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Need tips on moving a safe

Chuck

Chuck

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Hi,

Might have found myself a nice big safe for my growing collection. That means a nice HEAVY safe. The guy I'm getting it from doesn't know, but figure at least 800 lbs, maybe 1000, from descriptions I see on the web.

Any of y'all ever move something that heavy? What's got me mostly worried is getting it off the bed of the pickup (up is easy, the guy who has the safe also has a crane at his shop). I'm envisioning 1/2 ton of run-away metal making a new entrance into my home! It's going into the basement with a 6" rise from the garage.

Our there companies out there to take the liability, and the strain, off my back?

thanks,
Chuck
 
Yes, call around and hire somebody. The few hundred bucks will be worth not worrying about it. Not to mention they most likely will be insured if something breaks in your house...
 
I had a large safe - just about the same size as yours - moved into my basement last week by Ayer Moving and Storage. Call 800-233-6683, ask for Karen and tell her Dick sent you - they'll take good care of you. It took 4 guys, by the way, so it wasn't cheap but there's no way I could have done it, even with 6 friends to help.
 
I found the guy who handled my recent move through a friend who had originally hired him to move a gunsafe. When my buddy moved, he used the guy to move his house as well. Then I hired him for my move.

His rates are reasonable. Of course, he'll be late showing up like most movers but he gets the job done.

If you want his contact info, send me a PM.
 
Get a pro. Dropping something that heavy on your foot or your friend will do more than ruin your whole day.

Eastern Security Safe delivers the safes that they sell (they've delivered both of the safes that I purchased from them). I don't know if they would deliver a safe they didn't sell, but it's worth a call.
 
For something that size, get a pro. Under 500 pounds is probably
wingable by a few strong guys, if theres not a lot of stairs or whatever,
but anything the size your talking about, get a safe company to
move it. They have the experience (and often times special tools) to
move these things around without issue.

Look at it this way.... one you're protecting yourself/friends and two, you're
protecting your house or whatnot against damage. If you're going to
sink some serious coin into a safe, it's not that much additional cost to
pay someone to move it. The cost will probably be a fraction
the cost of even one of the guns you're going to store in that thing.

-Mike
 
I moved my safe. My wife was working for a company that repaired medical equipment. They had a dolly hand truck thing that has these legs with wheels that pop out so when you lean it back, it's on four wheels. And has these rollers that work on steps down the back.

It took three of us, two big guys...one was an ex-BC linebacker that's the size of my Jeep.

But, the three of us picked it up, put it in my buddy's truck, backed it up got it out and then put it on the dolly.

The dolly was rated for 1700 lbs, and I think that my safe was around 900 lbs.

It wasn't that bad...but I kept it on the first floor, so I didn't have any steps to deal with as the bed of his truck backed level to my front deck. I just had to take some doors off in the house.


I think that U-Haul rents similar dollys. But if you don't have the guys...then hire someone.

I just didn't think that with the three of us and that heavy equipment dolly it was as bad as I thought that it was going to be.
 
Oh suck it up!

Get a 2 wheeler and a couple of buddies willing, dumb, or drunk enough to help you and just muscle the thing in. [smile]

Or... if it really is 800+ lbs. I'd hire someone... couldn't resist smart ass comments though.
 
In all honesty, my brother and I moved my safe that is about 658 lbs. or so.

We simply used a 2 wheeler. I backed the truck up to the front door (avoiding having to go up the front steps)

then we carefully moved it to the basement on the 2 wheeler.

Although, I was able to rmove the door that saved us about 100lbs.
 
I have 2 approx 1000 lbs safes.

Gotta tell you about my moving them.

The first was put in the back of my pickup buy the guy that gave it to me with his loader. It needed to go down the bulkhead into my cellar. Sounds like your situation.

When I got it to my house, I backed up to the bulkhead, and placed the planks in place right up to the bed of my truck. I put a chain across the front of the truck bed into the 'staking' holes of the bed and a 'come-a-long' was attached to the chain and a chain that was wrapped around the safe. It was winched down the planks and when the length of cable ran out, we cinched it up with another chain and the 'come-a-long' was repositioned for another go.

My brother and I did this and we always stayed above the safe as it went down. I was nervous as heck and only relaxed after my bro said, "Hey, what's gonna happen? If it gets away from us, goes down the ramp and takes out the door casing or busts the wall in the cellar, you'll be pizzed but after a while, you'll think back on it and laugh like Hell about it."

He was right, we couldn't get hurt the way we were handling it, we made sure if that..only the house would suffer a bit.

About five years later, we reversed the process when I moved. Up the stairs it went on planks and into the truck. I had a tractor and loader then so when I got to the new house, I carried it around the back of the house to my walk in cellar and set it in the doorway. That was easy.

The second safe was acquired when my boss said that we didn't have any use for it at work and it was available to anyone who would take it away. There was no one there who could/would so I 'volunteered'.

I got my flat bed car hauling trailer, backed it up to the porch of the building where the safe was. My sons and I levered it out of the building after setting down a plywood 'path' thru the office and onto the trailer and laid it down. Pretty much the same on the other end when it went into my walk in cellar. That was a piece of cake.



I had fun, if you can believe it, moving these things. I always get a sense of satisfaction in doing something that most would consider very difficult. Like this and recently cutting down two 100+ foot tall pine trees within 20 feet of my barn! That's another story !

It does take a LOT of advance thinking about how to do it and how to do it SAFELY. Sometimes it takes equipment too. I'm lucky that way as either I have it or someone in my family does.

My stories aside, if you are putting it in your house and don't have equipment or someone who can assure it will be safely done, get a pro to do it.
 
Last edited:
When I have to install or remove a Air Compressor in a basement weighing from ( 600 # to 900 # ) , with a accessable bulkhead , I just hire a tow truck with a extendable boom , and slide it on planks , they usually just want cash one hour labor .
You wouldn't believe how many Body Shops and Dry Cleaners have them in the cellar.
Bob
 
I recently just went thru this and didn't have any issues at all... It was about an 800lb. safe and I will def. say it went MUCH EASIER than I would have ever imagined. My safe also went into my basement and I have about a 12" concrete riser around the steps.

Here is what we did:

We had it in a cargo van and just backed the van as close to the bulkhead as possible. We had some 10' planks that we screwed into the steps so they wouldn't move. We had 4 guys and we wrapped rope around the entire safe. 2 guys on the ground by the bulkhead opening and 2 inside the cargo van. We pushed the safe out as far as it would go until it would balance inside the van. Then we simply just lowered it onto the planks and slowly guided it down the planks. Piece of cake!!! Then we used an appliance dolly to move it to its new home and we called it a day. Took a total of about 1/2 hour from start to finish.

Good luck and be safe,
Pete
 
Hike up your skirt and move the damn safe[rofl] [rofl] [rofl]

I have moved 2. First was from the second floor of a house down the stairs and across the street to another house. We slid it down the carpeted stairs. Gravity was our friend. Put it on my dolly and pulled it across the street with a 4 wheeler.

Second I wasn't so lucky. My 800# Browning medalion fireproof safe. I loaded it on the trailer with my dolly and a come along, brought it to the house and lowered it into the bulkhead alone. I have moved heavy things for a living for a lot of years (I have the bad back and knees to prove it) If you try it yourself, take the door off and move it alone. It is the heaviest part of the safe.

If you have the cash, hire a mover. Also, the Beer and friends thing works real well too. Amazing what some people will do when you call them a wuss.
 
My dad's 900lbish safe was moved by him and a professional safe mover who used a hydraulic forklift type thing. That was easy.

I moved mine in by backing my van up to the front steps, and then getting in the other side of the van and driving it out the side of the van with my legs and back. Managed to get it done alone, but then again that one was only about 200 pounds.
 
All these descriptions of what people did to get the safe into the basement, and not one "well I opened up the tailgate, threw her in reverse, slammed the gas until I was about 5 feet from the door and slammed the brakes!".

I am not impressed.
 
BoB13 said:
Hey Fester...Doesn't Lurch like lift pianos over his head and wrestle alligators?

Safes should be easy for him! What's he charge?
Click to expand...

Sadly, Ted Cassidy passed away in 1979. He was great in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid though.
 
safe move

You didn't mention whether you have a walk in basement or bulkhead etc. I bought a huge double door fireproof office safe. I'm lucky we have a garage under. All I had to do was hire a local carhauler roll off. We just winched it on and off. Even got a deckplate from the loading dock with it! Just set it in the doorway and pushed it in.
Happy Holidays
Jim
 

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