How to Move a Gun Safe

Gun safes are designed to remain secure, even when subjected to heavy impacts. But while their robust construction protects your firearms, it makes them a challenge to move. For safety and convenience, many homeowners prefer to hire professionals instead of tackling the job themselves. However, it's possible to move a gun safe on your own. All it takes is careful planning, some specialized equipment, and a little help. In this blog, we’ll walk you through the process, showing you how to move a gun safe as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Gather Your Equipment

The smallest gun safe weighs around 200 pounds. Mid-size safes weigh up to 1,000, while the largest models weigh twice as much. Transporting such a heavy piece of equipment requires the right tools, including:

Appliance Dolly. Because a standard dolly isn’t capable of supporting more than a few hundred pounds, you’ll need an appliance dolly to move a gun safe. Appliance dollies are specially reinforced, with a weight capacity of 1,000 pounds or more. To anchor the safe to the frame, most dollies include built-in brackets you can use to fasten straps, to prevent the safe from shifting while it’s being lifted and wheeled.
Furniture Sliders. Round pieces of plastic or rubber that fit beneath the legs of the safe, allowing you to slide it along the ground without damaging your floors or carpeting.
Ratchet Straps. Used to secure the safe to the dolly, these straps can be mechanically tightened to ensure stability.
Moving Blankets. Protect the safe from scuffs and scratches that would otherwise damage its finish.
Plastic Stretch Wrap. Wrapping the moving blankets in plastic is the best way to hold them in place.
Wooden Planks. Used to create a bridge that helps you navigate steps and uneven surfaces.

Though not strictly necessary, consider purchasing work gloves and steel-toed boots as well. Gloves not only protect your hands, but help you maintain a firm grip, while steel-toed boots prevent your toes from being crushed if the safe slips.

Plan Your Route

Gun safes are large and difficult to maneuver. Transporting them through your home without accounting for their size and weight can result in chipped walls, splintered doorways, and damaged floorboards. You’ll find the weight, height, width, and length of your safe in the owner’s manual. If you can’t locate the manual, you can always measure the safe yourself or download a digital copy online.

Keep in mind that the dimensions supplied by the manufacturer may not account for the handle, which in many instances isn’t installed until after the safe has been delivered. A large handle often means the front of the safe is wider than the back, which will need to be taken into account when planning your route.

Measure the doors and hallways in your home to make sure they’re wide enough to accommodate the safe. Sometimes the direct path isn’t the best one. Avoid steep, narrow, or winding staircases. Besides being ill-suited to large objects, they limit the number of people who can steady the safe as you move it downstairs. Most stairs are built to support 100-200 pounds per square foot. That’s enough for most safes, but if you’re worried your stairs might not be strong enough, consult a structural engineer or your local building codes.

Prepare Your Safe

After you’ve finished planning your route, empty the safe entirely. Besides reducing its weight, emptying the safe also prevents the contents from shifting and tipping the safe over during the moving process. Once all your guns and ammunition have been removed, cover the safe with moving blankets and use stretch wrap to hold them in place. Moving blankets serve a dual purpose. Besides protecting the safe’s finish, they also cushion impacts, ensuring your safe doesn’t damage your home if it bumps into anything.

Lift Your Safe onto the Dolly

Never attempt to move a gun safe on your own. Even small safes require at least two people. High-end safes might require as many as four or five to lift, lower, and guide them into position. After preparing your safe, load it onto the dolly by slowly lifting one end and sliding the dolly underneath.

If your safe is stored in a tight space, put some furniture sliders beneath it and move it out to the middle of the room, where you have sufficient space to use the dolly. Once the safe is on the dolly, secure it with the ratchet straps. Depending on the size of the safe, you may require two or three.

Move Slowly & Steadily

Gun safes need to be moved cautiously. Take small, controlled steps when maneuvering it through your home, even in down straight hallways. Have one person out in front, to help direct it around obstacles and keep it from drifting off course.

Communication is key to the process. Review your strategy with your team ahead of time, so everyone understands the plan and their role. If you need to pick up the safe for any reason, make sure everyone keeps their backs straight and lifts with their knees to avoid injury.

Load It Onto the Truck or Trailer

While some pickups are strong enough to hold a small safe, it’s safer to hire a moving truck. They’re not only built to handle heavy objects; they also come equipped with ramps and lifts to facilitate movement. Standard moving trucks have a weight capacity of 2,600-10,000 pounds, while their ramps can hold anywhere from 2,500-4,000 pounds.

While this should be enough to support a gun safe, it’s best to check with the rental company beforehand. Otherwise, you may be liable for damages. Once the safe is on the truck, use the ratchet straps to secure it to the side, so it won’t slide or fall during transit.

Move It into Your New Home

When you arrive at your new home, repeat the process in reverse. Lift the safe onto the dolly, strap it down, and wheel it into your home with the help of your team. Measure the doors and hallways first, to make sure you have enough room. Then place it in its designated spot and position it with the help of furniture sliders.

Tear away the plastic wrap, take off the moving blankets, and you’re done. Because safes are difficult to maneuver, it’s best to make them a priority. Move them in before the rest of your boxes and furniture or at least make sure the intended path is clear of obstructions, to prevent accidents.

Professional Gun Safe Movers

Allied Van Lines is a full service moving company, equipped to handle every aspect of your move, from planning to packing to shipment and final delivery. Our resources and training allows us to pack and transport heavy objects, including gun safes, safely and smoothly. No matter how big the challenge, we have the skills and experience to get it done properly. Contact us today for a free quote!