papers/photos?

As you say, it's better than nothing. I think the real important papers would be better off in a bank vault.

We're keeping birth certificates, etc., with us, as the nearest bank is 30 miles away, and we'd have no way of accessing them. Plus, we have to have these papers for ID purposes on a regular basis. I do have other important papers scanned as .gif images and saved on a portable hard drive and a secure offline server.

I have always wondered why someone does not manufacture a precast step/porch/storm shelter that can be set into the ground.

On The Weather Channel, I've seen tornado shelters that are even good for use above ground...problem is, any shelter costs about $10,000. Far beyond the budget of most people.

[Greg S]

Important papers/records should always be kept in a bank safety deposit box.
There is definitely the possibility of moisture/mold damage by keeping items under a mobile home.
In the event of a tornado i suspect there is a high probability that the contents under a home could be sucked/blown out without severe damage being caused to the house due to the creation of pressure imbalances. Since the home is likely more sturdy than the skirting I would expect the skirting to go first. Therefor less protection for anything under the home.

[Greg]

I think I would try some of the "space bags" that you suck shut with a vacuum. I would put the things in a zip lock bags first than put them into a large space bag. In a worst case scenario at least everything may be together.

Greg

[UmpJJ]

Greg mentioned that a storm shelter would be a good plan - we put one UNDER our MH when we moved it last Fall - got it from this place -

http://www.cozycaverns.com/

We had to drive to Arkansas to pick it up (pickup truck with a flatbed trailer), but it's in place and is our hedge against a tornado.
I cut a trapdoor in the floor of the trailer so we can drop right down to the entrance (I didn't want to have to go outside in the middle of the night in my underwear!), and nobody driving by even knows it's there.
Well worth the piece of mind - comes in different sizes and prices and we couldn't be more pleased.

UmpJJ

[WildIrish]

Important papers/records should always be kept in a bank safety deposit box.

I guess I didn't clarify. These aren't important papers in that sense; these are paper goods I collected in my youth, just items that have sentimental value to me. We're dealing with the truly important documents appropriately, don't worry!

In the event of a tornado i suspect there is a high probability that the contents under a home could be sucked/blown out without severe damage being caused to the house due to the creation of pressure imbalances. Since the home is likely more sturdy than the skirting I would expect the skirting to go first. Therefor less protection for anything under the home.

Our house doesn't have skirting. It's on an actual foundation--would that make a difference? It's about four feet deep.

What inspired me to consider putting stuff under there is that I've found papers inside plastic (i.e., packaging for TV antenna cable, etc.) that has survived well since the mid-1970's. Somebody was apparently too lazy to throw out the trash after installing antenna cable for the family room.

I also need to clarify, if I were to put anything in the crawlspace, I definitely would not leave it there. I would only store it for 2-3 months, until tornado season is over. Then I would bring it back into the house. So it would remain in a climate-controlled environment for most of the year.

Maybe I should do a test, storing some paper and cardboard in plastic down there, and see what happens to it in 3 months. At least the non-paper childhood "junque" should be okay, as it could be cleaned off.

Greg mentioned that a storm shelter would be a good plan - we put one UNDER our MH when we moved it last Fall - got it from this place -

Thanks for the info. How we would LOVE to be able to afford such a shelter! I hate having to live out of a suitcase every spring, so that we can rush to a neighbor's house at a moment's notice. But we can't even afford the shelter, let alone transportation and installation.

I appreciate your trying to help!

[Greg]

I don't know about a suit case but I think I would pack a 'Jump bag" with a day's supply ready.

Space bag advertises that they are 100% waterproof, so I think you might be safe with one - but I would still put then in a second plastic bag. Since the air is sucked out there should not be any condensation.

Greg