Got a Cellar?

[signseeker]

We have a good-sized backyard and I was thinking about a cellar... for keeping potatoes and onions and stuff in... does anyone do that here? Did you dig it out yourself? Do you really like it? Do you have lots of spiders? (Cuz I can't stand spiders, especially big ones.)

[waif69]

Digging it out yourself will definitely take longer than using a backhoe or some other machine.

However, I would check with you local ordinances first before you start digging, you may need a permit or engineering plan or some form of paperwork to generate revenue for your community first. I would also recommend that you call the 1800 number that will mark any underground lines so you don't bust a line of pipe and get stuck with the repair bill and / or fine. Here in NJ, you can't do much without giving the community some money, regardless of how inconsequential. If your community doesn't require such payment, be glad.

[prairiemom]

A root cellar is at the top of our A list of things we want to do. I would love to hear how others have done it. Our problem is the frost line is about 3' deep, so the root cellar needs to be about 10-12' deep, 6-7' tall and another 4' of dirt on top of that. And just 8-10 yrs ago the water table here was 3'. If you dug a hole more than 3' deep you had standing water (We planted several trees that year, so we know.) The area is slowly drying out so the water table is now about 6-8', but that still means that our root cellar will be in standing water. Unless we can find a way to drain it away and now you're talking EXPENSIVE! If only there were a hill we could build into, but it is flat here. REALLY flat. You can see the cars on the freeway that is 6 mi away. If your child runs away from home you can give him a 2 day start before you have to go look for him. Truly, very flat.

So, flat terrain, high water table, low frost line--a very bad combination for root cellaring.

So I would love to hear from those who've done this--what did you do for drainage? For moisture control? What materials did you use--poured concrete? Cinder block? Stone? Other? How about entrances? Did you just do stairs straight into the ground? How do you protect the entrance from the elements?

[waif69]

I have seen people build a structure and bury it with 4 feet of soil with just a northern access point (small door) and soil berms on either side of the access point. Of course, this would give you a big lump on your property.

[Rogmo]

Or a bike jump for the kids!

"Dad! You're the coolest!"
(nah - wouldn't happen..... not to mention the medical bills....)

[mirkwood]

rofl...nope no broken bones at the rogmo home...uh uh not at all...

[Toni]

Our water table is a bit high and I'm thinking that a root cellar wouldn't be so good, but I want one too. A neighbor down the street and around the corner put one in though and built a small building over it so that you have to go into the building to get to the root cellar. They lined the cellar with cinder blocks cemented together. I think the floor is cement but I would want dirt as long as it wasn't moist from water coming in through the soil. They don't seem to have any problems with it. They stored the potatoes they grew in it and the potatoes were still good in the spring. Their son has a backhoe and dug out the hole. They (they're a retired couple) did the cinderblock work themselves. It took a while but they got it finished. I don't remember seeing any spiders in there but there may have been some. If you don't have flies or any other bugs for them to catch they'll starve to death anyway. If you do have the other bugs, it will be good to have a few spiders to keep their population down.