Help GUN SAFE

snyderracing · January 9, 2017, 04:04 PM

i have a safari gun safe made by cannon holds 36 guns fire rated 1200f for 30mins
i live 4 blocks from the fire station witch is volunteer and a bunch of dumb asses small town pop 506 i live in a mobile home. A buddy and i have been trying to figure out if my safe would last in a fire with living in a mobile home it would go fast.

I thought about taking everything out of it and putting 5/8" drywall in it the stuff in it is so cheap china made stuff.

I thought about selling it and buying a liberty revolution. Seem like it may be a better safe.

Any ideas if it would last?

I paid $700 for it was on sale from like $1100

Technosavant · January 9, 2017, 08:12 PM

Fire ratings on gun safes tend to be unreliable- not that they won't last, but every fire is different and safe companies tend not to have UL rate the fire resistance of the safe.

As for how well YOUR safe would protect guns in a fire is anybody's guess.

**Aguila Blanca** · January 9, 2017, 08:32 PM

First, what's the fire rating on the safe you are considering as a replacement?

Second, fire-rated gun safes basically use gypsum (sheetrock) as the fire protection. Why take everything ut of your safe and install gypsum on the inside, thereby reducing your storage volume? Why not just layer up two or three layers of gyp board around the outside of the safe?

snyderracing · January 9, 2017, 08:55 PM

i thought about just installing a sprinkler above it or in the room with it

FITASC · January 9, 2017, 08:58 PM

More than likely, your mobile home would burn to the ground before the time rating would be up.

turtlehead · January 9, 2017, 10:45 PM

Insurance.

Doyle · January 9, 2017, 10:49 PM

Quote:

More than likely, your mobile home would burn to the ground before the time rating would be up.

This. Within minutes of your trailer becoming engulfed in a fire, that heavy safe is going to drop through those thin floor joists and be sitting on the ground.

2ndsojourn · January 9, 2017, 10:52 PM

It'll probably fall through before a fire even starts.

Bourbon Fan · January 9, 2017, 11:40 PM

i thought about just installing a sprinkler above it or in the room with it

LOL. Only a true gun enthusiast would consider installing a sprinkler system JUST for their guns.

By installing a sprinkler system you 'might' offer a bit of extra protection for the guns.......but you also run additional risk of the sprinkler going off inadvertently and flooding your home. The latter is probably more likely.
Me personally, I'd just take a bunch of detailed pictures of your guns AND receipts, upload the pictures to a cloud storage app, and make sure my homeowners insurance premiums are paid on time. If the worst ever happened, you'd get a fat check and could go on one hell of a shopping spree.

Snyper · January 10, 2017, 04:04 AM

Quote:

I thought about taking everything out of it and putting 5/8" drywall in it the stuff in it is so cheap china made stuff.

It would be better to enclose it in a fire resistant room than to use space inside the safe.

Tony Z · January 10, 2017, 05:36 AM

Lot of work for little or no gain! Double wall 5/8" thick fire code drywall will offer greater protection, BUT, the greatest issue are the joints, corners and the door (space around the door, too).

If you were not living in a mobile home, you might want to construct a fire resistant room, using masonry floors, walls and celing, covered with fire code drywall, along with a fire rated door. But damage from water, during a fire, many times cause more damage than the fire.

If you that concerned, buy a better safe.

Skans · January 10, 2017, 08:44 AM

A sprinkler system is out of the question - look into what it takes to install a high pressure sprinkler riser and maintain it.

The last thing I am worried about is my home burning down. Theft is much more of a concern. Personally, I'd forgo all fire protection just to get 1/4" steel body and door. Expensive, heavy, but probably the best you are going to be able to do for a home safe.

**Aguila Blanca** · January 10, 2017, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Z

Lot of work for little or no gain! Double wall 5/8" thick fire code drywall will offer greater protection, BUT, the greatest issue are the joints, corners and the door (space around the door, too).

Easily addressed.

http://www.usg.com/content/dam/USG_M...g-en-SA100.pdf

Jump to page 53, and look at the second and fourth details. Two layers, with overlapped and interlocked corners. The front can be made the same, as a removable plug with stepped edges.

January 9, 2017, 04:04 PM	#1
snyderracing Junior Member Join Date: January 9, 2017 Posts: 2	Help GUN SAFE i have a safari gun safe made by cannon holds 36 guns fire rated 1200f for 30mins i live 4 blocks from the fire station witch is volunteer and a bunch of dumb asses small town pop 506 i live in a mobile home. A buddy and i have been trying to figure out if my safe would last in a fire with living in a mobile home it would go fast. I thought about taking everything out of it and putting 5/8" drywall in it the stuff in it is so cheap china made stuff. I thought about selling it and buying a liberty revolution. Seem like it may be a better safe. Any ideas if it would last? I paid $700 for it was on sale from like $1100 Last edited by Evan Thomas; January 9, 2017 at 10:20 PM. Reason: no need to shout.

January 9, 2017, 08:58 PM	#5
FITASC Senior Member Join Date: December 6, 2014 Posts: 6,441	More than likely, your mobile home would burn to the ground before the time rating would be up. __________________ "I believe that people have a right to decide their own destinies; people own themselves. I also believe that, in a democracy, government exists because (and only so long as) individual citizens give it a 'temporary license to exist'—in exchange for a promise that it will behave itself. In a democracy, you own the government—it doesn't own you."- Frank Zappa

January 9, 2017, 08:12 PM	#2
Technosavant Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2007 Location: St. Louis, MO area Posts: 4,040	Fire ratings on gun safes tend to be unreliable- not that they won't last, but every fire is different and safe companies tend not to have UL rate the fire resistance of the safe. As for how well YOUR safe would protect guns in a fire is anybody's guess.

January 9, 2017, 08:32 PM	#3
Aguila Blanca Staff Join Date: September 25, 2008 Location: CONUS Posts: 18,459	First, what's the fire rating on the safe you are considering as a replacement? Second, fire-rated gun safes basically use gypsum (sheetrock) as the fire protection. Why take everything ut of your safe and install gypsum on the inside, thereby reducing your storage volume? Why not just layer up two or three layers of gyp board around the outside of the safe?

January 9, 2017, 08:55 PM	#4
snyderracing Junior Member Join Date: January 9, 2017 Posts: 2	i thought about just installing a sprinkler above it or in the room with it

January 9, 2017, 10:45 PM	#6
turtlehead Senior Member Join Date: October 20, 2015 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,203	Insurance.

January 9, 2017, 10:52 PM	#8
2ndsojourn Senior Member Join Date: January 15, 2013 Location: South Jersey Posts: 1,416	It'll probably fall through before a fire even starts.

January 9, 2017, 11:40 PM	#9
Bourbon Fan Junior Member Join Date: January 4, 2017 Posts: 14	i thought about just installing a sprinkler above it or in the room with it LOL. Only a true gun enthusiast would consider installing a sprinkler system JUST for their guns. By installing a sprinkler system you 'might' offer a bit of extra protection for the guns.......but you also run additional risk of the sprinkler going off inadvertently and flooding your home. The latter is probably more likely. Me personally, I'd just take a bunch of detailed pictures of your guns AND receipts, upload the pictures to a cloud storage app, and make sure my homeowners insurance premiums are paid on time. If the worst ever happened, you'd get a fat check and could go on one hell of a shopping spree.

January 10, 2017, 05:36 AM	#11
Tony Z Senior Member Join Date: September 29, 2013 Location: North Central Pennsyltucky Posts: 749	Lot of work for little or no gain! Double wall 5/8" thick fire code drywall will offer greater protection, BUT, the greatest issue are the joints, corners and the door (space around the door, too). If you were not living in a mobile home, you might want to construct a fire resistant room, using masonry floors, walls and celing, covered with fire code drywall, along with a fire rated door. But damage from water, during a fire, many times cause more damage than the fire. If you that concerned, buy a better safe.

January 10, 2017, 08:44 AM	#12
Skans Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2008 Posts: 11,132	A sprinkler system is out of the question - look into what it takes to install a high pressure sprinkler riser and maintain it. The last thing I am worried about is my home burning down. Theft is much more of a concern. Personally, I'd forgo all fire protection just to get 1/4" steel body and door. Expensive, heavy, but probably the best you are going to be able to do for a home safe.