Building a "gun closet" into my house?

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Navy_Guns

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I have no desire to try to get into a figurative arms race with professional burglars in my home. My guns, while numerous, are not irreplaceable. I have "gun proofed" my kids, but still want to keep their hands off while I'm not present. Out here in the country, the level of protection I'm seeking is to keep the random drug addict or assorted street punks from doing a "smash & grab" at my place while I'm at work and walking away with all my guns. So, I believe that a "gun closet" may work for me but I'm not sold on it yet.

I have an alcove in my upstairs office that's about 38" wide and about 40" deep that's situated above my foyer where the stairs come up from the ground floor. Right now I have two "el-cheapo" safes there that are certainly not punk proof. Besides being not bolted to anything, they're getting full. I thought I could wall-off the alcove and install a solid-core door with hidden hinges and a good dead bolt that would be more secure than what I currently have and give me LOTS more room. If I ever moved, it could revert to a plain-old closet. I'd want to install overhead lighting and maybe an electrical socket for installing a dehumidification rod.

Yeah, if somebody knew it was a gun closet they could cut through an exterior wall, the ceiling through the attic, or through the wall to the stair well if they brought a 10-foot ladder - but if they're going to take that much time and effort and noise, they could get into or remove a 500-pound safe, too.

What do you folks think? Anything I'm missing? Recommendations???
 
I'm not sure what company it is or what the price is, but I know someone makes an actual safe door with 5 or 6 steel cross bolts and hidden hinges, but it looks like a normal door. If I remember right, they weigh something like 350 lbs. Like I said, I can't remember the price, and it might be too expensive.
 
Not sure if dead bolt would be the way you would want to go. It's easy yes, but also easy to pick. I can open up pretty much any door lock or padlock given anywhere from 10 seconds to a minute. Lock picking kits are everywhere online, easy to make yourself, and very easy to use. But... you also learn which locks are high quality, and which are not. Master Lock despite the brand name... is a good brand to start out on for a beginner. :D

Just a thought. :)



But I do think it's worth thinking some more about. Your average burglar is just going to move on if he can't force a door open. I doubt he is going to be determined to get into that single room to the point where he brings an entire crew to work their way in.
 
Sounds like a good idea, A builder supply store owner I know took a unfinished room in his basement and in the interior wall he put 3/4 plywood then drywall over it to finish it. He then placed a steel exterior entry door with deadbolt that opens out into the hallway. Then drywalled the hallway side and it looks almost like a door going outside. If someone was not able to breach the door they would try to breach the wall only to find a wood backing which would take a little longer to get into... Then they would find his safe that he put there before building the wall which is too big to get out the door. Hopefully his alarm system would have the police there by then... Just a thought...
 
....someone makes an actual safe door with 5 or 6 steel cross bolts and hidden hinges, but it looks like a normal door.
Click to expand...

Browning / Pro Steel. It costs as much as a good, huge safe though.
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=429584

16039581m.jpg
 
Exterior doors should be fairly easy to go though, they are going through an exterior door to get into the house to begin with. You way want to look at doing a regular unsecured closet and "hiding" it somehow, like a hinged bookcase, mirror hung over the entrance, etc.
 
Not drawing attention to the gun closet would be a key element to increasing it's security.

Perhaps a double door set up with the outer door for concealment and the inner door for security.

Use a simple interior door that is 32" wide, with a keyed lock (no dead bolts to draw attention) that opens out... and then behind that, a re-inforced door 30" wide with four dead bolts (two on the handle side and two on the hinge side) that also opens out, but swings to the other side.

Buy both doors with extension jambs for 2x4 wall thickness, but frame your wall with 12" o.c. 2x10s with 3/4" plywood backing under the sheet rock as mentioned. You can re-inforce the inner door with a sheet metal skin, as is often done to meet code when folks build an attached garage and need to meet fire code.

Depending on your carpentry skills, you could do it yourself with ~$500 bucks in material.

Then hard mount your RSCs in the closet for you most valuable items.

Sounds like a fun project to me... but I'm a glutton for punishment :)


So it looks to be a
 
I love the idea of taking my old "tin box" safe and putting it on the other side of the room and fill it with bricks. Oh, to see the look on some dummy's face when he steals it and gets it open!!!
 
Navy Guns;

If the alcove door swings out, then the hinges will most likely be exposed. If so, obtain a set of the Major brand JP-10 security pins & install them in the hinges. It's not high security, but it is a low-cost layer of protection to prevent the removal of the hinge pins & entry to the closet.

900F
 
I had a gun closet however it got to be too small. So now I have a gun room which is also getting to small. My advise build big.
 
I've always thought about filling my old "tin" safe with an array of of cheap plastic guns (no, not glocks) from the toy store and some weights and leave the safe out in an open room....it's just to funny to think about the face of the would-be-robber when he finally got it open....maybe I'll put a camera in their too....
 
I like your idea, but with a bookcase in front as already suggested. If you'll have a constant light on for humidity control, be sure there's no light bleeding through anywhere.
 
Have a sign made up that says "DANGER! RADIO ACTIVE WASTE MATERIAL--KEEP OUT!"
 
I'd go with a multi layered approach.

First, look at your exterior doors. That's how they'd likely get in. Consider upgrading your deadbolts and also consider installing "Door Jamb Armor" to make your doors "kick in" resistent. That increases your odds of keeping them out in the first place.

Then double check the windows. Make sure they can all be locked and make it a habit to keep them locked. Replace any really old windows that would be easy to break (if you have a really old house) with more modern double pane windows. That should also help your energy efficiency as well.

Don't forget about your second story windows: Burglers do come in that way. Make sure you don't store a ladder where they can use it to access the 2nd story.

After you've hardened your doors and checked your windows, then, yeah, go ahead and build that alcove. It doesn't sound like a bad idea to me at all, but it will be much more effective as part of an effective layered strategy then as a stand alone.

Between making sure your doors are kick resistent, building that gun closet, and then having your safes in that closet, you should be set against all but the most determined burgler.

In the end, any "real" pro can defeat almost anything, given enough time. But, how likely are you to be targeted by a profesional safe cracker anyway? Keeping out the "smash and grabbers" and delaying them further if they do break in should do you well. The more time they need to get in the house, and then the more time they need to get to the guns, the more likely they are to flee before their job is done.
 
closet

My friend glen, took the face off an old closet furnace and mounted it to another door, inside the outside door, to make it look like a full furnace room, I fell for it and I'm in the const. business, it looked so real.
once you removed the small access panel for the furnace where the filter was, it had a lever which unlatched it and it swung into the room, you could set it up to swing out too.
But have to say, it was incredible, said it took some doing but I'd say his small room under the stairs is safe, unless someone he knows, does the thieving.
good luck, lots of ways to hide your guns,
In my last house I had much the same thing you are talking about. I simply lifted the cabinet out of the window type opening (had felcrowed teh old ladys nic naks to the shelves) set it down and proceeded to hide the goods.
rj
 
The next house I buy (probably wont be for 5-10 years or until the market picks up) will have a dedicated "gun room". I am in the mindset that: INVISIBLE > SECURE. If they cant see it, they cant steal it.

With that said, my plan is to build a room/closet, and pick up a large, full-length mirror with a frame (they have one at IKEA for $100) that I can hinge to a frame in a bedroom or hallway. behind it will be where the guns/valuables sleep. :cool:
 
I did this in a garage office I built. First I did the multi-layer thing with a very strong external door, hinges and bars on window. Also had an alarm.

I put a steel exterior door on the closet held with 3.5" screws and then reinforced the jambs with 1/4" strips. Put deadbolts in top and bottom of door. Had one hidden lock that was connected to a handle in the bathroom. 1/2 steel cable through most of the rifles trigger housings.

I think someone could have gotten in - but it would have taken quite a while.

Now I just have a hidden safe.
 
I realize that a 395 lb door will require a substantial box, but 220 lbs of shipping materials?
Click to expand...

that weight includes the owners' son who was promised a trip somewhere this year:D
 
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