There is perhaps no better insurance for the avid shooting sports enthusiast than the purchase of a quality gun safe. The ownership of such a safe is the ideal solution for securing all of your firearms and ammo in a single, highly secure location.
This fact alone has led to a dramatic increase in the number of gun safes sold over the past decade.
However, those wishing to purchase a gun safe of their own, are presented with a few logistical challenges that must be overcome. The most significant of which often pertains to the placement of a new gun safe, within the home.
While many choose to locate their gun safe on the first floor of their homes, others often find themselves wondering whether or not a gun safe can be placed on the second story. This tends to be especially true in situations where a house’s master bedroom is located on the upstairs floor.
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Is 2nd Floor Gun Safe Placement Possible?
In reality, a gun safe can indeed be placed on the upper floor of most homes, though one must first carefully consider the manner in which this task is undertaken. There are a number of challenges associated with placing a large safe on the second story of a home.
Many of these center around traversing a flight of stairs with an object of such significant size/weight, and ensuring that the floor of your home can bear the resulting load.
In order to overcome such challenges, a homeowner must plan ahead, taking a thorough inventory of all anticipated issues. Additionally, one must also expect the unexpected, by sizing up obstacles that could otherwise be easily overlooked.
Planning in this manner will prevent your efforts from coming to a grinding halt, in the midst of the most tedious moments of the moving process.
The following are several individual factors worthy of consideration, prior to placing a gun safe on the second level of your home.
Choosing The Right Safe
Planning for the placement of an upstairs gun safe actually begins when selecting a safe for purchase. Prior to purchasing a safe, several important measurements must first be taken.
One such measurement is that of the stairs that must be traversed, in order to reach the second story of your home. A gun safe intended for second-story use will be of little value if it cannot be moved to the upper floor.
It is also important to consider and measure the amount of space that is available for gun safe placement, in any second-story room. In any event, a gun safe should be selected in a manner that does not compromise one’s ability to place their safe in the best possible location.
The process of taking such measurements is extremely important when planning to purchase a big safe of sizable dimensions, which will inevitably take up a larger area. On the other hand, most any small to moderately sized long gun and handgun safe is considered suitable for use above a house’s ground floor.
When placing a gun safe upstairs, it is best to select a safe that is no larger than necessary to store an owner’s basic stock of firearms and ammo. Doing so has the potential to eliminate numerous issues, especially when working in a small area, where the availability of square feet (sq ft) tends to be limited.
Choosing Location For Your Gun Safe
It is also vital to consider the exact positioning of any gun safe that is to be placed on the second story of a home. Your prior measurements will have already clued you in on the availability of free space for placement, or a lack thereof.
However, the final decision in this matter will pertain more to weight, than it does size.
It is always best to place a gun safe against an exterior wall (load-bearing wall), as building codes ensure that such areas are up to the task of supporting substantial weight. When placed in this manner, the weight of a gun safe will be evenly distributed across a level’s subfloor and floor joists.
Little actual stress will be imparted on a surface’s individual floorboards.
In any event, a gun safe should never be placed in the middle of the room, far from an outside wall. Placement of this type leads to an uneven distribution of weight, therefore imparting excess stress on certain segments of a floor’s construction.
Though a valid concern of many, few issues are typically posed by the placement of a gun safe on the second story of a home, when positioned as described above. To better illustrate this point, imagine the weight associated with any bathtub found on the second story of a dwelling.
A bathtub, when filled to capacity with 50-100 gallons of water, is comparable in weight to that of many large gun safes.
Likewise, waterbeds and other forms of extremely heavy furniture are placed on the second stories of homes on a daily basis, with as little as a second thought to potential consequences. Therefore, a homeowner can position a gun safe in a similar manner, with a dose of careful planning.
Moving A Safe Into Place
Gun safes, by design, tend to be extremely heavy, making them rather difficult to move about. This challenge grows into a far greater concern when attempting to move a gun safe up a flight of stairs.
Furthermore, doing so can be quite dangerous, if not armed with the proper tools.
To overcome the challenge of pulling a substantial load over steps, the use of a stair climber is highly advised. A stair climber is a dolly that features rotating wheels or tracks, which oscillate in response to the contour of steps as they are traversed.
This style of dolly can be purchased via the internet or can be rented from many moving companies/appliance rental stores.
It is also vital to ensure that a gun safe is securely strapped to the dolly on which it is situated. This not only prevents property damage in the event of load shift but also drastically reduces the chance of becoming injured during the moving process.
Heavy-duty ratchet straps typically work quite well when attempting to strap a gun safe to a dolly during transport, and can be purchased at most any hardware store.
One should also never attempt to move a gun safe by themselves. On the contrary, it is best to have 1-2 individuals at the ready, who can assist in steadying the load as it is moved about and to help put the safe down in place.
This assistance also comes in handy if your dolly were to become stuck when crossing flooring trim, or other assorted obstacles.
If you are unsure about the prospect of moving a gun safe to the second story of your home, or simply do not feel up to the task, a moving service can be contacted to complete such chores. A company of this type will have all necessary equipment at its disposal, to efficiently tackle the task at hand.
Elevating Firearm Storage To The Next Level
A homeowner should always be able to quickly access their firearms should the need arise. If you find yourself spending the bulk of your time on the second story of your home, there is likely a sufficient need to situate your gun safe above ground level.
While this can easily seem like a harrowing prospect, placing a gun safe on the second story of your home is certainly not impossible. By considering the above-mentioned factors, you will be able to rest assured, knowing that your guns will always be safe and accessible, no matter the situation.