Posted: 10/17/2005 10:53:48 AM EDT
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Are there any restrictions/obstacles to building an indoor shooting range in the basement of a house? I live in a rural area of Kentucky and for the most part have some good places to shoot. However, I have always wanted to be able to just go down into my basement and shoot, and not have to make an afternoon of it. My plan is to build an external coridor down the length of the foundation that would have concrete walls on both sides and over head, shaping a lane. My other "dream" idea would be to take 100 yds. of the giant (not sure about size) concrete storm/sewer sections and run them away from my house, with an opening in my basement wall to shoot from/ Other than being insanely expensive and a little too rooted in fantasy, does anyone see any issues with doing something like this, other than noise and ventilation, which will be addressed. |
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As wolfman says, lead contamination is going to be your biggest concern. Do you have any chidren in the house? Lead and children do not mix. Once lead is in the system it is very hard to get it out. If you go to the better indoor shooting ranges you will notice their HVAC systems and lead handling filters, they are very expensive and for a reason. Also, 300 feet of reinforced concrete pipe ain't cheap. Depending on the diameter you want, it can range upwards of $20 or more per foot. This does not include installing it. You also have to be concerned with water getting into the pipe and running back into your house. Concrete pipe is far from water tight. |
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Home firing ranges are so rare that they don't even ask. If there isn't a question on the form, don't add one. I would imagine that lots of companies would turn you down. |
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I figured the best way to do this would be to spend the money on quality target air rifles and pistols and just shoot them in the basement. A friend has 16 acres with a shooting bench in his heated garage, a 3 sq foot pop open window in front of the bench, and a 50 and 100 yard backstop outside. That works very well. Good Luck! 
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Also, as far as ventilation goes, be mindful of the fact that it is illegal for you to release unfiltered air into the environment if it could contain lead or other heavy metals. Non-toxic ammo might be a good bet if you decide to do this, but then also be aware that you will have to stick with one type of ammo or the other if you intend to try and regain some of the value as reclaimed/recycled materials at a commercial recycler. If you mix lead and sintered bullets in more than a small percentage then you end up with nothing recyclable, and a huge pile of 'lead contaminated waste' that will end up costing you money to properly dispose of. (Either way. Small percent of sintered in mostly lead, small percent of lead in sintered.) |
True. SRS has a wet system that should keep the dust down but you stilll have waste water, lead fragments and bullets accumulating. The rubber systems can be a problem also. It can be expensive to dispose of rubber with a bunch of lead bullets trapped in it. |
Ventilation is your biggest issue. You will need plenty of fresh air and exhaust. eta. Don't just tie onto your existing system that serves the house. You will need fresh air from outside and exhaust to the outside. Make sure your air intake and exhaust discharge are a min. of 10' apart. www.ashrae.org/content/ASHRAE/ASHRAE/PDF/20053292323_686.pdf |