An important part of gun safety is preventing a gun safe from toppling over. Now, having a gun safe that isn’t anchored properly can put your family and anybody else who comes into touch with the safe in danger. Plus, a gun safe that tips over is not only dangerous but can also seriously damage your property or business.
Key Takeaways
- Always anchor your safe to a wall or the floor. It helps stop accidental topples that could result in costly damage
- Put a small carpet underneath your safe to distribute its weight better evenly
- The flooring and subfloor you have will dictate how you anchor a firearm safe
- It’s recommended to use safety straps or brackets to prevent the firearms from sliding around
Fortunately, there are several ways to ensure your firearm safe won’t topple over accidentally. This guide will cover some tips on how to keep a gun safe from tipping and ensure that your firearms remain secure at all times.
How to Keep a Gun Safe From Tipping
Maintaining the stability of a firearm safe is vital for gun safety. Damage to your firearms and potential injury are also risks associated with a firearm safe that tips over. What, then, can you do to prevent your firearm safe from tipping over?
1. Choose a Gun Safe With a Low Center of Gravity
It's the first step in preventing your firearm safe from accidentally tipping over. Do your homework and buy a high-quality safe built with a wide base and a low center of gravity.
2. Install the Gun Safe in a Level and Stable Location
Once you've picked on a firearm safe, put the gun safe in some place stable and level. Find a completely flat area in the basement or garage to bolt down the safe. If the floor is not level, buy wood shims from a local hardware store. Put some shims beneath the safe corners, and it'll be level and stable.
3. Anchor the Safe to the Ground or a Wall
Secure the gun safely to the concrete floors or wall to prevent it from toppling. Anchor the safe to the floor or a wall using large anchor bolts. You may need to anchor it in a particular method, whether it's concrete or wood floor.
Plywood, for instance, can construct the basement floor with the help of joists installed beneath the surface. Get a pro to put the safe to the floor if you don't feel confident doing it yourself.
4. Organize the Guns in the Safe to Distribute the Weight
You should organize the firearms in the gun safe to distribute the load evenly. Arrange firearms with more weight at the bottom of the safe, and those with a lesser weight higher up. It will keep the safe from getting heavy at the top and toppling over.
5. Use Safety Straps or Brackets to Secure the Guns in Place
Use safety straps or brackets to keep the firearms from moving around. Also, this will aid in making sure the gun safe's weight spreads out properly. It is essential that the straps or brackets are sturdy and won't come loose.
Tips for Anchoring a Safe
Below are tips for anchoring a safe:
Installation of a Safe on the Floor
Hardwood floors are ideal for putting wood anchors. Unfortunately, anchoring your firearm safe may be tricky if your floor is concrete. Why? You'll need the right tools, such as a hammer drill capable of drilling through concrete to create an anchor for your safe.
Now, anchoring safes require a unique set of tools, which you can purchase separately from the local hardware.
Next, double-check that your flooring isn't of the post-tension kind. Why? Post-tension slabs can endure thousands of pounds of strain because steel cables reinforce them.
Now, broken cables under the concrete floor can cause serious injury or property damage if they break off the concrete. The post-tension sign on a floor shows that it's subjected to post-tensioning. If that's the case, follow these instructions to secure your safe properly:
- Locate the secure, pre-drilled anchor holes
- You can uncover this by taking off the panels or floor caps
- To secure it, make holes in each of the four anchoring corners using a hammer drill
- Install bolts and tighten them with socket sets
Attaching Your Safe to the Wall
If you are renting and cannot install your firearm safe on the floor, you can still have wall mounted gun safes. It's more cost-effective to patch a few holes in the wall instead of the carpet or floor while relocating.
Now, top-tier safe manufacturers rarely, if ever, sell their products with pre-drilled holes. It's why most gun owners bolt down their safes into the floor instead of the wall.
However, to install a safe on a wall, you'll need to drill holes at the exact location of the wall studs. Now, to drill a few small holes, use stud-finders.
Remember that anchoring a safe into drywall isn't enough because the screws are easy to pull out. Instead, anchor it on the concrete wall using concrete anchors.
Plus, drilling through steel safe is difficult and requires a strong bit.
FAQs
Should I Anchor My Gun Safe?
Yes, you should anchor your gun safe to the floor or a wall. Anchoring a safe helps prevent mishaps that could cause damage if it falls over.
Should You Put Anything Under a Gun Safe?
Yes, you should put something under a gun safe. Place a small piece of carpet underneath your safe. It will help distribute the safe’s weight more evenly—reducing the risk of damage to the floor. Avoid using a rubber mat on linoleum since it may leave marks that are difficult to remove.
Is It Ok to Lay a Safe on Its Back?
Yes, it is okay to lay a safe on its back—as long as you tip it carefully. You must take precautions to ensure that your safe and its contents remain safe. As a first step, you should open the safe and remove everything inside.
Will a Gun Safe Tip Over?
Yes, a gun safe will tip over. Gun safes weighing less than 500 pounds carries a considerable risk of toppling. These gun safes become considerably more dangerous if they're not correctly bolted.
It would help to always secure gun safes by bolting them to the ground or a wall.
