Moving a heavy safe

[Scout]

I've been shopping for a safe. The one I like is 880 pounds empty. My question is: How would you move it around? Is there a method that the average person can use to move such a safe from room to room if it becomes necessary? Thanks for any answer you can share.

[Elkins45]

Lay down plywood sheets between the current location and the destination to make a smooth surface and to protect the floor. Roll it on a bed made from sections of pipe or on golf balls. There's an excellent video on YouTube from a guy who works for a safe company showing tricks for one-person safe handling. His trick for rolling the safe off of the pallet is pure genius.

When I moved my 1050 pound safe across my concrete garage floor I rolled it on a bed of steel BB's. Once it was in place I bolted it down and just left all the BBs that were under it in place. I figure the 0.177" air gap will help prevent the bottom from rusting from moisture permeating the concrete.

[kilimanjaro]

Put it on piece of carpet and drag it, works fine. You need a second person to guide it and prevent tipping. If it does tip, get clear immediately, you'll crush muscles and bones.

[psychopuppy1]

I would imagine that one would think long and hard about the placement of such a large heavy object long before it was even purchased!
But if you have to move it, I have used the "pipe" method before with good results!

[AK103K]

Piano dolly. Makes it a real easy job.

[redrick]

My son and me used the PVC method and moved my safe from one end of the house to another room over carpet very easily , while it was still upright .

We tried putting cardboard under it first . It would work , but it was pushing my carpet up , like a wave , so I stopped . It was harder than with the PVC .

My safe weighs around 750 lbs.

[Savage99]

I bought a heavy safe a long time ago before 'gun' safes were made. It came out of the second floor of a mill and was put in my basement by a rigger. It cost $$$ of course and I have never moved it nor wanted to.

However if I bought one today I would get one that I could take apart and move myself whenever and however I wanted to.

And nobody else would know!

Zanotti, Snap Safes and Champion and maybe others make them. Even Walmart showed one on line.

[Fisher]

My safe weighs in around 900 pounds empty. Once it was in the front door, I was able to just slide it on the carpet. Two people can slide it around quite easily. If you don't have carpeted floors. Use a piece of carpet as suggested above. One pulling and the other guiding and you should be fine.

Jim

[towboat-er]

I used drum sticks under mine.

[bt380]

Why risk damage to the safe, house, body when you can hire it out for 200-300 dollars? That way you can drink coffee and criticize one handed while a professional crew does the work.

[thekyrifleman]

Get you a 4 wheel dolly, Lowes or Home Depot. $19.95.....the first time I moved my Liberty, took 6 strong men, second time, dolly, my son and I. No problemo!!!!!!

[Scout]

Good ideas...thanks!

[James K]

The major drawback for many people is that hiring the job out involves others knowing that you have a big safe and what is in it. If the mover is loose lipped, or is a bad guy himself, you could have the kind of company you don't want.

Jim

[Colt46]

And even better ideas.

[AK103K]

My buddy just got a real nice "big" fire rated safe at a real good price. The boy he got it from delivered and placed it for $30, to cover his fuel. Where are these boys when I by this stuff!

He had a power hand truck that had an extra set of drop out casters, so it could stand alone with the safe on it and be wheeled about, and also raised and lowered whatever was on the truck, so it could negotiate stairs. Pretty slick actually.

Whole affair took 20 minutes from the time he got there till the time he left. nothing scratched, nothing broken.

I used something similar (wasnt powered) back about 30 years ago when I got mine. Borrowed it from the shop I got the safe from. It worked pretty well. About 5 years later, I moved, and rented something similar from a rental shop. It looked like it had been through the wars, but they said it would easily carry the 1000 pounds the safe weighed. It did, for about a minute after I got it up on the rear casters, and then it proceeded to collapse, nearly breaking my arm as it went down. Took about a half hour to get the feeling back in my arm.

The next time I moved it, a friend recommended a piano dolly. Next to that power hand truck, its the shizzle. One person can get the dolly strapped on, and a step on a lever on each side, lifts the safe up on casters. Once like that, one person can easily wheel it around on a hard surface, and it moves easily on carpets with a couple of pieces of hard pressed board. Wheeling it out a door, up and down ramps, etc, takes a couple of people though.

[guruatbol]

I empty mine and move it with a pallet jack. I left it on the shipping pallet.

If it were off the pallet I would use a fridge dolly.

Mel

[Rembrandt]

4-to-5 strapping young bucks, a couple of pizza's and beverages......promise of food can move mountains.

[a1abdj]

I prefer to use a crane.

[Chuck Dye]

There are some very cool air cushion "dollies." Too expensive to buy just for moving your safe, they can sometimes be rented from equipment rental companies. Worth net and phone searches.

My big fight with my 900 pounder was getting it up some steps and over a door sill. Having an eyebolt installed in the lift point and a safety line over a rafter saved me nearly certain injuries to my crew of local teens and damage to my house.

[Garycw]

As AK103K mentioned, my professional safe mover used a power dolly. They (2) had to move up three concrete steps. The dolly had extra set of wheels that moved hydraulically as it climbed up the steps. It still took two experienced movers. It was 1000lb empty. . It's not worth killing yourself or tearing something up. $125 to move from store 2 miles away.
Recently I was offered a good deal on a 32 cu. ft. A John TANN jewelers safe. However it cost $2000 for a special crew from Atlanta to move it 5 miles in SE ky. It weighs in at 10,000 lb

[jason_iowa]

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