Moving a 960 pound safe from one house to another... how?

[Prometheus]

Short of hiring a professional mover, quite simply... how?

I've got a Liberty Franklin series. 6' high and just wide enough to squeeze thru the front door sideways with the spoke handles off.

Two guys got it in with a two wheeled cart that also had a motorized 'creeper' on it to get it up the front step and then up into the house.

I plan on taking out the shelves (they must weight 50 pounds themselves) at a minimum.

What should I do? Is it even feasible to roll it up a ramp and into a moving truck or do I have to have a lift (like they did)?

Costco had a 1,000 pound hand cart for sale recently. I'm thinking I should be able to get it done with that and a few friends. The moving it around isn't going to be the issue IMO, it's going to be the loading/off loading truck part that has me worried.

I also thought about selling it, any idea the resale value on a 6 year old safe? It's in pristine condition and never been out of the room it's in since the company we bought it from moved it in for us.

I don't see the exact same one in the 2009 catalog, but other than the 100 pound weight difference it is the same as the 48.5 cubic foot safes in the current model: Liberty Safe - Franklin

 

[4sarge]

My safe empty was about 1325 lbs. The original install was done with steel ramps and a narrow pallet jack all on one level. They had a moving truck that didn't require a lift, very low in the back. I need to have it moved to my new location but I'm going to pay to have it moved professionally. One guy with my help

 

[Mini-14]

I took the door off mine and moved it upstairs using a fridgerator dolly..You can rent the motorized dollies that climb stairs.

 

[redneckmedic]

 

[joslar15]

So Red, you got a line on a team of Egyptian slaves?

 

[Cwood]

So Red, you got a line on a team of Egyptian slaves?

Egypt?

 

[IndyGunworks]

In all honesty four grown men and a refrigerator dolly should do it.... a regular dolly is not good enough as it will flex and bend.... the refrigerator type or the good kind anyway have a track system on the back of them designed to take the weight as you go down the stairs... you can rent one of these from home depot for not much money... hope that helps

 

[Lock n Load]

IME.... by the time you rent a motorized cart, you may as well have a professional do it. I live SW of Indy and nothing is available near me so that is taken into consideration also.

I dont have the info, but at Gander Mnt. there are business cards of a couple different movers and they seemed reasonable. Extra cost for stairs and mileage over the flat rate.

My son and I moved my safe (750lbs), picked up in Ohio in my p/u truck, he had a tall porch and was level w/ truck bed. At my house, I slid it out on thick waxed cardboard from the bed to the sidewalk. I used a two wheel dolley w/ pneumatic tires and it was all that my son and I could do to get the dolley and safe up my one step from the walk onto the porch. That was the worst of it, after that it was easily rolled into and around the house.

It was snowing so I couldnt get my truck backed up the hill (front yard)and between the trees close to my porch, and it was a Sat and we couldnt get ahold of anyone for help..... that was a few years ago and my son was probably 12 and a lightweight.

If you have a good cart/ dolley and plenty of man power as redneckmedic showed then you can do it. Shelves and the door is the bulk of the weight so if that can be removed that will help alos, mine has internal hinges and seemed like more work than what it was worth so I didnt remove the door.

Good luck,

 

[Beau]

I have worked in appliance delivery. I would say you could probably move it safely with an appliance dolly and a couple people helping you. I have an appliance dolly you can use. PM me if you want to borrow.

 

[OneBadV8]

When I moved mine, we just used a few sets of furniture movers... they worked great. I'd recommend more than 2 guys but we got it done. Mine weighs in the 1200-1500 range empty.

 

[concrete dog]

safe

just make sure you have a dooly with solid rubber tires and good strong help and you should be ok.my safe was rather heavy but it came down the ramp of the u-haul and my brother did it all

 

[turnandshoot4]

I just moved mine. Now it's only 505lbs but me and a 150 pound guy moved it.

Will work for ammo. Send me a PM if you need help moving it.

 

[Mike F]

I moved mine (1,000 lbs) about 9 years ago. I rented a refrigerater dolly from a tool rental company. Remember to fully secure the safe in the truck. It will mar or crush anything around it if it shifts during the move.

 

[jimbo-indy]

Two of my friends hired a professional safe mover, said he wasn't too expensive. Depends on how many stairs, distance, etc.
For what it's worth, Call SAFE-JIM 260-417-1345
Shouldn't cost to ask for a quote, then decide.
The said he picked up their new safwe at the store, delivered to their house and put it in place for something like $135. Sounds safer than hospital bills or a damaged safe.

 

[JByer323]

I've moved a fair amount of large, heavy crap while working at the scout camp, but it usually involved the skid steer.

It's the truck part that is always sketch, and where you're gonna get hurt. Honestly, I would shop around a little, and probably just pay the $150 or so to have someone do it.

 

[tedbower]

How many of you have your safes's on the second level of your home ? Do you need to be concerned with the weight ? do you need to reinforce the floor or is it generally ok on a normal constructed home ?

 

[csaws]

How many of you have your safes's on the second level of your home ? Do you need to be concerned with the weight ? do you need to reinforce the floor or is it generally ok on a normal constructed home ?

Kind of an answer to your questions and a comment from me and probably other firemen here too...

Most houses are engineered to hold a normal load a family would have, I would be curious to find out from a builder if they figure in a near 500- 2000 lbs. dead load into their engineering figures. I would say they do not consider the extra weight of a gun-safe into the design process. So following my opinion of the lack of consideration during design, I would reinforce the floor under it.


As a firefighter that may have to go crawling around in your home if god-forbid it is on fire please keep it on the lowest level of your home. My wife and kids would prefer I come home after work and your safe falling on my head would not allow that to happen. If you feel you must put it above our heads either...


a) Make sure you tell us where it is, we do factor things like this into our fire attack.
b) reinforce the floor

(Yes I know you maybe distraught watching your home burn but it will be even more a devastating event in your life if someone dies in your house fire)

 

[shooter@5(4)life]

Also a point that no one has mentioned! Watch that staircase, if it is weak, brace it up first! We collapsed one with an old boiler in a old farm house once! Guess who had to help rebuild it?

 

[tedbower]

Thanks, that is something i didnt consider.

 

[slackerisme]

Another thing to think about might be your liability if one of your helpers get hurt. Its easy to say a friend wouldn't do that, but a friend that can't work or worse may have too.

I'll be hiring someone insured when I get one.