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Safe Room What have you done? (update)

cbshooter

.270 WIN
In my last house my bedrooms were on the 2nd level with a narrow landing at the top of the steps. What I did there was to replace the cheap masonite 6 panel doors with metal exterior doors and I hinged them to swing into the hallway instead of into the rooms, I also made sure that the hinge pins could not be taken out quickly. I never had a problem but I am sure that if a BG tried to get in it would allow me time to compose myself to handle the situation. So what are your ideas and what have you done to make or build a safe room and is it in or near the bedroom. I strongly believe that this is as important as having a HD gun ready to defend you and your loved ones. If you live in a state that will prosecute you for using deadly force this may save your bacon if the BG takes the time to beat the door down as you verbally warn him that you are armed and will use deadly force to protect yourself/family. So chime in here with your thoughts.. Clint
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

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Re: Safe Room What have you done?

I think about this often but never came to any significant conclusions. I guess we need to define "safe" room. A true safe room means nobody is getting in and that means you are basically in a vault. I don't think this is practical.

Here's my thoughts, when I come into my house from the garage, I walk immediately into my laundry room. I'm considering putting stronger, heavier doors and door framing on the door that leads from my laundry room into my hallway. I've got a sink and an extra fridge in the laundry room too. I was considering moving the fridge out and getting a large gun safe put in its place. That way I could open the safe door and hide behind it for any extra protection from bullets that made it through the heavier door. Also, I'm going to be getting an alarm system with video cameras and I could put the controls inside the laundry room. This plan also keeps me close to my cars (in the garage) and the laundry room is right next to all our bedrooms. Also, there are no windows in my laundry room.

Not perfect but it seems to be my best and most reasonable option. Now, I just have to put more thought into this plan and then execute that plan.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

I live alone so I can choose various responses to whatever is happening. I have not considered a safe room, but if I did it would have to be the bedroom I am in since it wouldn't make sense to me to go to some other part of the house. Guess my fallback is the Mossberg and the two Glocks that would follow up if needed. And my strategy is to take care of business and go from there.
One thing I will comment on is the strategy of announcing that I am armed and will defend myself. Don't know if that's good or not, but I prefer to address intrusions without a warning, and don't even want to 'rack' the gun hoping that sound will do something. I have read too much about these types that break in and my conclusion is they are so stupid, or intent on the crime, or high, or unfeeling, that it wouldn't make any difference what one does to try to persuade them to do otherwise.
There's a saying in Texas (and maybe elsewhere): some people just need killing
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

Sn3akyGuy.....you are funny but I call your bluff. Lol. JSD, I'm also in TX and luckily we can use deadly force for just about anything. I do worry about intruders because I have 4 kids and it scares me to think I'd have to get all of them and into safety. One good thing is that the master bedroom and all other bedrooms are upstairs. That could help us with the time frame of getting everyone together. Another good thing is that the staircase comes directly in the center of the 2nd floor (game room and all bedrooms create a circle with a hallway completely around the stairs). It is loft style, so no matter which room we are in upstairs, we can look down onto the staircase and see a person in plain view the entire way up....which means we could possibly use firearms and stop them before they ever got to the top. It's kinda hard to explain the visual, I'll have to take a pic. Our master closet, has a window in it that overlooks our front yard and street. It's on the 2nd floor. I guess I could put everyone in there since its the farthest point in the house. I really don't know, I really need to think this through more!!
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

This shows how there is half wall/loft all the way around the stair case. All the bedrooms and game room are all in back and to the sides. One of the kids' room is not even visible from the staircase.
 

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Re: Safe Room What have you done?

Yeah, when it's just me it's a little easier to deal with. I don't particularly like to offer suggestions that may result in serious business, but I will offer this: if I had a family that would have to be brought together, I might concentrate on early detection instead.
At my place I have outside lights with motion and heat detectors - these only cost a few bucks from Home Depot. I know this won't stop the BG but is going to cause some hesitation, maybe even resulting in their changing their mind. Also my back screen door makes a horrible screaching noise when opened because it's not set quite right in the metal door frame and I won't fix it - that thing will wake up the dead when you try to open it and there is no way to make it temporarily quiet.
I have steps leading up to the front porch with rails on both sides. I have considered running a trip wire at the bottom of the steps (flat black and invisible at night). The BG will fall flat on their face and may be detected that way too.
I don't want a compound necessarily, but I'm sure going to make it hard to get in and darn sure going to make getting in a hassle.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

Great suggestions. I do have a dog that barks hysterically when he hears stuff, and he stays downstairs. We have a baby monitor in the hallway so that we can hear any kids from each of their rooms....but it also allows me to hear the dog in the middle of the night (since I have the receiver of the monitor on my night stand). I def need to get the motion detector lights.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

I think a dog is one of the best early warning devices. I have read that BGs will sometimes move on when they hear one barking.
I forgot to mention video monitors - the small cameras that hook up to laptops are pretty cheap and we're not looking for clear pictures, just the general scene. I might put one at the front door and/or back door, and showing specific interior areas too, so I wouldn't have to go downstairs to see what's going on. And useful in the daytime since you don't have to go to the door and can check it from, say, the kitchen.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

That's a good idea too. I hate answering the door with my kids here and I'm alone with them. I have a chain lock too or else my kids would just voluntarily open it for anyone. Since the oldest is 4 they just don't understand.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

Home all day with four kids? Compared to that a BG is probably no problem. :mrgreen:
You just went up on my respect meter a couple of notches.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

Well thank you, but I don't need any special recognition....I'm just a Mom doing my job. Did I ever think I'd have 4 kids ages 4 and under? No. Do I break down and cry occasionally? Yes. lol. But would I trade it for any other thing on earth? Hell no, and I will surely put up a fight if a BG tried to F with my kids. ha! I might be sweet and friendly, but I won't hesitate putting a bullet through them if it was for the safety of my boys. :)
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

JSDinTexas said:
I think a dog is one of the best early warning devices.

Totally agree.

We've got two in the house that bark their heads off when a mouse farts outside...
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

I always wanted a secret (safe) room.

And I also always wanted an underground storm shelter while I'm thinking about it.

But have neither so far, but I still have given it a lot of thought.

Closed Circuit TV camera's can be found online relatively cheap (less than $100) that have their own monitor and everything and can hook up to a VCR. Even those little baby monitors could work just as well for monitoring the door.

Dogs are good security as long as you have a good one.

And just for what it's worth, those security lights can also be wired to a 110v AC bell (like we had in school) so when something sets the light off, the bell goes off with it. But without a switch to kill the power to the bell, can drive you nuts if you have squirrels or raccoons or strays.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

One thing that a lot of people over look when building/planning these rooms are structural security. For instance, a solid metal door with biometric (fingerprint or iris scanner) lock and 3 dead bolts on the inside is only as secure as the drywall/insulation around it. It takes a whole 15 seconds to knock your way through typical 'to code' walls.

Good options to prevent the more 'intelligent' bg's from going through your wall could be as simple as wire mesh, chain link fence or similar materials between each section of studs. If you wanna go all out and be all super spy you could use 3-5 metal sheets with small holes in it, offset so that you can block wireless transmissions (a.k.a. listening devices). Of course, if said bad guy is smart enough to go this route, the extra material is just going to aid in slowing him down, but it gives you something to stick your barrel through and start shooting while the cops are on the way.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

I'm starting to think our man Sn3aKyGuy here might be some sort of secret agent or something... :lol:

Great point about structural integrity. A lot of folks don't realize how easy it can be to tear through a wall...
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

Concentric ( ring based ) security is what protects our castle.

First ring: the motion sensor lighting I have on my porch front door, the four corners of my house (double lights), the mudroom door, and the back yard door.

Second ring: the three all steel no window exterior doors with deadbolts and the four glassblocked basement windows.

Third ring: Brook, our Yellow Lab...and we also have obvious dog related items ( outside leash, water bowls, dog house ) on the property. A "beware of dog" sign is also displayed. When someone comes to the door, or she hears a noise outside and she barks, we always investigate with her, then reward her, instead of telling her to lay down and be quiet.

Fourth ring: the occupants of the house...my wife, daughter, and I are proficient in firearms...have loaded weapons in a specific locations on each floor...and have discussed different scenarios including home invasion, night break-ins, and fire evac.

Ya gotta have a plan...and a backup plan...because no plan survives first contact with the enemy.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

A safe room... Well, our house is tiny, there is no particular "safe room", but as has been mentioned about early warning, we have dogs, inside and out. They bark and dont get scolded.

There are some things I have considered doin though. I'd like to get better doors and I'd also like to get those inexpensive magnetic door ringer/buzzer/chime thingys. The kind that make some sort of sound when the pieces are moved away from one another. You can put one side on the door and the other side on the frame, they can be used on windows too. They arent monitored, but can be a deterent or at least another piece of an early warning sysytem.

Otherwise, the entirety of all 800 square feet have to be safe gaurded and children have to be gathered up. Ohio is a castle state and everyone around here has guns and dogs. My only real option is to be ready as soon as something happens, my "early warning" stuff may only be buying time.
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

GirlsLoveGuns2 said:
This shows how there is half wall/loft all the way around the stair case. All the bedrooms and game room are all in back and to the sides. One of the kids' room is not even visible from the staircase.
Mossberg 500: $320
00 buck: $10
High ground: Priceless
 
Re: Safe Room What have you done?

LAZY EYED SNIPER said:
I'm starting to think our man Sn3aKyGuy here might be some sort of secret agent or something... :lol:

Great point about structural integrity. A lot of folks don't realize how easy it can be to tear through a wall...

Who told you!?! Heads will roll! :lol: I've put a lot of thought into this as we are trying to build a safe room in our basement since that's where I'm building the kids rooms.

Rossignol said:
There are some things I have considered doin though. I'd like to get better doors and I'd also like to get those inexpensive magnetic door ringer/buzzer/chime thingys. The kind that make some sort of sound when the pieces are moved away from one another. You can put one side on the door and the other side on the frame, they can be used on windows too. They arent monitored, but can be a deterent or at least another piece of an early warning sysytem.

viewtopic.php?f=38&t=211&p=13432&hilit=radioshack#p13432 <-- few links on page 3 for you.
 
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