How to Install A Home Safe?

If you are into the habit of keeping loads of cash or valuables like jewelery in your home, then it is safer if you had a safe installed in your home. The process is relatively simple as it involves only a few DIY steps and you’re good to go.

But first things first, you need to ensure that the safe you have is the right quality. You do not want to simplify the burglar’s job by purchasing a poor quality safe.

At the same time, you do not want the bad guys to have an easy time carrying your valuables and cash away. That is why bolting it down is recommended.

Read Next: How to open a digital home safe.

Things needed

While most people prefer to install the home safe on a wall, there is quite a handful of them who’d rather have it bolted down on the floor. This article is all about installing the home safe on two types of floors: concrete and wooden floors. Here’s what you will need to get the job done:

Screwdrivers

Marker pen

Drill and bits

Fixing kit

Socket set

Step one: Locating the right place to install the safe

This is by far the best security measure when it comes to the installation of a home safe. Make sure that you pick a place that will advance the general security and safety of your valuables. The location that fits this criterion is a secluded concrete floor that is easily accessible yet not obvious to an intruder.

Read Next: How to hide a home safe.

Step two: Evaluating the floor type

The floor at your home is either wooden or concrete. The best type of floor for the installation of a home safe is a concrete floor. This, however, does not mean that a wooden floor is badly off per se. It’s only that it would require extra skills, effort and materials. Additionally, most of the home safes come with a fixing kit for concrete floors. Avoid floors that have underfloor heating and pipework. If your identified position has this kind of floor, consider glueing or choosing a different location altogether.

Step three: Installing on a Concrete Floor

The first thing to do before doing the actual installation is to establish that the position you have selected is accessible. To do this, position the safe in the selected location and try to open it. If you can do this with ease, then you are good to go. Secondly, using a marker pen, mark drilling holes on the concrete floor through the predrilled holes on the floor of the safe. Now use an appropriate drill bit to drill the concrete floor guided by the spots marked with a marker pen. It is recommended to drill a hole that is 1mm smaller than the stated one because this promotes stronger fixing. Once all the holes have been drilled, put the plugs or raw plugs from the fixing kit and place the safe over them. Now use a screwdriver to fasten the safe down the floor tight enough to prevent any form of lifting.

If you are installing the safe on a wooden floor, you need to secure it through a joist with coach bolts. Floorboards are not going to be enough and that is why coach bolts are needed because they will be long enough to secure the safe. If joists are unavailable, try glueing the safe on the floor in addition to using the bolts. However, not all safes can be glued to the floor. For instance, if yours is heavier than 60KG, then glueing it on the floor will not have a significant impact.

Conclusion

From the foregoing, it is obvious that installing a home safe is a simple process provided that you can have access to basic DIY tools such as a drill, screwdriver, and the fixing kit that is included in the package.