Gun safe install options

[Jeepfanatic]

Alright guys I have a scenario that I would like some advice on. I have two options on the gun safe I just bought and need some opinions and information. I can either anchor it into the concrete slab in the attached garage or I can hire a safe mover to get it up the flight of stairs with a 180* landing turn and install it in the Master walk in closet.

We already have a home alarm with about a dozen entry sensors, multiple motion sensors and glass break sensors so I'm not too terribly concerned from a theft standpoint. If I decide to put it in the garage I can order an additional motion sensor and put it in the garage to secure that area. My biggest concern is dealing with the humidity levels if I were to anchor it into the garage slab. The garage isn't climate controlled but is pretty well insulated and has been noticeably cooler than outside temps this summer. Will a golden rod handle Indiana humidity by itself?

 

[lordjackel]

I have a Johnson safe installed in my garage for the past 10 years with a Golden rod. No issues what so ever with the firearms or paperwork stored inside. Bolted down against 2 walls...if the thieves want what's in it that bad and have that much time to waste trying to get into itthen that's why I have insurance. Upstairs risks floor damage (does house have enough support in that spot (depending on weight etc.). Also, unless you advertise you have a safe in the garage it is doubtful anyone will know anyway...mine stays covered with moving blankets...just looks like a pile int he corner.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

My Ft. Knox lived in a friend's non-climate controlled garage for two years while I was overseas. I just had one of the big boxes of desiccant. No rust issues.

 

[winchester]

i bolted my browning to the garage floor but when I lifted it off the skid I put a layer of ice and water shield and layer of felt paper under it. I also put silicone sealer in the bolt holes for concrete anchors so moisture wouldn't come up into safe. I've been using the same golden rod since 1993 with no rust yet.

 

[fullmetaljesus]

I would say in the house. I would just feel better about it.

 

[357 Terms]

First of all, how big is the safe?

I have moved quite a few up stairs, moved some fairly large ones, we just had a cart, couple tow straps and four guys.

I personally would prefer to have it in the house, and if my wife was willing to give up space in the closet for it!!

...no brainer

 

[Hawkeye7br]

My gun room is adjacent to garage, I have safes in both rooms. Garage works fine, I'm at the range a lot and don't have to carry multiple long guns up & down stairs. We don't have strangers in the garage, no one knows it's there. Have security system as well.

 

[DRob]

We tend to think a gun safe is going to put an excessive load on the floor. I did until I was asked how much my refrigerator weighs fully loaded and how many square inches bear that load. A refrigerator may not be as heavy as a big safe but it's weight is typically carried by four castors. Pretty heavy load per square inch! The bottom of a safe, being flat, will distribute the load over a much larger area. Do the math.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Do it right and pay to move it upstairs.

Garage: humidity, water, risk of damage because of vehicles, may be easier to penetrate garage instead of house.

Closet: Inside, climate controlled, far less risk of damage, guns near where you sleep, can secure closet with deadbolt

 

[Tactically Fat]

Can your indoor floor handle the weight?

 

[amboy49]

Think of it this way - if you and 3 friends weighed 250 pounds each do you think you could all stand in an area that would be the same size as the bottom of the safe ?

I’m betting you could. Especially if it’s on an outside wall. I’m betting there are more safes sitting on crawl space ground floors and second stories than concrete garage floors or slab construction.

 

[Dead Duck]

During my 10 years of marriage to my evil life sucking ***** wife, I moved about 12 times. Because that she devil was never happy... ever.

Which means that I moved my safe 12 times in less than 10 years. I learned before each move to buy a few 3/4 4x8 sheets of nice plywood and cut down to use as planking as the Romans did. All depending on the dimensions of the hallways, rooms, turns, etc... Lay a sheet down move the safe lay another move the safe and so on. Some floors on older homes (and some newer ones) had thin flooring that got damaged not to mention the wheel creases in some linoleum floors and tile damage. Some floors were over 2 foot between studs with cheesy 1/2 inch planking. The plywood sheets afterwards would come in handy for projects around the house, worktables or yard sale signs..... when moving again...

Keep in mind this is a Liberty late 80s 1000# safe moved by me and sometimes my wife helping. (unfortunately never fell on her) That's it. A few times, my brother has been around and maybe a trusted neighbor to help but usually just me. Always got a rental truck with a lift (they all sucked) or a ramp.... that I always needed to re-support and kept rigging tension while rolling down or up. (almost lost it a few times - twisting ramp)

Also early on I welded up a real nice solid furniture dolly with the best wheels I could acquire...... from work. Max it out so it would still fit in most doorways with the safe and the wheels would still barely fit on most truck ramps.

I've never had to go up any stairs other than 3 or 4 steps and then I'd build some kind of ramp ahead of time. I have a couple bins just dedicated and labeled "SAFE" with cables, shackles, blocks, pulleys, ropes, straps, come-a-longs, chains, etc... . A rigging haven. Always ended up in some hidden room or closet on a pedestal or at least up on ply 2-3 inches off the floor then locked down and to the wall if I could. I've had the choice to leave it in the garage on many occasions that would have been so much easier but never did that. I wouldn't have been able to sleep with my guns out there.

If going upstairs vs garage was my only option, I would have gladly paid someone to go upstairs for me. But being I was married to an evil life sucking *****, obviously I had no funds to do that.



Moral to all this?
-If you have the money, pay for movers. (your back will thank you later)
-Keep your safe wherever you want it as long as you will be comfortable leaving it there.
-If you're going to move it with limited people or alone, have lots of stuff and know how to use it.
-Check it all out, have a plan, make your list and don't cheap out on your needs.
-And never get married to an evil life sucking *****.



Oh, trailers and modular homes. I would avoid them. Definitely won't hold my safe and usually the interior doorways aren't wide enough so not only did I need to remove the jams but also part of the walls on like... all of them. And of course reverse the whole thing when moving....again.

Pre-fab house-
I had 2 casters go through the floor as I crossed the front door threshold. Didn't have the plywood planking down cause I was in a hurry. (Thought the floor might be stronger than it really was) Locking the safe in the front doorjamb.. in the winter....during a freezing snowstorm. Yep, I was alone. After an hour with pry bars and a jack, it was out and I could finally shut the front door.

 

[Jeepfanatic]

During my 10 years of marriage to my evil life sucking ***** wife, I moved about 12 times. Because that she devil was never happy... ever.

Which means that I moved my safe 12 times in less than 10 years. I learned before each move to buy a few 3/4 4x8 sheets of nice plywood and cut down to use as planking as the Romans did. All depending on the dimensions of the hallways, rooms, turns, etc... Lay a sheet down move the safe lay another move the safe and so on. Some floors on older homes (and some newer ones) had thin flooring that got damaged not to mention the wheel creases in some linoleum floors and tile damage. Some floors were over 2 foot between studs with cheesy 1/2 inch planking. The plywood sheets afterwards would come in handy for projects around the house, worktables or yard sale signs..... when moving again...

Keep in mind this is a Liberty late 80s 1000# safe moved by me and sometimes my wife helping. (unfortunately never fell on her) That's it. A few times, my brother has been around and maybe a trusted neighbor to help but usually just me. Always got a rental truck with a lift (they all sucked) or a ramp.... that I always needed to re-support and kept rigging tension while rolling down or up. (almost lost it a few times - twisting ramp)

Also early on I welded up a real nice solid furniture dolly with the best wheels I could acquire...... from work. Max it out so it would still fit in most doorways with the safe and the wheels would still barely fit on most truck ramps.

I've never had to go up any stairs other than 3 or 4 steps and then I'd build some kind of ramp ahead of time. I have a couple bins just dedicated and labeled "SAFE" with cables, shackles, blocks, pulleys, ropes, straps, come-a-longs, chains, etc... . A rigging haven. Always ended up in some hidden room or closet on a pedestal or at least up on ply 2-3 inches off the floor then locked down and to the wall if I could. I've had the choice to leave it in the garage on many occasions that would have been so much easier but never did that. I wouldn't have been able to sleep with my guns out there.

If going upstairs vs garage was my only option, I would have gladly paid someone to go upstairs for me. But being I was married to an evil life sucking *****, obviously I had no funds to do that.



Moral to all this?
-If you have the money, pay for movers. (your back will thank you later)
-Keep your safe wherever you want it as long as you will be comfortable leaving it there.
-If you're going to move it with limited people or alone, have lots of stuff and know how to use it.
-Check it all out, have a plan, make your list and don't cheap out on your needs.
-And never get married to an evil life sucking *****.



Oh, trailers and modular homes. I would avoid them. Definitely won't hold my safe and usually the interior doorways aren't wide enough so not only did I need to remove the jams but also part of the walls on like... all of them. And of course reverse the whole thing when moving....again.

Pre-fab house-
I had 2 casters go through the floor as I crossed the front door threshold. Didn't have the plywood planking down cause I was in a hurry. (Thought the floor might be stronger than it really was) Locking the safe in the front doorjamb.. in the winter....during a freezing snowstorm. Yep, I was alone. After an hour with pry bars and a jack, it was out and I could finally shut the front door.

Have you thought about getting back together with her? She sounds like a peach!

 

[Jeepfanatic]

I am going to call around and get some quotes today on what it would cost to get it upstairs. My brother, who is significantly larger and stronger than I am, screwed up his neck trying to manhandle a smaller safe out of the basement by himself. This was 7 years ago and he is still dealing with it. For what he has spent trying to get it corrected he could have just left that Winchester safe in the basement and bought a Graffunder.

The safe itself isn't that big. In fact it's a relatively light(cheap RSC) safe at 500lbs. In all reality I could get it up the stairs with some friends but I don't want anyone to get hurt trying to help me.

 

[Tactically Fat]

Think of it this way - if you and 3 friends weighed 250 pounds each do you think you could all stand in an area that would be the same size as the bottom of the safe ?

I’m betting you could. Especially if it’s on an outside wall. I’m betting there are more safes sitting on crawl space ground floors and second stories than concrete garage floors or slab construction.

Temporary loadings are a different animal than long-term static loads.

The safe itself isn't that big. In fact it's a relatively light(cheap RSC) safe at 500lbs. In all reality I could get it up the stairs with some friends but I don't want anyone to get hurt trying to help me.

I bet the door will come off easily. That should help bring the weight down by about 100lbs or so. Sounds more awkward than anything.

 

[Slovpeter]

I would call some safe movers.... makes things a tad bit easier

 

[Hop]

I thought about renting a power dolly and moving it myself until I found out it was 880# empty. I hired a guy. Forget his name. He's very popular on here & hard to get a hold of. I'm sure a search will bring up his name. When you do reach him be ready to book him right then and there on the phone while you have his attention. Get all the measurements before you talk to him, total move distances, stair tread measurements, overhead clearances, floor type, etc.

 

[ol' poke]

Inside. Besides, the open door of a well stocked safe casts such a romantic glow.