How do you move a big gun safe into a house?

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Well, see, first you bulldoze one wall. And then the tower crane shows up the next day and sinks the pilings into your roof. And then. . .

Actually, I imagine some well placed and reinforced ramps and some big guys with a big dolly jack like in the picture and maybe some hydraulic jacks would do the job.
 
I gather from the fact that the dolly can support it without crumpling that this is more of a fire-resistant safe than an anti-burgler safe? The last safe I tried to move was noticibly smaller than that, and it weighed a LOT -over 5,000 lbs, I believe.
 
Well, see, first you bulldoze one wall. And then the tower crane shows up the next day
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No, no, no. That's how we take them out.

I gather from the fact that the dolly can support it without crumpling that this is more of a fire-resistant safe than an anti-burgler safe? The last safe I tried to move was noticibly smaller than that, and it weighed a LOT -over 5,000 lbs, I believe.
Click to expand...

This is a Champion gun safe. I think it's only 1,200 pounds.

I can lift the heavier commercial units up stairs in a simliar fashion, but now how the photo shows. The method shown is not nearly as safe on heavier units.
 
Moving big safe in house

This method works. You get the safe where you've got it in your photo ready to enter the door. Now go to the hardware store and buy either some wood dowels or PVC pipe(cheaper). You need at least 1 inch OD and up to 2 inch OD will work. You need at least 8 to 10 pieces of this pipe/dowels that are 1 to 2 inches longer than the width of your safe. From your dolly, place a few of the pipes in front of the safe. Push the safe from the dolly to the top of the dowels. As the safe moves forward continue to place more dowels on the floor. Repeat the process and the dowels will begin to be freed up out the back as the safe rolls forward. Then you move the freed up dowels to the front again. Don't get in a hurry!!!!! If someone gets their finger in front of a dowel when the safe is rolling forward = VERY, VERY, VERY smashed finger, FOR NO REASON. Go slow and methodical!! If your floor is an uneven surface, place two boards as rails, on the floor before placing the dowels. If you need to use the rails under the dowels, you will need at least 4 pieces of rail material as well so that you can continue to place rail in front of the traveling safe. I have moved a very large safe twice using this method. Good Luck.
 
Safe+ proper gear+ 2 powerlifters (my friend and myself) and presto, safe is where it should be (after having gone up 2 flights of stairs, around some corners, and picked up from its side. I reckon I could subsitute a 3K pound car for a 1K pound safe if I called 4 of my human forklift friends, and helped them out :D
 
1.) Purchase property

2.) Position safe

3.) Build house.

O.K.

Reality. I completely disagree with safe logic.

My guns are here and there and everywhere, all concealed.

Why give the bastards a chance at the motherlode?

Just askin'


isher
 
What seems to be the trouble? Where is the "dolly" you guys keep talking about? I see a pallet jack capable of lifting about 5500 pounds. I could put that in by myself, and I'm only 5'7" 180 pounds.

First you need to wrap the RSC with several moving pads, or blankets will do and tape them in place with packing tape. Next, position it in front of the step. Then tip it to its side through the door. Push the rest of the way into the room, stand it back up and use an actual dolly from this point. If you feel better about it, put a couple of 2x4 on the step to assist in protecting the side of the RSC that will be resting temp. on it. Or you could use a "Big Red" appliance dolly with straps, or use an electric stair climber........I do this for a living, and with things much more fragile than your vault. I drive a long haul truck, and specialize in electronics with an occasional household move. I move 3,000 pound mainframe computers into office buildings.....I lease to Mayflower/United van line.
 
One time about three years ago now I helped a buddy of mine and his dad move a 500lbs gun safe into his house. We'd driven around all day in their Chrysler van (500# safe and three big guys inside make for one slow van) and when we got back to their house we improvised, which basically meant two of us pushing from inside the van, getting the safe to slide out the back and onto a small trailer. Then once it was in the trailer we wheeled it into place and tilted it upright.

500# was hard enough. Don't know how guys do it with 1200# safe's.

Knowing what I do now, and having worked in stock since, I'd say to build a ramp (2x4's perhaps?) and then pull the safe up the ramp with the jack, with another guy helping to push. That's assuming it's going on the ground floor.
 
Mine got up 2 floors through a narrow stairwell, down again when we moved, and back up 1 floor in our new house, thanks to 4 strong friends. One of them is a sailor. He expertly knotted a bunch of ropes around it, so that it was completely "netted in" and each of my buddies had "rope handles" to lift. Admittedly it's not extremely large nor heavy.
 
How do you move a big gun safe into a house? I knew someone who once thought he had found quite a bargain. It was a safe from a grocery store that had gone out of business, just about big enough to walk in.

This fellow thought he had figured it all out: a three axle trailer, six friends, and one of those SoCal houses built in the late 60's/early 70's with the two big, front doors.

The safe broke the three axle trailer and required a bobtail truck instead; the six friends had to be beefed up to eight with 'come alongs' and plenty of pizza; the two doors had to be expanded by removing the door frames and then the cripple studs.....well, it took a few days but he eventually got the safe in the house and swore it wasn't coming out again with anything short of dynamite! :evil:
 
I've moved mine and a couple of my buddies a couple of times.

A piano dolly works great and makes its very easy. Slip the two sides under the safe, strap them together, step on the levers and the safe lifts up on wheels and is now mobile. One person can push the safe around with little trouble. Most rental places have them for a reasonable rate.

What you also want to get is some sheets of the 1/4-3/8" pressed hard fiber board cut down to 24-30" widths. They will allow you to roll the safe across carpet and linoleum floors, and especially the newer "softer" vinyl floors, without effort and damage. If you put anything under the safe that will put the weight onto a small, focused point, you will damage some floors. Even the wheels will cut grooves into the softer surfaces.

The most drastic thing we did, was pull to of my buddys safes up out of his basement to the first floor with a truck. We took the doors off (the doors are usually the heavy part anyway), laid the safes on the the steps, tied a rope to them, took the rope up the steps out the bathroom window to my work truck out in the yard. 4L and away we go. Didnt even tear up a wall or door frame. :)
 
2) Free beer for them
Click to expand...
Dont buy it until your done. The safes get smaller and lighter and the help can do amazing feats (in their own minds) and come up with the most (seemingly) ingenious ideas the more they drink. You tend to buy what they are telling you too if your drinking with them. :)

If you screw up the old ladys floor, thats damn near worse than zipping it up in your zipper. At least THAT pain eventually goes away. Just picture Wilma's lips going and Dino's voice coming out of them for the rest of your life. ;) :D
 
golfballs= bad idea
I've got ruts in my hardwood from the golf ball method with only a 700 pounder. I figured out the best is a square of shag carpet fuzzy side down cut to size of the bottom of the safe, then spray pledge furniture polish in front and one person can walk it around the room. On carpet they will slide pretty easily. Tile or concrete get the furniture dollies rated to 1200 lbs with pneumatic casters.
 
Here you go....LOL

buystraps_13.jpg



SERIOUSLY: Hire insured professional movers that are used to handling large heavy objects.
 
If ya rutted the floors, methinks ya didn't have enough balls.:D It's a function of weight distribution - a 700 lb safe on 10 balls means 70 lbs per ball - an' there ain't much surface area on one. I usually use 100 at a time, which means at least 30 are under load at any given time. But yeah - even then, on a wood floor I'd likely use some luan or other plywood for additional protection. Where the GB's come in is for transfer over concrete and especially carpeted floors. I moved my 1800 lb. Ft Knox from the front door into the gun room by myself, with the 7 year-old grandson moving the golf balls for me.
 
"My guns are here and there and everywhere, all concealed.

Why give the bastards a chance at the motherlode?"

Fair enough, but that's very risky. I found out the hard way that burglars (especially experienced ones) know all the tricks about where and how people hide things. If they have enough time, and they probably won't break in unless they know they do, they will find nearly everything of value in your house.

Tim
 
For up the stairs I placed 2 boards with a rug on them, layed safe on it's side and borrowed the neighbor to help slide it up. Worked like a charm.
 
Build a walk-in safe. The door and be brought to it during construction when you can get equipment in there.
 
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