Where to place a gun safe

899 Views 23 Replies 10 Participants Last post by Drewster, Oct 27, 2010

RickN

Discussion Starter · Oct 21, 2010

I have a small handgun-only collection at this point and the small safe I have has been sufficient.

Now I've started looking at long guns so storage when I'm out of the house is a concern.

I have adult kids, so there are no munchkins running around yet that I have to be concerned with. I don't plan on getting into the safe everyday, so I don't need immediate-at-hand access.

My house is a two-story, with unfinished basement, and a large garage. Any closet I put the safe in will need to reworked, since all have built in shelving now.

What are my pros and cons about placing the safe in various locations? A lot of ya'll have safes so I'm looking for your impressions of what works and doesn't work. I've never owned/installed one of these and I'd like to do it right the first time.

1 - 20 of 24 Posts

mountainpass

· #2 · Oct 21, 2010

Some good info in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=26&t=49400&hilit=safe

rmodel65

· #3 · Oct 21, 2010

if i had a safe it would be on a different floor than the main one...just because it would be that much harder to move if you were broken into...

Adam5

· #4 · Oct 21, 2010

I would NOT put it in the garage if at all possible. Garages are normally easy to break in to, and normally are not protected by a home's alarm system.

My vote would be in the basement, bolted to both the slab and the studs of the wall behind it. If your basement has a exterior door, be sure that it has a good dead bolt with a reinforced door and door frame (good idea anyway). A dead bolt is only as secure as the door, frame and hinges.

AV8R

· #5 · Oct 21, 2010

I look at it from an environmental perspective... mainly humidity. Basements can be humid as well as garages. Inside the climate controlled part of the house is where I would put it. How heavy is it? Can your second floor closet support the weight? What is underneath that closet, your recliner? :shattered:

Adam5

· #6 · Oct 21, 2010

AV8R said:
I look at it from an environmental perspective... mainly humidity. Basements can be humid as well as garages.

I forgot about this. For basement use you will need a golden rod or some other method of keeoing the humidity down inside it.

mygunstoo

· #7 · Oct 21, 2010

The best place to put a gun safe (big and heavy) is in the basement, for several reasons. Number one, in the basement it will not burn as hot as the rest of the house levels in case of a house fire. Number two, once the house is on fire, if the safe is in the upper levels, it will fall through the floor down to the basement damaging things along the way and inside the safe.

If humidity is a concern, then buy a dehumidifier (150-200 $$) for the basement (good idea anyways) and an electric rod for inside the safe. The basement will also keep curios eyes out of the safe.

AV8R

· #8 · Oct 21, 2010

mygunstoo said:
The best place to put a gun safe (big and heavy) is in the basement, for several reasons. Number one, in the basement it will not burn as hot as the rest of the house levels in case of a house fire. Number two, once the house is on fire, if the safe is in the upper levels, it will fall through the floor down to the basement damaging things along the way and inside the safe.

If humidity is a concern, then buy a dehumidifier (150-200 $$) for the basement (good idea anyways) and an electric rod for inside the safe. The basement will also keep curios eyes out of the safe.

Basements will also flood (house fire being fought, burst pipes, etc). I guess there is some form of risk no matter where you place it.

mygunstoo

· #9 · Oct 21, 2010

AV8R said:
mygunstoo said:

The best place to put a gun safe (big and heavy) is in the basement, for several reasons. Number one, in the basement it will not burn as hot as the rest of the house levels in case of a house fire. Number two, once the house is on fire, if the safe is in the upper levels, it will fall through the floor down to the basement damaging things along the way and inside the safe.

If humidity is a concern, then buy a dehumidifier (150-200 $$) for the basement (good idea anyways) and an electric rod for inside the safe. The basement will also keep curios eyes out of the safe.

Click to expand...

Basements will also flood (house fire being fought, burst pipes, etc). I guess there is some form of risk no matter where you place it.

That is true, but a wet gun is not a total loss. Just need to be dried and oiled again. A gun in a house fire, is done. The intense heat will change the properties of the steel, and plastics. :lol:

RickN

Discussion Starter · #10 · Oct 21, 2010

AV8R said:
I look at it from an environmental perspective... mainly humidity. Basements can be humid as well as garages. Inside the climate controlled part of the house is where I would put it. How heavy is it? Can your second floor closet support the weight? What is underneath that closet, your recliner? :shattered:

Note to self -- move recliner.

RickN

Discussion Starter · #11 · Oct 21, 2010

This is good stuff.

As far as fastening it to basement studs, it seems that floor bolts are standard on everything I've seen. Are rear bolts normal for these safes too? I don't recall seeing them mentioned in the 'features' list. Perhaps there's a specific brand where that's there 'special' feature?

mygunstoo

· #12 · Oct 21, 2010

RickN said:
This is good stuff.

As far as fastening it to basement studs, it seems that floor bolts are standard on everything I've seen. Are rear bolts normal for these safes too? I don't recall seeing them mentioned in the 'features' list. Perhaps there's a specific brand where that's there 'special' feature?

Normaly, a gun safe will have floor holes for bolting it. Gun cabinets normaly have holes on the rear panel to bolt it to the wall studs.

Adam5

· #13 · Oct 21, 2010

mygunstoo said:
RickN said:

This is good stuff.

As far as fastening it to basement studs, it seems that floor bolts are standard on everything I've seen. Are rear bolts normal for these safes too? I don't recall seeing them mentioned in the 'features' list. Perhaps there's a specific brand where that's there 'special' feature?

Click to expand...

Normaly, a gun safe will have floor holes for bolting it. Gun cabinets normaly have holes on the rear panel to bolt it to the wall studs.

I just found out that my friend that bolted his to both the slab and the wall studs made the safe wall boltable himself. He welded 1" steel tabs to the back of the fase for wall bolting.

Wolfram

· #14 · Oct 22, 2010

Adam5 said:
I just found out that my friend that bolted his to both the slab and the wall studs made the safe wall boltable himself. He welded 1" steel tabs to the back of the fase for wall bolting.

I like this idea but I wonder if it would void the warranty in anyway?

RickN

Discussion Starter · #15 · Oct 24, 2010

As far as the dehumidifying, is there any substantial difference in the quality/effectiveness of the electric bars and the silicate boxes? I have several possible spots to fit the safe, but not all have nearby electrical. Assuming it goes into the basement it will need a dehumidifier, so is electrical dehumidifying a gotta-have-it feature?

AV8R

· #16 · Oct 24, 2010

Making your own Desiccant Packs for Long-term Firearm Storage

http://www.scribd.com/doc/14860366/Maki ... rm-storage

A friend of mine fills knee-high panty hose with white rice and hangs them in his safe. I have no idea if it really works, but he claims it works.

RickN

Discussion Starter · #17 · Oct 24, 2010

AV8R said:
Making your own Desiccant Packs for Long-term Firearm Storage

http://www.scribd.com/doc/14860366/Maki ... rm-storage

Thanks for the link.

AV8R said:
A friend of mine fills knee-high panty hose with white rice and hangs them in his safe. I have no idea if it really works, but he claims it works.

Sounds like the idea came about during some fast-thinking after his wife said "Why do you have a package of panty hose?"

jhvaughan2

· #18 · Oct 24, 2010

Also, if you are building a place to install it, note that building a tight box of two sheets of 5/8" Drywall will give a good amount of fire resistance.

mygunstoo

· #19 · Oct 25, 2010

RickN said:
As far as the dehumidifying, is there any substantial difference in the quality/effectiveness of the electric bars and the silicate boxes? I have several possible spots to fit the safe, but not all have nearby electrical. Assuming it goes into the basement it will need a dehumidifier, so is electrical dehumidifying a gotta-have-it feature?

There is. The silicate boxes actually removes moisture from the air inside the safe. The electrical bars (Golden Rod for example) does not. However, the electrical bars changes the dew point of the air inside the safe thus changing the condensation temperature. I do not remember if the change is up or down but the end result is to avoid the condensation of moisture on metal surfaces that creates corrosion.

Some ppl have concerns about the silicate units because it actually removes moisture from the air. If you do too much, it can dry up the wood on your firearms causing them to shrink and crack.

If you put the safe in the basement, it will be very nice, but not necerary, to have an electrical dehumidifier (similar to a small air conditioner). It will make the overall environmental conditions in the basement better.

If you use the electrical bars (Golden Rod, ie), you will not have any problems with corrosion inside the safe and will not have to empty the silicate container nor to replenish it either. Mine is still working after 15 years.

See less See more

mygunstoo

· #20 · Oct 25, 2010

jhvaughan2 said:
Also, if you are building a place to install it, note that building a tight box of two sheets of 5/8" Drywall will give a good amount of fire resistance.

If you use drywall for fire resistance, use the fire rated Type X at least 1/2" thickness single layer for approx. 45min. of fire protection.

1 - 20 of 24 Posts

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