Storm Shelter Installation

Living in Cullman, Alabama, we are reminded of the 2011 tornado outbreak  every time we drive through downtown.  Much of it has been rebuilt, but there are several properties which are still vacant.  Cement slabs are a harsh reminder of the destruction that a tornado can wreak in a matter of moments.  Odds are always in your favor that you won't be hit by a tornado.  Most people have only seen them on television, but do you want to take that chance?   Unpredictability combined with being unprepared, is a crisis waiting to happen.  It could even be life ending!

My wife and I decided we would better our chances of survival, just in case the unthinkable happened.  We studied storm shelters online and narrowed our choices down to two companies, Alabama Safe Shelter of Cullman and Valley Storm Shelter in Huntsville.  We decided to buy a "walk-in" unit because I've seen too many "in-ground" shelters which had problems with water.   Granted, the newer buried shelters claim to be waterproof and probably are.  I just didn't want to take the chance of water issues ten years down the road.

The shelter from Valley was a steel enclosure that bolted to a cement garage floor.  It was also advertised as a "safe-room" since it was bulletproof.  This one was actually our first choice.  We drove to their local showroom in Huntsville and the salesman was on the phone, so we waited.  The more I compared the two, the Cullman cement shelter was a better fit for us.  One, we didn't loose any garage floor space.  But more important that that, was the number of persons each was able to hold.  The steel shelter we had chosen could hold eight persons, but the cement shelter held fifteen.  The price for each was about the same.  If our entire family were present, including grandchildren, we would need the larger one, or stand on each others head!  I've never been a fan of "women and children first" decisions, when everyone could be saved with a little planning.

I called Dewayne Shaddix at Alabama Safe Shelter and asked if he could come by and make a site survey.  He agreed, since we were local.  I since learned that they serve a wide area in the Southeast so that isn't always possible.  He came by later that week and I showed him my three site possibilities.  All were okay for the installation.  He suggested that I remove some pines that were in the way.  We signed a contract and made a downpayment.  It was just that easy.  I spent a couple of days removing some additional trees and called to say we were ready.

Due to letting the sunshine dry the area a little more, he waited a few days before sending out his installation crew.  They arrived on Monday morning, ready to get it done.  The shelter came in two pieces, each weighing 10,000 pounds.

Josh, started digging out the shelter's final resting place.  Our land slopes upward behind the house, so we thought it would be a pretty easy install.  The average install time is about four hours.

The dig went pretty well.  The dirt was piled up on both sides so that it's restoration would be easier.

Next came the installation of the concrete shelter.  That part didn't go quite as planned.  The total weight of the shelter and vehicle is 28,000 pounds.  As soon as the truck pulled off the concrete driveway, the wheels started spinning from the damp soil.  It was lunch time anyway, so the crew took off to purchase some plywood for a temporary road.

They returned with five sheets for the truck to backup on.  It's rear wheels need to be about 10' from the final spot of the shelter.  The plan worked great as you can see in the following pictures.

Next, the door is installed and the dirt put back against the shelter.

The crew finished but it's still a work in progress for me.  I'm adding a rock retaining wall and a french drain to pull any ground water away.

We're extremely pleased with the purchase and the installation by Alabama Safe Shelter.  Everyone needs a safe place to go when danger threatens.  The weather has been good lately, so it may not seem like a high priority item to you.  Don't wait until it's too late.  Your family is too important to lose because of procrastination.  If you would like more info, please visit their website or call Dewayne at 256-338-4984.  Tell him The Chestnut Burr sent you!

Weed Eater Woes (Part Two) - Highway 157 Hardware, Cullman

 In Part One, I told you about the problems getting our Sears Craftsman C3 replaced and how difficult it is to do business with Sears.  Today, I want to back up in time and discuss our other weed eater, the Stihl FS-35.  With it, I discovered the difficulties of keeping a two-cycle engine running using ethanol gasoline.  Every season, it needed a carburetor kit before it would even begin to think about starting. 

Ethanol is yet another one of those things that our congress has done for us, that we didn’t need.  Corn should never be mixed with fuel.  It was just another opportunity for a ton of taxpayer money to be exchanged between our politicians and corporations.  All the while putting additional burden and expense on us.  I finally learned that purchasing a fuel stabilizer helps with the problem but is certainly not a permanent fix.  That would come through “Term Limits” which the American public hasn’t embraced yet.  Fixing Washing would correct a tremendous number of our troubles, but I digress.

This year, like the last three, I needed the Stihl to be worked on.  Since we were working in Cullman so much, I decided to use a local merchant there for the repairs.  157 hardware was close, so I took it along with my son’s Ryobi weed eater that we had borrowed to help us get ahead for the season.  They kept them both for about two weeks and called to say they were ready for pickup.

As my wife pulled in on a Saturday morning, she noticed a Sheriff’s deputy car parked out front.  She went to the counter, they pulled the ticket, and said the charge was $85.00.  She paid the bill, and then the guy said, “I hope they’re here, we had a burglary last night”!  He went to the back and returned with the Ryobi but not the Stihl.  Obviously, the thieves know a good weed eater when they see one. 

 So now, we’re out $85.00 plus a weed eater.  I suppose the correct amount would be $70.00 since that’s the amount charged for the stolen one.

This all took place on April 5^Th, 2014.  I made several calls and went by the store several times to check on the situation.  I called the sheriff's department and gave them the serial number, which the deputy said would be put into the national database.  I stopped by the store again in early July and was told the thief had been caught in Mississippi with over $300,000.00 of stolen equipment and my weed eater would be returned soon.  With my patience wearing thin, I stopped by again, the first week in August and spoke to the owner, Mr. Harris.  He said the insurance agent had been slow to get back with him, but should have everything handled the following Monday.  This was on Saturday, so I gave him my home number along with a cell number if necessary.  I’m still waiting for a call.

Just like with Sears, it truly boggles the mind to think that a business would treat it’s customers in such a callous, uncaring manner.   As a customer, I will not be taken for granted.  You cannot be mean, ignorant, or uncaring and expect me to give you more money!  You also shouldn’t expect me to remain quiet and not tell others what happened.  

Businesses like Sears Roebuck and 157 Hardware are good examples of what’s wrong with our economy.  They need to remember who allows them to stay in business, the customer.  If you’re willing to sell a product, have enough faith in it, to have a easy return/repair policy.  If you discover a defective product, replace it immediately.  If you lose a customer’s merchandise, replace it.  Above all, be nice.  Most of the employees I talked to about my weed eaters just wanted me to go away!  Treat your customers like that and they will!

The following quotes are from a Forbes article, “40 Eye-Opening Customer Service Quotes”. 

Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. ~ Bill Gates

The goal as a company is to have customer service that is not just the best but legendary. ~ Sam Walton

Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong. ~ Donald Porter

A customer is the most important visitor on our premises, he is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us an opportunity to do so. ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Sept 6, 2014 Update...   Went by 157 Hardware today to check on the insurance progress.  They said everything had been settled and presented me with a brand new Tanaka string trimmer.  I had never heard of the brand but in reading internet reviews they seem to be well made and the reviews were good.  I've already burned a tank of gasoline with it and it handled the worst I could throw at it.  I'm impressed!  Thanks go to Johnny at 157 Hardware in Cullman, Alabama.