How to protect your flooring
No doubt about it, the best safes are going to be some of the heaviest, but getting one shouldn’t mean damaging the floor it sits on. Also, since your safe is worth a big chunk of change, you want to keep that protected as well. The good thing is, when a gun safe is installed correctly, your floor AND your safe can be, simultaneously, safe.
Protect Your Safe from Moisture and Water
If steel and water were in a heavyweight championship, water would win. Though it can take a long time, moisture can lead to damage for both your safe and what it’s storing. Unfortunately, in your home there are a number of ways your gun safe could be exposed to it.
For example, we commonly hear about our customers putting safes in their basement - especially since the concrete floor is a great area to anchor down. The problem is that basements have a tendency to be more humid than upper levels of your home, and they can also experience flooding. This type of damage is most likely not covered under a safe warranty.
On a similar note, some floors allow moisture to either pool on the surface – like tile and laminate – or soak in and stay – like carpet. With a heavy safe on top of your flooring, you may not even notice the moisture accumulating. This is why we recommend installing your safe on a rubber mat. This will keep the bottom dry, and prevent moisture damage.
Prevent Crushing Damage to Softer Floors
Linoleum and vinyl floors can be durable, but nonetheless, they are a softer floor type. Placing a heavy metal box on them can lead to some nasty indentations. Fortunately, the remedy to this is usually just a little extra padding. We recommend putting a thin piece of carpet under your safe. This will protect your floor by distributing the safe’s weight more evenly. However, we don’t recommend using a rubber mat on linoleum. These can leave permanent marks on the floor.
Avoid Scraping or Gouging Expensive Floors
To help protect floors, many gun safe installers will use dense, 1/4" thick, 4" x 6" felt pads under each corner of the safe. These pads have adhesive on one side and stick to the bottom corners of the safe. They’re barely noticeable, and keep your safe directly off the floor.
Getting Help When It’s Needed
Many of you may be DIY’ers, but sometimes it’s best to understand that there are some things best left to professionals - especially when it comes to moving and installing safes. Those that are trained to move safes have the equipment and experience to move such a big, heavy object. Calling in the pros can be the difference between damaging your home, your flooring, or even your moving buddies, and getting your safe installed without incident.
