moving a gun safe ?

I don't know all the particulars, but you can lighten the safe by lifting the door off. I did that getting my safe in to the basement and it did make a difference.
Ole Jack
 
Some of the larger safes are pretty heavy weighing in at well over 1,000 lbs. Add all your guns and gold (I wish) and you are really increasing your static load. If you are placing your safe on a concrete slab. I wouldn't worry. If you are talking about pier and beam, or on a second story, you are unlikely to have a problem if your house is well built, but the only way to be sure is to have a professional look at it.
 
Your foundation will be fine, but joists and flooring maybe not. You can sister on new wod to double up the joists, if you're concerned. Be sure the load goes to the columns or sidewalls, or you're accomplishing nothing. If you add a column, it needs a footing.

My loaded safe weighed about 500 pounds a square foot, and no issues.
 
^^^ 500 lb/sf is a lot. Typical wood framed flooring is designed for 40 lb/sf. (distributed uniformly). If your safe is approx. 2-1/2' x 3' that's 7.5 sf --> 3750 lb. That's an almost 2 ton load on a small area. If it's on a concrete slab, it's probably not a problem. But 500 lb/sf doesn't sound right. Are you sure it's that heavy?
 
The problem with hiring strangers to move/install a safe, instead of friends you can trust is, now complete strangers know you have guns or they assume you have guns because you have a gun safe.
 
^^^ 500 lb/sf is a lot. Typical wood framed flooring is designed for 40 lb/sf. (distributed uniformly). If your safe is approx. 2-1/2' x 3' that's 7.5 sf --> 3750 lb. That's an almost 2 ton load on a small area. If it's on a concrete slab, it's probably not a problem. But 500 lb/sf doesn't sound right. Are you sure it's that heavy?
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If it's a real safe, most likely. My "safe" is, like probably most here, a 600 lb. RSC. An actual safe is far heavier.
 
I moved both of mine last year. The biggest weighs 1000 lbs. I used 1 1/2 PVC pipe. It worked great. The trick is to get it up on the pipe. Unload everything from the safe. Then open the door and by pulling down on the open door the back of the safe will come up enough to put the pipes almost to the center. Just make sure you have at least 4 pipes under it all the time. I had about 10 pieces of pipe and just kept putting them under the front. I learned this method at the steel mill where I work. We move full tool lockers weighing over a ton with 3/4 inch thick wall conduit on concrete floors.

Be safe
 
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