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The attached picture, unfortunately, is my mothers house early Tuesday morning. Everything and i mean EVERYTHING including all of my stepfathers guns were destroyed.
My brother was staying in the house at the time. He escaped unharmed.
-Chris
I have the ‘Nest” smoke detectors that tie to your WIFI and I get a text if something sets them off. Plus my guns are in a fire proof gun room but still there would be lots of irreplaceable items lost.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
Sad to hear of your loss, that truly sucks.
Gun safes/rooms are the best protection but depending on the heat index, quality of the safe, and fire duration, all may be lost anyway. If guns arent directly damage by the heat/flame entering into the safe the smoke will penetrate and do damage to the wood finishes. Those rubber gaskets around the doors on most safes wont hold up to direct flame or a pressurized building environment from a fire of that degree. The door is the weak link.
Sucks even worse if you live out in the country and not near a fire station. Fire location, safe quality and FD response time are critical. Worked lots of large commercial and residential fire losses, sad day to loose something that way.
1892takedown @sbcglobal.net ......NRA Endowment Life Member.....WACA Member
"God is great.....beer is good.....and people are crazy"... Billy Currington
Chris,
What a shame, I’m sorry for your loss, and glad no one was hurt.
Do they know what caused the fire?
Al
Being near a busy road is a asset when it comes to a fire because it will get reported quicker. There was a house in Wisconsin in the middle of a big woods and it burnt to the ground since nobody recognized it as house fire and the gun safe in the house did nothing to protect the guns. The coolest place for a gun safe in a fire is in the basement in a corner and then blocked in on the top and the other side.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
Our possessions often provide comfort and security–the familiar and the memories. I hope your family is not too pained by this loss.
1873man said
I have the ‘Nest” smoke detectors that tie to your WIFI and I get a text if something sets them off. Plus my guns are in a fire proof gun room but still there would be lots of irreplaceable items lost.Bob
Bob,
How did you build your fire proof gun room? (probably a long answer to a short question)
Maverick
P.S. Chris – Glad everybody is OK.
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November 7, 2015
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1873man said
Being near a busy road is a asset when it comes to a fire because it will get reported quicker. There was a house in Wisconsin in the middle of a big woods and it burnt to the ground since nobody recognized it as house fire and the gun safe in the house did nothing to protect the guns. The coolest place for a gun safe in a fire is in the basement in a corner and then blocked in on the top and the other side.Bob
True enough, but if the fire department responds in a timely manner with lots of water it generally winds up….in the basement. 🙁 Quite often a safe at or above ground level will wind up in the basement as well.
I’m very sorry, Chris. I may be wrong but it appears the temps got very high and I suspect the guns are ruined. I’d preserve and evaluate at least some but I’d venture to guess the heat would have defeated most fire safes as well.
Maverick,
I laid another wall with a safe door in it. The wall I laid I filled the spaces with mortar and rerod. I then mounted 2″ x 2″ x 1/4″ angle around the inside perimeter with concrete anchors. Then I laid 2 foot wide x 1/4″ steel plate on the angle to make a ceiling and then put more 2 X 2 angle at every seam to seal the seam and give it added support and then welded it all together. Then I laid several layers of dry wall over the top to give the steel a insulation layer.
bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
November 7, 2015
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Awesome gun room, Bob. I toyed with building a house including one room reinforced with expanded metal, 3/4″ plywood, extra drywall and a reinforced door. If I ever wander down that road again I’d like to pick your brain a bit.
Most folks don’t realize that a “fire safe” generally denotes a generous layer of gypsum (drywall) and little else. As mentioned above seals are critical for higher temps and longer durations. A rural home served by a volunteer FD with a 20 minute response time needs a much better fire safe than an urban home with a five minute response time.
No, not slamming my local VFD. I love those guys and girls! It’s just logistics and finance. If you’re served by a VFD, drop off a check every chance you get. Best money you ever spent. And yes, they notice.
1873man said
Maverick,I laid another wall with a safe door in it. The wall I laid I filled the spaces with mortar and rerod. I then mounted 2″ x 2″ x 1/4″ angle around the inside perimeter with concrete anchors. Then I laid 2 foot wide x 1/4″ steel plate on the angle to make a ceiling and then put more 2 X 2 angle at every seam to seal the seam and give it added support and then welded it all together. Then I laid several layers of dry wall over the top to give the steel a insulation layer.
bob
What about penetrations into the room? Does the room have electricity ran inside it? Does the room have heat and/or air conditioning in it?
Not to sound like I’m picking on you, but I’m just curious. I work for a architecture firm and think a lot about buildings and design. Would advise that if your room has electrical inside of it, then there are certain factors to consider about how its ran. If it has (HVAC) heating, ventilating, & air conditioning inside it, then that makes it also prone to have issues regarding a fire. Now if it is basically a concrete safe, the weak spot is the door, and the other issue is dealing with moisture. If I were to build my own gun vault I’d, do some similar things in regards to the concrete. But I’d add an extra layer of asbestos, as drywall does and will burn.
Most fire fighters will tell you that they rarely get to a house fire in enough time to save it in any meaningful manner. They mainly want to keep the fire from spreading further and if someone is thought to be inside, pursue rescue of them. Most of the time the water putting out the fire also causes a great amount of damage to the home.
Sincerely,
Maverick
WACA #8783 - Checkout my Reloading Tool Survey!
https://winchestercollector.org/forum/winchester-research-surveys/winchester-reloading-tool-survey/
Maverick,
The only thing going in is electric power which I ran in conduit down the center of the wall then through the inside wall and then plugged with silicone seal around the wires. I have a baseboard heater and a dehumidifier inside. As far as water from the fire trucks, I’m more worried about fire than water. The other thing is I do not store any ammo in there that could accelerate a fire.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
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