Creating A Home Gun Vault Room

Planning & Building A Gun Room

How to Build Your Custom Gun Safe Room:

• Choose a relatively discreet location, such as a closet, basement space, or mechanical room. Unless you also plan to run there in an emergency, it’s okay for the gun vault room to be distant.
• Ensure the room’s designation as a gun room is practical. Avoid selecting a space your family frequently uses for mundane purposes, such as a laundry room.
• If possible, select an area with some natural fire resistance, such as one that uses a concrete exterior wall or is in the basement.
• Consider your firearm collection and ensure the selected space can contain it.
• If renovating an existing room to build your gun safe, select a space with few obstructions (e.g., duct and pipework) and few entry points (e.g., doors and windows) — this allows for cost-effective armoring and installation. 

Step 2: Select Gun Room Vault Door

Common mistake: a walk-in gun door that sticks out like a sore thumb.

We recommend the following when selecting a gun room door:

• Unlike a panic room, a gun safe room must be in the normally locked position.
• The gun room door needs to lock securely from the outside, not requiring an individual inside to turn a spindle to throw the bolts, for example.
• The gun vault door must not have a commercial or militaristic appearance. A cold, steel door will attract attention and directly guide a burglar to focus their attention there. 
• Therefore, select a secure door clad to match your home’s aesthetic.
• The most important aspect of your door will be its ability to withstand forced entry attacks. A criminal may attack with anything from a pry bar to a powered saw. The lock may be subject to attempted manipulation.
• We recommend selecting a door protected from firearm attacks that could defeat a door’s lock system. 
• However, full bulletproofing of the door is not required for most gun safe rooms. For a room not designed to be occupied by humans, clients are often okay with the possibility of a bullet penetrating the door and merely causing some damage to their property – so long as criminals cannot attain entry this way.

Step 3: Plan Window and Wall Armoring

Common mistake: breakable glass windows and sheetrock walls compromise gun room entrance security. 

Our recommendations on securing other entry points:

• As per above, select a room with minimal access points, including a limited wall perimeter. Or, select already-reinforced walls (such as a foundational concrete wall).
• Secure your walls with high-security panels that can withstand bladed and blunt weapon attacks, such as Level 3 of our Ballistic Fiberglass panels. Avoid flammable materials. 
• Replace standard windows with high-security options. We recommend a security standard of P6B or above, designed to stop 30-50 ax strikes. Many clients upgrade to ballistic options.
• Endeavor to blend the design of the new window into your home. We offer fully custom forced entry and ballistic residential windows. 

Step 4: Plan fireproofing and ventilation

Common mistake: Intermingled fire resistance and security are sub-par in a gun safe.

A gun vault room provides more flexibility than a gun safe. We recommend the following:

• Select fire-resistant and collapse-resistant wall armoring, such as steel or ballistic fiberglass. If building a new home, consider masonry.
• Use type-x drywall and other fire minimization materials
• Seal cracks around ductwork and pipes with flame retardent foams and caulking
• Minimize flammable furniture and drapery in the gun room; where necessary, apply flame retardant sprays. 
• For expensive guns, heirlooms, or antique firearms, consider a double protection measure of placing these in a fire-resistant container inside the gun room. As the space is already secure, the container merely needs to be highly fire-resistant.

Step 5: Plan Weapon Display

Common mistake: Firearms are left stacked near each other, limiting the collection’s visibility and leaving them susceptible to damage. 

For your home gun safe room, we recommend the following display tips:

• Carefully measure the wall space you expect to have following its fortification.
• Invest in a fire-resistant, steel-based modular gun rack system. Our team can advise you on brands used by prior clients. 
• Create a list of the number of pistols, rifles, and any irregular-shaped items you’ll be displaying. 
• Based on the modular display system, determine the space needed to lay these out. For high-density storage, consider stacking multiple guns next to each other on the system in a vertical position.
• With the approximate plan, select the hooks and containers needed for your firearms and ammunition to attach correctly to the racks.

Step 6: Install Features 

Common mistake: Improperly installed features negate their security and safety capabilities.

 

 

Our team recommends the following to complete your project:

• If working with Fortified Estate for your vault room doors, windows, or walls for a new home build, reach out early in the project so that we can recommend possible changes to blueprints before construction.
• For installation, work with a licensed and bonded contractor. 
• Most contractors experienced with door and window installation are skilled enough to install high-security doors as well. 
• Our team can advise your installation team on methods and tips. 
• If you don’t have a gun vault room contractor or builder, we can often refer you to contractors who have worked with other clients in the same city.

TALK WITH A SPECIALIST

Step 7: Train Yourself and Your Family

Common mistake: Despite rigorous security measures, a gun-safe room becomes vulnerable due to human error.

Here are some tips on making the most of the gun vault room in your house:

• Personally review all details for safely opening and locking the gun room entrance. 
• Carefully ensure the gun room door cannot be opened from the outside by a child or guest (such as knowing where the key is stored). 
• Ensure you and, if applicable, other family members have a plan in place to always leave the door locked when the gun room is unoccupied. 
• However, in the improbable event a child gets locked in, ensure household members know how to unlock the door from the inside.
• Personally review safety details for safely storing guns and ammunition on display racks.
• Determine what to do in various emergencies, such as a home invasion or fire. Do you plan to access the gun vault room quickly or immediately leave and call for help? 
• Train your family several times on how to respond based on various threatening situations. Plans may differ based on the location the person is in at the time.