Safe Location & Options

[Phil3]

I have two options for gun safe(s) in my house and am looking for opinions. May be some things I did not consider.

Option A:
One larger safe that can hold about 10 scoped rifles, located in the garage. Garage entry through front garage door or through regular door (w/window) at rear of garage (in backyard). Often, but not always, two dogs are in backyard. Safe bordered on back by house wall and one side by hot water heater.

Option B:
Two smaller safes (no wider than 23""), one in each of two closets inside the house. Safe housed in 24" wide recess found at extreme end of closet. Safe bordered on back and two sides by house walls.

Option B offers ease of movement into the house. Also harder to get to sides of safe, unless one cuts away 2x4 and sheetrock. Also thief has two safes to break into, although the two together may put up no more of a fight than the one large one.

Opinions?

Phil

 

[jonbearman]

In your house and get a real safe not a cheapo as they can be pryed open easily.

 

[Jay Christopherson]

Put in in your garage and bolt it to the floor and up against a wall. That way, they can't dump it over to pry the door and they can't chop through the back. If you can get it in a corner so only one side is exposed, even better. Some manufacturers can reinforce the sides to make it more difficult to chop/cut through.

No matter what, a determined thief with enough time will break in to your safe. All you can do is the best you can to slow him/them down and keep out the tweakers.

 

[jonbearman]

Putting it in the garage would poise a humidity problem wouldnt it?

 

[dickn52]

Mine is in the garage, central Florida and my heater removes the humidity pretty well. Today it is 70* with humidity in the 73% range in the garage and 76* and humidity in the 51% range in the safe. I use a locally built heater called Moisture King (found in a major brand of safes already). Great heater.

 

[Phil3]

In your house and get a real safe not a cheapo as they can be pryed open easily.

I have not seen a quality safe that is small enough to go in the closet. No other good place for a safe inside the house unfortunately.

Phil

 

[Jay Christopherson]

Putting it in the garage would poise a humidity problem wouldnt it?

I live in the Pacific NW, where humidity isn't a problem. I keep forgetting that not everyone lives here...

There are options to deal with humidity - you can use the de-humidifier rods, insulate your safe (fire-liner/gasket), etc... The company that built my safe swears that in 90% of cases, just adding the fire-proofing and oven gasket to the door will handle the humidity and in the other 10% of the cases, a de-humidifier rod will handle it.

 

[Raythemanroe]

Just an Ideer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pYqquG27pg


Ray

 

[civil82]

I like the idea of two safes to "cross load" items of importance. My reasoning is it takes more time to get into two.

 

[Tnslim]

IMO, one thing even more important than a quality safe is a home alarm system. Well worth the price paid for the peace of mind it give whenever you leave home. I can't imagine a thief sticking around to enter my home or garage with the siren blasting loud enough to wake the dead after he has broken a window or pried the door open.

 

[LHSmith]

Loss through fire is another threat. Remember that if placed on a floor level above the basement/ or first floor slab, the safe's integrity will likely be compromised when it crashes to the lower level.

 

[M-61]

Remember a garage location could allow a thief to get a truck next to the safe.. Not for ease of loading but to yank it out of the floor if it's bolted.
In the end a thief will get what he wants......you just attempt to make too hard....there's easier pickings somewhere else for him (or her).
I agree with the alarm system. Two Mastiffs walking around the house a thief might pass on trying....especially if he spots them in the yard during the day. What a shame to have to think this way but it's a fact of life.

 

[Phil3]

I was thinking about the closets because in the garage, the safe is easier to access. I saw one photo where a thief simply used a saw of some kind and simply cut off the top corner of the safe and got in that way. A little harder with a wall in the way. Sure, wall lumber and sheetrock won't put up much of a fight, but just more work and time. And with some effort, can disguise the safe with sheetrock or a hinged shelf panel, with the safe behind. Not having the safe attacked is best, if possible. The following shows what can happen in five minutes with an ax (as stated from source), on a quality safe.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v627/a1abdj/libertyburglary1.jpg

Phil

 

[thefitter]

Safes are important but you need to know a cordless grinder with a cut off wheel will get into most gun safes in minutes unless you are going really high end 10k +. Even then it's just time. Your best defense in CONJUNCTION with a safe is a home alarm system. Unless of course you are in the sticks.

Of your two options I'd go with the 2 in closets, lock the closets and hope they go for something easy like the TV and computer. Not having a bunch of visible gun paraphernalia around helps, that way they might not look for them. Most burglars want to minimize the time inside the house and go for quick wins. Good luck

 

[Phil3]

I agree with your strategy. I was thinking about the gun paraphernalia. I have reloading books in the bookshelf, a gun book on the 1911, my gun gear bag, front rest, etc., in a closet, my reloading bench in the garage, etc. Kinda' obvious my house is NOT a gun free zone! I am even wondering if I should yank the NRA stickers off the one car that is in the driveway. Someone always home if that car is here, but a thief won't know that, or could see the car and revisit our house when the car is not home.

The multi-layered defense approach makes great sense. Dogs in the house or backyard (one a small yappy dog, the other a bigger barking Doberman), alerts to neighbors about who should and should not be at the house, home security system, no obvious signs of guns in the house, and obviously, the safe. I like the fact that our city has a way to alert the police when you are away for any extended period and they will periodically check the house.


Phil

 

[wmdron]

I have all gun paraphernalia out of sight, guns in a safe bolted down and the room where the safe is located has a steel door with a deadbolt. I have been a victim of theft and the only thing that stopped the thieves from entering my home was that the house has a monitored alarm system with decals on the windows stating that fact, so they turned their attention to my outbuildings and farm implements. I recently added cameras and a DVR. I believe the more layers you can add the better. I haven't given much thought to the decals on my vehicles, but I believe they are all coming off. It's a shame we have to live like this.