I have a window in a bomb shelter

I need to protect it from shock waves and shrapnel, as one pane has already been broken. I'll remove the grating, make a frame from an angle iron, and make hinges from a metal rod and pipe scraps so that the hinges are at the bottom and the lid opens from the inside. The 4mm sheet metal will be reinforced with metal angle iron and lined with oak wood on the inside.

hi Bogdan,
I'm no help reinforcing a window, just wanted to say how we feel such sorrow that you are having to spend any time at all working on a bomb shelter....

Praying for a FAIR and peaceful solution soon for Ukraine💜

paper tape was very common and successful in london in WW2.  You can see the star shape pattern in old movies.  Goes around the edge, then corner to corner, then top to bottom, then side to side.

Modern equivalent might be window film as some advertise for commercial property and reducing breakage.  

As a side note, WW2 bomb shelters (and ones in the Cold War) sometimes had the problem of bad air.  If you do fix the window, a battery powered CO (carbon monoxide) monitor and ability to open the window might be useful.  CO in a small space can kill as quickly as a direct strike.  You probably already know this If you are living in a place that needs a bomb shelter.  Mostly, I'm writing for future readers.  

Judith Browning wrote:hi Bogdan,
I'm no help reinforcing a window, just wanted to say how we feel such sorrow that you are having to spend any time at all working on a bomb shelter....

Praying for a FAIR and peaceful solution soon for Ukraine💜

Thank you, everything is fine. I perceive this situation as a quest, and in this game I meet characters who really help me. When I was dragging this piece of metal on my bike and I couldn’t secure it securely, a stranger helped me and everything worked out. Everything will be fine. The most important thing is not to give up.

r ranson wrote:paper tape was very common and successful in london in WW2.  You can see the star shape pattern in old movies.  Goes around the edge, then corner to corner, then top to bottom, then side to side.

Modern equivalent might be window film as some advertise for commercial property and reducing breakage.  

As a side note, WW2 bomb shelters (and ones in the Cold War) sometimes had the problem of bad air.  If you do fix the window, a battery powered CO (carbon monoxide) monitor and ability to open the window might be useful.  CO in a small space can kill as quickly as a direct strike.  You probably already know this If you are living in a place that needs a bomb shelter.  Mostly, I'm writing for future readers.  

Thank you! I'll definitely take your advice about the sensor. I need CO2 and carbon monoxide monitoring because there's a furnace there. For ventilation, I cut 160mm holes and will install forced ventilation. I have pipes and a fan. Unfortunately, tape and film probably won't help. A drone crashed into a house on the neighboring street, and I saw what happened to the windows and surrounding metal. If I were building a house now, I'd definitely install metal shutters to protect the windows. But in any case, all options must be explored. I'll definitely look into film options.

Sadly (gladly?), I don't know modern warfare.

England during the blitz had mostly night time bombing,  big bombs, but not targeted.  Maximum infrastructure damage was the goal.  

Because it was at night, the blackout was a thing (no lights showing outside at night to make it harder to bomb.)  During the Cold War here, mylar blankets were a big part of shelters to make it harder to see body heat.  Some bombs can look for heat, apparently, and attack that.  Perhaps mylar coating?

In parts of Europe close to the ussr during the cold war, a shutter system protected windows when not in use.  It was a roller system in the cities or an old style external shutter in the country.  

I was young then, but in Canada, personal Cold War shelters were recommended to have two entry (window and door) in case one collapsed.  But both could be solid against explosive.  But also, we have something called radon which is like a poison from the earth in holes, so we had to care a lot about air quality and non electric backup ventilation if we get an emp, and ways to shut it off and stuff.  It was pretty icky and thankfully, only the military needed to care.  But I was young, and had very little exposure to violence, so bad air in a shelter is a bigger fear to me than the bombs.

Back to england ww2, the tape did two things.  1. Reduced chance of glass breaking (like i said big bombs that would level a cuty block) and 2. If the window broke, it would limit the glass spraying around.  They did specify specific tape and some multi pane windows might not work as well (see above cold war style for dealing with this issue).  I can deep dive if this is something interesting, but it sounds like it might not be right for your situation.

How about removable shuters in the inside?  How to make it not look like it's a shelter?  Dirty the window by painting mud mixed with flour so it looks dirty and they cannot see in? Paper tape or paper the inside to reduce light.  Then internal shutter?

I don't know enough of your situation to say what is worth trying.  But maybe some of my ideas can trigger better ideas.

Rereading my words, I don't know what, if anything is relevant to your situation.   All I can hope is it's a spring board for new ideas.  

I keep having an idea about camouflage.   How to keep it looking like not-a-shelter might be a useful part of the project.   But I'm just guessing.

Interested to see where the project goes.

Tape is a myth 1

Tape is a myth 2

Tape is a myth3

Tape is a myth4

The point is to know your glass and your tape.

The people i know who lived through the blitz have a, first hand experience that differs from those links.

However!   Glass today is significantly different and often multi paned.  The glass in the photo looked single paned, so paper tape is a viable option.

Glass today is also designed to break differently whereas during the blitz the glass would shard off ad fly in large daggers at people unless the tape could provide different tension on the pane.  There is a lot of science from that time too, but first hand stories always catch in my memory of the one guy in the village that got decapitated from not tapping his windows before the bombing.

The biggest problem with the links is they were doing it counter to instructions, then crying it didn't work,

The instructions I've seen from ww2 and heared from people who lived it are.

Paper tape or paper glued on with boiled flour or hyde glue
Applied from the inside
Single paned glass only (thus the shutter system I mentioned during the cold war when multipane glass becomes more common.

Wrong tape and it makes too strong a difference between taped and untaped.  Modern tape, excpet perhaps some of the cheaper painters paper tape, would likely make things more dangerous.   I completely agree with those links on that.

The other thing the links all mention is storm.  That's a very different force pattern than a bomb or explosion.  

Gary Numan wrote:

Tape is a myth 1

Tape is a myth 2

Tape is a myth3

Tape is a myth4

Thank you, very interesting information. When the war started, everyone covered their windows with tape and opened them.

Thank you for the kind reply.  I cannot imagine what you're going through.

The electricity is low and comes late in the evening, so for now I've converted an old grate into a firewood basket.

bogdan smith wrote: I need to protect it from shock waves and shrapnel, as one pane has already been broken..

If that were my Bomb Shelter, I would remove the window entirely.  On the outside I would fill the gap with brick and mortar or concrete as if the window was never there.

On the inside I would frame the opening, fill with insulation and cover with sheet rock or paneling of some sort.

Just what I would do ...

Anne Miller wrote:

bogdan smith wrote: I need to protect it from shock waves and shrapnel, as one pane has already been broken..

If that were my Bomb Shelter, I would remove the window entirely.  On the outside I would fill the gap with brick and mortar or concrete as if the window was never there.

On the inside I would frame the opening, fill with insulation and cover with sheet rock or paneling of some sort.

Just what I would do ...

Absolutely the right decision, if the situation worsens, I will fill this opening with sandbags.

Plexiglass, maybe two layers? Also known as acrylic sheets. That is a glass-like plastic that bends and flexes. I have used it for a greenhouse covering with success.

If it breaks it is unlikely to be nearly as dangerous as glass.

bogdan smith wrote:

Anne Miller wrote:

bogdan smith wrote: I need to protect it from shock waves and shrapnel, as one pane has already been broken..

If that were my Bomb Shelter, I would remove the window entirely.  On the outside I would fill the gap with brick and mortar or concrete as if the window was never there.

On the inside I would frame the opening, fill with insulation and cover with sheet rock or paneling of some sort.

Just what I would do ...

Absolutely the right decision, if the situation worsens, I will fill this opening with sandbags.

I have several bags of old hardened cement, I can use them to fill the window opening on top of the metal sheet

M Ljin wrote:Plexiglass, maybe two layers? Also known as acrylic sheets. That is a glass-like plastic that bends and flexes. I have used it for a greenhouse covering with success.

If it breaks it is unlikely to be nearly as dangerous as glass.

You are absolutely right about the danger of glass. I will make a wooden shield from oak inside, and if necessary, I will make a stop for bags of cement or sand.

The window protection is ready, and I also installed supply and exhaust ventilation.

bogdan smith wrote:I have several bags of old hardened cement, I can use them to fill the window opening on top of the metal sheet

Great idea.  Not much in the way of glass can be protected from shrapnel except bullet proof glass which I assume is way expensive.

Tempered glass would be the next best choice though still probably expensive.

As always, a craftsman of the highest order. Your solutions are creative and efficacious,  Bogdan.  With every step and project, you are helping others keep their sanity in a war zone
Thanks for keeping us aware of your good work, this helps me keep my faith in humanity.