Bought a Heritage Safe yesterday. Advice on bolting it down to concrete

[liquidr1]

Well guys, i picked up my christmas present to myself yesterday. Picked up a Heritage Fortress Security Regal. 36" wide, 48 gun capacity, and weighs 800 lbs.

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I have it in my basement and will be bolting it down to the concrete slab. My main question is, is it ok to set it directly on the concrete or should i put something under it to keep it up off the floor. The bottom of the safe is un-painted so im worried about rust.

Being that this thing weighs 800 lbs, im not sure how im going to be able to get the holes drilled and be able to put something under the safe and then get the holes lined back up again.

How many of you have your safe sitting directly on the concrete. Do you think it will be ok?

 

[Deserteagle]

No need to bolt down something that would be impossible for a burglar to get up the stairs, out of your house, and into a truck. Does your basement ever flood or get water on the floor? If so, your screwed. If you are just worried about some other source of water rising a couple inches on the floor, you can either pour concrete and make an elevated spot for it. Or just elevate it with some wood.

 

[-06]

Never set steel directly onto masonary or you will surely get rust. Masonary stays "wet" plus the two materials heat/cool at different rates thereby creating moisture. Even a few TREATED 1X4s is sufficient. Would clean and heavily paint the bottom prior to bolting or it will rust. For drilling, place the safe where you want it and drill through the bottom till you hit the concrete. Roll the safe over a bit and finish drilling with a concrete bit. Install your "Red Head" fasteners into the holes, reposition your safe, add reinforcing strips or big washers, and bolt down. No safe is "safe", if they want it they will just jerk it through a wall with a winch and onto a truck/van. Best you can do is to slow them a bit by hardening access. Go to a safe company and some have "demo'ed" safes on display. Griffin's in Chesterfield , SC has several on display...very eyeopening.

 

[Keykutter]

No need to bolt down something that would be impossible for a burglar to get up the stairs, out of your house, and into a truck. d.

Wrong answer. If you have seen some of the newest safe moving equipment and what it take to get a safe up the stairs, you would probably change your mind.

If you wouldn't change your mind, it's still bad advice to give to someone else.

KK

 

[alternety]

I know this will sound like a "well duh" but make sure the floor does not have embedded heating pipes or wires.

 

[alternety]

Semi off topic, but how to you move an 800 lb safe into the right place inside the house? Particularly assuming that the delivery was to the end of the driveway (curbside delivery). I am looking to getting a new safe, but have no idea how I would get it to the installation point.

 

[Dennis1209]

I purchased a Liberty Fat Boy, at 880 lbs. empty and had it put in the basement where I wanted it on the concrete floor. I had to completely remove one door frame to get it in, so I'm not bolting it down. I'm 60 years old, so by the time that 11 ga. steel rusts to be of any concern, I'll be well decomposed myself by then, so why worry about it?

 

[Deserteagle]

Wrong answer. If you have seen some of the newest safe moving equipment and what it take to get a safe up the stairs, you would probably change your mind.

If you wouldn't change your mind, it's still bad advice to give to someone else.

KK

Wrong answer. I wouldnt change my mind. If somebody can take an 800 pound safe out of my basement, I would have a lot bigger things to worry about. I think your advice is bad advice, and your tendency to pick fights with people is a bad thing to do too.

 

[Keykutter]

Wrong answer. I wouldnt change my mind. If somebody can take an 800 pound safe out of my basement, I would have a lot bigger things to worry about. I think your advice is bad advice, and your tendency to pick fights with people is a bad thing to do too.

Picking fights?

Voicing any opinion different than you and your boy Navy is picking a fight to you.

Being that I am speaking from a place of experience, yes, this is part of my job, I really don't care what you choose to do but since you don't know what your talking about in this instance, and I do, you shouldn't be the one giving advice in this situation.

I bow to your infinite wisdom in any and everything anybody asks here that you seem to know everything about, except this one.

 

[liquidr1]

Semi off topic, but how to you move an 800 lb safe into the right place inside the house? Particularly assuming that the delivery was to the end of the driveway (curbside delivery). I am looking to getting a new safe, but have no idea how I would get it to the installation point.

They wheeled it in through my basment garage door with the hand truck and sat it exactly where i wanted it. It wasnt just curbside delivery.

 

[liquidr1]

I know this will sound like a "well duh" but make sure the floor does not have embedded heating pipes or wires.

No worries. I just built our house this year. Nothing under the concrete slab but the plumbing to the septic tank and the safe is no where near that.

 

[liquidr1]

Its in my basment that has a garage door. Very easy for some one with an appliance dolly to get out of my basment and onto a truck with 2 or 3 big guys. Thats why i want it bolted down.

 

[Keykutter]

One way an end user can move a safe through a house without special equipment is by using throw rugs and lengths of pipe.

Put the rugs down and then the pipes. You'll need about 4 or 5 pieces about three ft long.

You can tip even a very heavy safe up enough to slip a pipe underneath. Then another and another till the safe rolls on them. The rugs will let you turn the safe without scraping the floor. Just keep taking one out from behind and place it back in front under the safe.

Don't go up and down steps if you don't have the right equipment, you can kill yourself.

I would just put a heavy sheet of plastic between the safe and concrete. That leaves no room to pry.

KK

 

[rifleshooter474]

Bolting it into your thin slab floor does nothing, they just rock it till they get a pry bar under your safe, then use a small hydraulic jack to pull the bolts out. It's the bulk and weight of the safe that keeps them from getting it.

 

[mack1748]

You could use Thunderstuds which drive into the concrete with a hammer and have a nut on top so you do not have to try and realign over a hole. Dill hole in safe bottom then concrete bit thru that hole into the concrete and set stud. Must have something between steel and concrete even if its just a piece of rubber.

 

[liquidr1]

Bolting it into your thin slab floor does nothing, they just rock it till they get a pry bar under your safe, then use a small hydraulic jack to pull the bolts out. It's the bulk and weight of the safe that keeps them from getting it.

Well its better to have it bolted down than not. Any thing that makes it more difficult for a theif to acheive his goal is a good thing. Most people that break in are crash and grab what ever they can quickly find and get out before getting caught.

I dont think most of you realize how much an 800+ pound safe actually weighs compared to an average 175 pound full grown male. Im 215 pounds and am no slouch. I just went down stairs to try and rock the safe. Hell, i tried with everything i had in me and i could not even get one corner off the ground.

It took two really big guys and me helping them to even get it off the truck with the aid of an appliance dolly. Once its bolted down, you aint rocking this thing back and fourth.

 

[liquidr1]

You could use Thunderstuds which drive into the concrete with a hammer and have a nut on top so you do not have to try and realign over a hole. Dill hole in safe bottom then concrete bit thru that hole into the concrete and set stud. Must have something between steel and concrete even if its just a piece of rubber.

I went to lowes looking for those today but they didnt have any. All they had were wedge anchors and sleeve anchors. Lucky for me, the Heritage safes already have 4 pre drilled holes in the bottom of the safe so i can drill straight into the concrete.

 

[Keykutter]

I haven't seen a gun safe or any decent safe for that matter that hasn't got pre drilled holes. Putting the safe in a corner is your best bet to keep the rocking factor out of the equation.

KK

 

[Deserteagle]

Picking fights?

Voicing any opinion different than you and your boy Navy is picking a fight to you.

Being that I am speaking from a place of experience, yes, this is part of my job, I really don't care what you choose to do but since you don't know what your talking about in this instance, and I do, you shouldn't be the one giving advice in this situation.

I bow to your infinite wisdom in any and everything anybody asks here that you seem to know everything about, except this one.

Oh so now the truth comes out. Because you hate Navy so much, you hate me now too because Navy and I agree 50% of the time huh? I dont care what your opinion is, you tore apart my advice to the OP rather than give him your own advice. Attacking a person instead of an idea/opinion on an internet forum is a classic keyboard commando. Welcome to my ignore list.

 

[liquidr1]

the only thing that concerns me with putting something under the safe to get it up off the concrete to keep it from rusting is the fact that someone could get a pry bar under the safe.

It almost seems like putting it on a piece of plastic would be a better option to keep it off the concrete. Honestly, how long will it take 11 gauge steel to rust through anyway.