Gun Safe Inside "Gun Room" Questions.....

[msmp5]

A couple questions for the knowledgeable readership........

I just bought a big gun safe that is going to sit on a concrete slab, under which is just ground/dirt/earth. At the present time, it is in an unheated area of the property. The exterior walls are reinforced cinder block. Should I put some sort of insulating mat under the safe before I bolt it to the concrete? Even maybe just a 3/4" sheet of plywood? This is in the desert of the Southwest USA, very very low humidity, but it does see large temperature variations throughout the year, and even during a single day: it gets well over 100 degrees regularly in the summer (often cooling off 20-30 degrees at night) and can get down into the 30's - 40's at night in the winter.

I may, at some point in the future, decide to enclose the space that the gun safe sits in, and make it into a "gun room", it'd be probably end up being about 8' x 16' dimensions. If I do this, I might go ahead and put a "mini-split" type air-conditioning system in it, for temperature and humidity control. If I ran this system year round, what would be the ideal temperature to run it at (year round?) for this room?

Any other tidbits of info that anyone cares to add on this topic would be greatly appreciated!

 

[1KPerDay]

If the entire setup is under earth, there will not likely be large temperature variations IN THE ROOM or surrounding earth. We have a safe inside concrete gun room and have no issues. We do run a dehumidifier in the room as it has some proximity to a pool pump room. Personally I'd run the temp around 60 but I have no basis for that. That's if the room naturally settles around that temp. If you're having to run the A/C constantly to maintain that temp, bump it to 70. I'm just talking common sense so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[cdk8]

Does the safe have fire protection?

If so, what type of material does it use?

The internal temperature of a good fire safe is going to rise and fall very slowly. Even with a large fluctuation as such with your outside temperature, the internal temperature will probably remain much more moderated. I agree with 1K that the ground heat may further work in your favor. If you already have the safe, it would be very easy to test this given you can get wireless thermometers for cheap.

 

[msmp5]

Not too concerned about the interior of the safe itself, as I will put a goldenrod in there and probably a desiccant canister also. I was more concerned about issues relating to the possible metal bottom of the safe in contact with the concrete floor, and the back of the safe which will likely be in contact with the back wall of the building, which is also reinforced cinder block. (There is dirt/ground under the concrete slab floor and this back wall is partially below grade.). So I'm wondering if these metal-to-concrete/cinder block areas (safe bottom and safe back) needed some form of insulation or protection.

I am also wondering what needs to be done re: air conditioning and humidity control if I enclose the whole 8' x 16' space - within which the safe sits - into a vault like room, as I will likely have mags, accessories, parts within this room that I also want to protect from rust, etc........ But keeping in mind that this is southwest USA desert area, with generally very low humidity. For instance, if I put a split system air conditioner in the room, is that sufficient, or do I need additional ventilation, such as fans, etc for air exchange? And what do you guys who have built these types of rooms think about sealing the interior faces of the cinder-block wall, and floor (the parts with dirt/ground on the outside side) with some type of moisture barrier/paint-on sealant? Any particular product folks would recommend for this purpose? Thanks for any input!

 

[another pake]

A gun safe in a gun room, bolted down to concrete over soil. Room below grade.
Air circulation under the box prevents any rust from condensation.