The missus and I went out today and put money down on a gun safe. The one we chose tips the scales at just shy of 900lbs empty, probably half a ton loaded. We shopped a few different places, and one of the sales guys mentioned reinforcing standard flooring before installing the safe. What are the best methods for shoring up floors under a safe? Additional joists? Cross bracing the existing joists? Sheet of plywood to distribute the load?
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Reinforcing floor for gun safe?
- Thread starter Bubba
- Start date
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I would not think you would have a problem. I have a pretty good size safe in my bedroom and I have 14" I beams under 3/4 inch plywood. Sits just fine. In my living room I have a 125 gallon aquarium, weighs in at about 1400lbs. In that room it has old 12" beams and 1/2" plywood and it sits just fine. Nothing wrong with over doing it but I don't think it's a must.
That safe isn't all that big... I've seen bigger, and heavier. I don't mean to come across as a *******, but 1000 lbs isn't a huge feat for a homes flooring. Are you putting this upstairs, middle floor, ground floor? Give me a idea of whats under the safe. Is it just a crawl space? Or do you have a whole other level?
If your house is older, I might worry. But any house thats <20 years old, the floors can hold 1,000 lbs all day. Hell, I would even say 1300. I'd start to get worried around 1400-1500. But that's just me. YMMV.
Take what I say with a grain of salt, I am in no way a professional, and I assume no responsibility if your safe does fall through the floor and crushes your in laws, wife, cousins, sister, brother, mom or dad, or family pet.
If your house is older, I might worry. But any house thats <20 years old, the floors can hold 1,000 lbs all day. Hell, I would even say 1300. I'd start to get worried around 1400-1500. But that's just me. YMMV.
Take what I say with a grain of salt, I am in no way a professional, and I assume no responsibility if your safe does fall through the floor and crushes your in laws, wife, cousins, sister, brother, mom or dad, or family pet.
donnie1581
Sharpshooter
If you have a basement, It wouldn't hurt to place blocking in between the joists that will be directly under the safe. You can also position the safe to where the legs (if it has them) directly on top of the joists (add one in if they don't line up by putting to pieces of blocking in joists and running a joist in between the two pieces of blocking).
Also what calcot7 said.
Also what calcot7 said.
I had the occassion to sit 3 fireproof safes in the same room. The house had a crawl space so I set a12' length of 8 X 8 timber on a couple of adjustable floor posts and braced up the area. I actually leveled the floor better than it was by twisting the screw adjusters. I do not know if it was needed, but I never had any trouble after that and the kitchen floor that was on the other side of the wall quit squeaking.
aka-kesler
Plinker
- Aug 18, 2012
- 122
- 16
Just be sure that it in a decent place where maybe a load bearing wall is within a few feet... Should be fine...
Its really not an age of your house type question.....it's more about how long the span is on your joists between load walls? Fifteen feet or less....no problem....much longer than that I would consider perpendicular verticle support underneath. Even more so if you currently have bounce in the floor when you walk accross it.
But drywall and carpet are the two things I am not really good at!
Seriously though, I may have to reconsider my plan to buy a good safe and put it upstairs in my office. Though the house was built to code, it was not built over code for sure.
I may not be able to buy safe after all...
However, the safes I am looking at are 705 and 535 lbs., so I may be okay?
Though the house was built to code, it was not built over code for sure. QUOTE]
Definition of Building CODE = MINIMUM Property Standards ... IE.. THE WORST WAY one can LEGALLY BUILD a home.
Seriously - I can actually size and spec your joist / floor system if you need some help. Just email me.
