Makeshift shelter

[nomore49]

Any designs for a quick primitive shelter?

[nomore49]

I am open to all answers

[MichaelK!]

Large plastic garbage bags. They keep you dry, retain heat, are dark in color.

Really, what are you expecting? Shelter from what? The sun, the cold, radioactive fallout, roving bands of man-eating zombies? You need shelter in the desert, a rain forest, NYC, the arctic? Maybe others here would bother answering if they thought you had a clue.

[Poolboy44826]

A vehicle. Doesn't have a to run but preferably a way to open windows either manually or charged battery. Will need a way to shade if heat is a problem but will protect against almost all critters with more than two legs and most weather.

[Bubba1358]

Ya: http://homesteadcatholic.blogspot.co...g-shelter.html

[GREENCOUNTYPETE]

lots of answers you need to give a bit more detail , how primitive , what tools have you , what materials.


this can vary widely
, anything that puts a barrier between you and the ground if it is at all cool and puts cover over head but does not restrict air flow so much that it sweats and drips on you

if ti is available plastic sheeting and or waxed card board are great materials , otherwise a lean-to and brush it in good

but hollow trees can be good check for other inhabitants first active coon dens will usually have scat

it depends so much where you are and what you have

[nomore49]

Sorry, this is my first post. I am looking for something i could make from scratch in the woods, for a one-night-move-on situation

To keep me from losing body heat from the ground, and protection from light rain

[7thswan]

Originally Posted by nomore49

Sorry, this is my first post. I am looking for something i could make from scratch in the woods, for a one-night-move-on situation

To keep me from losing body heat from the ground, and protection from light rain

We have a survival and prep section here. People there do this kind of stuff all the time. Look down further on the front page, you'll find us.

[||Downhome||]

Whats wrong with a tent?

As far as Insulation from the Ground a bed of leafs of pine needles under.

A extra tarp is handy as well for a wind break and moisture barrier.

[Forcast]

I would have to say tent as well. the small pop up deals easy to pack up and hike out with.

[Harry Chickpea]

Pile of dry leaves. Gather together, dig in and cover over.

[kasilofhome]

Hit a second hand store, Craig's list. Tent
add a tarp and a sleeping bag for the weather.
Done

[StL.Ed]

Yep. Brush shelter. Branches set up as a lean-to, piled with grasses and leaves, with more branches and sticks to hold everything together. Think of a huge squirrel's nest big enough for a person. Probably best to have a leaf mattress as well to insulate yourself from the ground.

[deb_rn]

You also need to put a location... general is fine... in your profile. People in FL need different shelters than people in Canada!

Debbie

[BlackFeather]

I always thought carrying a contractor's garbage bag for and emergency shelter might work. Punch a hole in the bottom, run a rope from the bottom through the open top. fix the rope to a root in the ground and the open end onto a tree part way up and rocks on the corners. Tree trunk would block the wind on the open side and you could crawl in and keep dry, being a plastic bag it wouldn't take much room to carry. Otherwise a boy scout book will show you what to make out of brush and limbs.

[Jolly]

Tent and something to insulate or get you off of the ground. But if you want to get more primitive...

Down here, switch cane frame with a palmetto roof will stand up to everything but a hurricane. Thatch your roof well, palmetto thatch two sides and back, using a lean-to configuration. Place the open side of the lean-to towards the South and build your fire in front of the lean-to. Again, make sure you have insulation between you and the ground, or that you make your bed off of the ground.

Now, that's more substantial than you wanted, but a lean-to like described above will keep you out of the weather for several weeks.

[unregistered41671]

A simple, cheap and fast shelter to make from a tarp.

[Midgard]

Possum Belly has it right. A tarp is a good bet. They are cheap and it is easy to make a lean-to or something more sophisticated. Good luck.

Ed

[GeneMO]

I built a nice lean-to for 3 adults and 2 kids on our farm one weekend for fun.

We had a blue plastic tarp from Walmart. A saw, 3 or 4 bales of wire tied grass hay, and sleeping bags.

We cut a limb about 10' long. Using the wire from the hay bales we wired that 10' straight limb across two small trees. We placed it about head high.
Then we cut other smaller trees, straight ones, about 8' long and about 11/2" diameter. Cut maybe 7 or 8 of them. We secured one end to the cross tree and left the other end on the ground. Then streatched the tarp over the lean to and secured it with baling wire. We drooped the excess tarp down to the dround to cover both ends, weighted it down with rocks.

We then spread all the hay out on the ground for a mattress. We build a big campfire in front of the open end. The lean to must have trapped the radiated heat to some degree. It got down to 16 degrees that night. We slept great! We kept the lean too repaired and used it for 2-3 years.

Now for one person this could be scaled way back. A 6X8' tarp for $5 or $6 bucks and 5 or 6 poles should do it.

A decent sleeping bag will be nice. Use leaves if you dont have hay. Use paracord, wire, or zip ties to secure the tarp and poles together.

Easy way? Go find a second hand tent for $20. Make sure to assemble it before you buy it to make sure nothing is missing.

We build the above mentioned lean too in a valley out of the wind, but found a little bench of ground with good drainage and no flood danger if it came up a big rain. Also make sure your fire is safe, wont catch your shelter on fire, wont catch the timber on fire, and the wind wont blow too much smoke in your shelter.

Gene

[calliemoonbeam]

Great video, Possum Belly! I was coming to post about tarp shelters too, but figured someone would beat me to it. I do think tarps and primitive brush are your best bet for something quick and portable, and tarps are pretty cheap and can be folded up into a backpack or roll.

Just some ideas: https://www.google.com/search?q=prim...g&ved=0CCgQ7Ak

https://www.google.com/search?q=prim...Q&ved=0CCoQ7Ak

You need to build your shelter just big enough for your needs, but no bigger. The smaller it is the better your body heat will keep it warm inside. The flap for ground cover shown in Possum's video is an excellent idea, will keep you off the damp ground.

For extra insulation and warmth, you could stuff leaves up underneath it to get you further off the ground. Zip ties (with a pocket knife to cut them when you need to) or even a long boot lace would be good to lace the front shut through the grommets to help keep the wind out. Make sure to face your opening away from the north wind.

If you build a fire, make sure you have it well contained, and don't build one if it's very windy or you could cause a lot of damage. Try to find rocks to build fire pit. Make sure you put it out good and either douse the ashes with water if there is any handy or with dirt to make sure no sparks fly away. Be a good steward of the land, leave it as good as or better than you found it.

Seriously, as 7thSwan said, come down to the Preparedness section and post there, you'll get tons of ideas.