mgmorden
Member
Hey guys. I just recently purchased a safe (22-gun Stack-on) that I'd naturally like to bolt down.
The safe is in the (climate-controlled) garage in a little alcove up front (basically there's a door in the middle and a recess on each side of it - the hot water heater is in one recess and the other was empty and now contains the safe).
I figured there are two ways to bolt it: wall or floor (or both).
The wall is the easiest choice - drilling into wood ain't that complicated, but it also feels a lot less secure.
Bolting to the slab gives me a warmer and fuzzier feeling, but the issue that I worry about there is the potential for drilling into a plumbing pipe. I know that some homes have pipes in the slab which worries me.
Now, from what I've seen the hot water heater and all sinks on the ground floor all have pipes going to the wall, but there is a bathroom with a toilet downstairs which obviously sits atop the slab so it's got to have at least one pipe going down there. It is literally a few feet from the outside of the house though (opposite where I'm putting the safe) so my gut instinct is that they would have run the pipes the shortest distance rather than all the way across the slab.
So, anybody have an idea of how likely/unlikely it is that I'd hit a pipe by drilling into the slab?
Side note - I don't have a hammer drill. I suppose I could rent one (or perhaps see if a pawn shop has one cheap) if needed, but could you get into the concrete with a regular drill and a masonry bit?
Thanks.
The safe is in the (climate-controlled) garage in a little alcove up front (basically there's a door in the middle and a recess on each side of it - the hot water heater is in one recess and the other was empty and now contains the safe).
I figured there are two ways to bolt it: wall or floor (or both).
The wall is the easiest choice - drilling into wood ain't that complicated, but it also feels a lot less secure.
Bolting to the slab gives me a warmer and fuzzier feeling, but the issue that I worry about there is the potential for drilling into a plumbing pipe. I know that some homes have pipes in the slab which worries me.
Now, from what I've seen the hot water heater and all sinks on the ground floor all have pipes going to the wall, but there is a bathroom with a toilet downstairs which obviously sits atop the slab so it's got to have at least one pipe going down there. It is literally a few feet from the outside of the house though (opposite where I'm putting the safe) so my gut instinct is that they would have run the pipes the shortest distance rather than all the way across the slab.
So, anybody have an idea of how likely/unlikely it is that I'd hit a pipe by drilling into the slab?
Side note - I don't have a hammer drill. I suppose I could rent one (or perhaps see if a pawn shop has one cheap) if needed, but could you get into the concrete with a regular drill and a masonry bit?
Thanks.