Bolting down a safe

[SeabeeMan]

My gun safe was delivered yesterday via the purchases freight carrier and my brother and I horsed it into the basement with the help of my skinning winch in the garage. I followed the instruction for bolting it down to the letter: drilled out the fireproof caulking with a 3/8" bit and continued through the mark the holes, moved the safe out, drilled the holes with a 7/16" bit, dropped the plastic anchors (http://www.alibaba.com/product-detai...519083866.html) and bolted the safe in with the washers and included lag bolts. The problem is it never seemed to tighten up. The bolts grabbed and smooshed the gasket on the washers but never fully seated. I'm thinking I'll put a few washers on the lag bolt and see if they grab better in case they are bottoming out and if that doesn't work, pull the whole works out and replace the plastic ones with lead anchors.

Has anybody been down this road before and dealt with something like this?

[Ford SD]

My gun safe was delivered yesterday via the purchases freight carrier and my brother and I horsed it into the basement with the help of my skinning winch in the garage. I followed the instruction for bolting it down to the letter: drilled out the fireproof caulking with a 3/8" bit and continued through the mark the holes, moved the safe out, drilled the holes with a 7/16" bit, dropped the plastic anchors (http://www.alibaba.com/product-detai...519083866.html) and bolted the safe in with the washers and included lag bolts. The problem is it never seemed to tighten up. The bolts grabbed and smooshed the gasket on the washers but never fully seated. I'm thinking I'll put a few washers on the lag bolt and see if they grab better in case they are bottoming out and if that doesn't work, pull the whole works out and replace the plastic ones with lead anchors.

Has anybody been down this road before and dealt with something like this?

The plastic Anchors are not the best

the better ones are the steel ones
drill a hole in the right spot -- hammer in the anchor with a big enough hole that you insert from the in side and tighten up (big washer)

or the Very old style Split zinc anchor and a Lag bolt with washer

Ps if in a basement My prefered method is raise it off the ground (board/ rubber mat ) and anchor in the wall and the floor
and don't anchor directly on a outside wall

[FLYCUTTER]

Forget the plastic anchors and the lead ones too. Go to a industrial tool house or supply house and get steel shells. Its a harden steel anchor with a round tapered wedge. You drill the hole drop the anchor in and hammer it in with a special punch. Then use stainless steel bolts or grade 8 bolts. The anchors will never come out.

[SeabeeMan]

Sounds good, I think I know the anchors you are talking about and our local Ace Hardware has them.

Ford, how do you anchor to a wall and why not an outside wall? The manufacturer states that if I drill anywhere but the holes in the bottom I void the warranty. I've also read not to elevate it at all as that gives a perfect place to start prying to try and pop those anchors. I did put a doubled up sheet of Tyvek under there.

[Bored1]

First thought on an outside wall would be possibly a leak or someone bringing the wall and dirt behind it in if the went to prying on it.

[SeabeeMan]

Got it. The safe is waterproof for 72 hours and this area is a sand pit, so I'm not all that worried about water. Never thought about somebody collapsing a wall...that's a scary thought.

[retread]

I used 1/2" Parabolts on the bottom of mine. Rock solid and easier to install. Just type parabolt in your search engine.

[Del-Ray]

May I also recommend, if this is a permanent site to use industrial adhesive to keep it from wiggling. I worked as a locksmith fer a bit. And we had to remove a gun safe once. We just wedged it from the wall and rocked it back and forth. A six foot tall safe is a hell of piece of leverage. Once you start wiggling it you can work anchors loose. I glued mine down, and you'll be there all night if you want to move it.

Theres also a sensor you can buy that will set off your alarm if someone starts cutting your safe. Because unless it's a class B jewelers safe it can be cut through the sides disturbingly fast. I've got a door sensor on my gun room, and a motion sensor in there as well. The sherif station is about two minutes away, and the fire department is four.

I'm going to plug simply safe here as well. You buy the components. And then you install it yourself, no wires. It's automatically connected to the monitoring site for 15.00 a month if you want, OR IT WILL WORK AS A STAND ALONE AS WELL. If you want monitoring, you can pay, month to month, no contracts. Ten bucks more and you control it on your phone, I love "testing" it while I'm at work and the wife is home with the kids. Bwahahahahahahhaaa! Opps.. Sorry. Just clearing my throat....

[CastingFool]

At work, we used steel expansion bolts to fasten stuff down on the concrete floor. We would use a hammer drill to drill all the way through the slab, or at least 1"-2"deeper than the bolt we planned to use. This was done thinking that on the event that the equipment was later moved to a different location, all you had to do was to drive the bolt down, so it was flush with the floor, and not have to cut the stub off.

[country gent]

We had a epoxy kit we used for mounting equipment with alot of vibration shifting motions that was really solid and fast and easy to use. It was a epoxy blend in a soft plastic tube You drilled a hole in the floor to fit the tube of epoxy I dont remember it there was an insert on the bolt anymore but you drove the bolt assembly into the epoxy tube breaking and mixing it. came back 4 hours later and tightened the nuts up on the studs.

[dragon813gt]

Go to hardware store and buy either lag bolts and shields. Or Red Head brand anchors. Both work equally as well.

[Ford SD]

Sounds good, I think I know the anchors you are talking about and our local Ace Hardware has them.

Ford, how do you anchor to a wall and why not an outside wall? The manufacturer states that if I drill anywhere but the holes in the bottom I void the warranty. I've also read not to elevate it at all as that gives a perfect place to start prying to try and pop those anchors. I did put a doubled up sheet of Tyvek under there.

Anchor it to the wall and the floor if it one of the thin Cabinets (low cost)

The reason for not doing it to a outside wall is that the Outside wall could be several degrees cooler than a inside wall and cause condensation --->rust your guns
also reason for raising it off the floor

[SeabeeMan]

Great recommendations all around. I remember the Wej-It brand chemical capsule anchors, we used those in the Seabee's quite often. I kind of forgot about them.

This is a 500lb, 2 hour fire rated safe, so the big thing is just keeping it from being tipped over by somebody wanting to attack the side or back.

It is in the utility room and the left wall is up against the exterior basement wall, but this part of it is 2x8 "studs" fully insulated and spray foamed against the concrete. The house was the builders "realistic dream house" as he called it, so it is built beyond even my semi-ridiculous standards. The back is against the wall that contains all the plumbing going to both bathrooms, so I want to be able to unbolt the safe from the floor in case I need to do any plumbing work or there is a remodel in our future. The 100+ gallon water heater is on the right side.

Since I'd like to be able to remove it if needed, I think the adhesive anchors are out. I'd also like to have a bolt go down into an anchor, rather than a nut going on a stud that is sticking out. I can't imagine trying to horse the safe up and onto an anchor that is coming up from below. Much easier to drop a bolt down from the inside into a hole.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

Buy Red Head floor anchors. I used them for many years at the phone company to anchor equipment.

[HATCH]

Drive pins. They never come off.
You need to remember that when you safe is full its heavy. They aren't likely to lift it up as much as roll it or slide it.
So the anchors mostly prevent the safe from moving side to side. Not much up

[CLAYPOOL]

I live in a 80 plus year old house that is very solid. 1550 is what my safe weighs empty. That said I have it out over the old basement with a beam lamented together with a piece of Tip up tubing setting on the floor on a solid 8 inch block. that tubing supports the full safe and FLOOR above. If the safe gets moved off that beam, Look Out. Local's all know that as a F.F.L. dealer there is guns every where, mostly snatch and run models. 10 minutes in and out is the average heist around here. Neighbors watch us very closely so its even hard for a P** stop out by the barn. A little trouble, but I sure like my "Old Lady Neighbors" for that reason. Also handy if I get hurt doing farm stuff. Some things are good..

[retread]

I put a warning label on mine that says "CAUTION BLACK POWDER STORAGE". Might make someone hesitate cutting with a grinder or a torch!

[Davidk]

I vote for the metal anchors as well!

[doc1876]

I used Red heads for years on cardboard bailers, and they are still there. 1/2 in or 3/4 in by 6-9 inches.
Fastenall has a two part concrete epoxy that has a mixer tube, (It is the neatest thing to watch) and when you use it on concrete, nothin is goin nowhere. It is late now, so I can't call them to get you the name, but it is amazing.

[NavyVet1959]

Back in the old days, we would use a handheld star drill to drill a 1" or so diameter hole and then either hammer a wedge of wood or lead into the hole. Then use regular lag bolts to go into a pre-drilled hole in the wedge.