Moving a gun safe

just bought a gun safe from Tractor Supply. 64 gun model weighing 700 lbs. I can get it on my porch with my tractor forks and a couple of pallets to make it level with front door. Was going to use a 2 wheel dolly but worried about moving it that the small plate able to support 700 lbs. Other option was a Harbor freight short 4 wheel dolly but how do I lift it up an off the dolly. Anybody moved one ? Local mover wants $400 just from porch to the room its in.

Use pipe as rollers. Watch close as they can take off quick once have them up on them. Will mash fingers easy as well.

I did use 4" sched 40 pvc to move my empty 12x16 shed to a new spot on the lawn. Used sheets of OSB for a base for rolling. Will also be using strips of plywood on the tile floor and hardwood to keep tile from cracking and hardwood from denting.

I have the same 64 gun safe from Tractor Supply and I used a 2 wheel dolly with inflatable tires from harbor freight (cheap one) to get it off my trailer down my sidewalk and up 4 steps and into my home. Once in my home I put Four 12" square pieces of carpet (upside down) under it and slid it through my house. The dolly held up fine. A hard wheeled dolly would have been better but it worked and the carpet made it slide great across my house floor (laminate flooring and carpet). I had help 2 other adults it will probably not get moved again though.

4 guys and a 2 hard wheeled dolly to move the same safe. Tricky, but manageable.

check with your local gun shop. Mine offers deliveries for a very reasonable and the two gentlemen that do the moving will move your existing safe for the same price.

We also have an appliance dolly at my office(Keen Plumbing Co.) that we use to move big water heaters that has two extra wheels that fold down and lock into place that make moving a 1200lb boiler very easy once you get it rocked back on all four wheels. I bought if for $300 with free shipping online. Some of the best money I've ever spent.

I cut sch 40 pvc 4 inch and used 3 of them to roll is on it side and then stood it up.

If you can, removed the door to reduce the weight

I used pipe on same cabinet.
Not sure where you are going on carpet or hardwood flooring.
A section of rug or heavy cardboard and just slide back and forth to destination or use hand truck to lift one side to slide.
If you use a two wheel hand truck, check load capacity rating.

I would pay the 400 dollars. That sounds reasonable to me. It will take them several hours to drive to your place, move the safe with their equipment, with a liability bond, then return to their facility.

Moving my safe into the house it was all I could do using a fridge dolly rented from the hardware store. If it would have weighted 1/2 a pound more I wouldn't have been able to tilt it.

My young son and I managed but it was all we could do. Once on the carpet it would slide. I couldn't scratch my wood floors or I'd never heard the end of it.

Then moving out of that house into the new one I had the HS football team helping and had a moving truck with a lift gate. Same issues just more bodies/hands and some big boys made it easier.

I think the trick is slow and easy. If it was on pipes I could see how it could get away from you quick.

If I set things up the way I'm thinking in the future the new safe will have delivery. I think my local guy charges $300 and he supposedly makes it look easy.

Like a few others have said, it will slide on carpet or cardboard. If you can get it to where there is no elevation change sliding it is the way to go. It takes some time, working one side then the other, but you can walk it to where you want it a few inches at a time without any real problem. If it takes an hour you just got paid $400 for that hour of work, and that $400 can go towards filling one of the 64 spots in the safe!

On a good 2 wheeled cart they are not bad. Mine weight 1150 pounds empty and 2 of us moved them into the place. Steps suck but level floors are a breeze.

When I purchased the safe locally, two guys moved it in. It weighed 1050 lbs.

They had about a dozen pieces of schedule 80 -- 2" plastic pipe 36" long. Then using 3/4" plywood (not chip board) to roll it across the floor.

My job was to keep moving the plywood and rollers across the floor till we got it where I wanted it. It was on its back when moved.

Got to my spot, turned it around to set. 3 guys lifted it and set it into the spot. I think 2 of these guys must lift weights. Huge by any means.

Under the safe is a piece of 3/4" plywood larger than the bottom of the safe.

In the crawl space, I have a floor/beam screw jack on some 2x8 x 4' long to support the weight. Using a pair of 2x2 running perpindicular to the floor joists.

Once in, lag screwed to the floor. There are holes in the floor of the safe for this.

An interesting move to safe the least.

Sounds silly but me and a buddy moved mine with ease by putting golf balls under it and inching it along. It was on carpet though.

I have used a 4 wheel dolly before and worked fine. The last time I moved it in a room to put new flooring down I used 1/2" pvc conduit. Could push it with one hand.

I put cardboard under mine, slid a hole lot easier. did the same thing to move my brothers

Removing the door will reduce the weight and make moving it easier. Just make sure you’re careful. That thing can do some serious pinching that can be difficult to get out of.



Good luck

Pay the money !! Remember they do it for a living plus if they tear a rug THEY replace it !!!

Or just put it in the garage if it's attached and has a concrete floor to anchor to. Better hope your floor can take that weight in one spot !!!!!

If you don't have stairs to climb use cardboard and those furniture sliding discs. I helped my uncle move a piano from the bedroom to the livingroom so the carpet guys could replace carpet

I am in the military and have moved my 900# safe about 10 times. I have seen dollys, appliance lifts, 4-wheel dollys, and brute strength. The ABSOLUTE best method I have seen in the plastic pipe. Raise one side and get a pipe under it and start rolling until you can get the second pipe under it. I would use three pieces, two under the safe and one ready to go under the front. Super simple and safe.

Very similar experience ^^^. Funny how a bunch of security cabinets a few months ago all turned into safes today.

Go figure.

Plywood runners to protect the floor and 3 pieces of pipe to use as rollers. I think we used approx. 1" dia. galvanized pipe for the rollers. Two of us moved 1600 lbs from the back of an F250 onto my concrete driveway, up a 15" high roller ramp into my house through two rooms to it's final resting place. Nobody got hurt and nothing was damaged. It certainly helped that the fella who built the unit was the person directing the move. He knew what he was doing and I just followed instructions. All about leverage and working angles.

On another website they advised keeping the safe in the garage.
If you should have a fire the safe and guns end up in the basement, ruined with water and heat damage.

The 2 wheel cart can smash your threshold with enough weight. I hired my two done. They had plates to protect the threshold and did good job.

I layed a blanket doubled over,,on to the floor.Me and my two sons got the safe onto the blanket,,then,me pulling on the blanket and them pushing a bit and guiding,, it slid easily to where I wanted it.

Get a professional safe moving company to do it. Cabelas always have names of movers that they use/ recommend. They are pretty amazing

Not to steal this post but what is the best way to cut remove a safe that was put in your basement through a bulkhead with a small crane truck. I now have an attached garage so the truck cannot get in. Just do not need it anymore since I am selling all of my guns and will be selling my house in the future. Take off the door. Take out the drywall fire proofing and start cutting it up with a plasma arc? Grinder

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZAMU80myfQ

If you don't need it and are selling the house, just leave it there for the next guy to use. Doesn't have to be a "gun" safe.

the guy is a stones throw from my house. he quoted the $400 if I had it at the house and up on the porch.

I appreciate all the ideas and a lot of these have enlightened me on that it will not be hard to do. Thinking I will try this one with the pvc pipe. I can get it on my porch & stack pallets to make it level with threshold & then use some 3/4" plywood dbled up to the tile floor. then will lay plywood on tile to spread out load. Also will use a couple of strips of 7/16 OSB down hall on top of the prefinished oak to protect it . But with this setup we can just keep it stood up. And Yes I will save the $400 and buy something to put into the safe. I have enough friends plus a past Pittsburgh steeler player to help. I really do appreciate all the input and will post on how it went.

How did you get it off the truck ?

It was laying on the side with the bottom at the back of the truck bed. I do not remember all the particulars of how he had it blocked up on the truck but we basically eased it back to the tipping point and gravity took over and stood it up on the bottom. Like I said, this was not this fellas first rodeo. He builds and delivers them all the time. I was as surprised as anyone at how easy it was to get unloaded and into position in the house.

We moved one that size a couple months ago. 3 guys on each side with 3 straps underneath. We each picked up a strap end. Like carrying a casket.

Mr. Ed......I did this just two days ago. Moved into a new place. One of the items we moved was my gun safe. Specs on it says it weighs 780lbs. Don't know if that's factual, but it was heavy! Had 5 guys and a heavy duty two wheel dolly. Moved it up a flight of stairs in the old house and down a flight in the new one. Wasn't easy, but it went well with the aid of extra guys and the dolly,

Me and one buddy moved mine,borrowed a pallet jack,worked like a charm.

The vending machine guy in this neck of the woods has a set of what he calls piano dollys. Makes what you are trying to do a simple one man project. I believe a new set can be purchased for about the price you were quoted. He loans his set out for a case of cheap beer

I wonder if sched 40 3/4" will be strong enough ?

I used 3", moved easily, too easy.

when I replaced my flooring I used "super sliders to move mine, my safe weighed 1400# empty, get it off the porch with pipe, put a slider under each corner and you can push it.
RR