I don't really know where to post this so I am going to try here and a few other forums and would appreciate your comments.

What is the best way of making a safe fire resistant (since nothing can really be made fire proof) to an extent which the items inside would most likely be able to survive a normal house fire with minimal or no damage?

I have recently acquired a Class 6 M&P GSA Safe that I want to turn into a gun safe and also be able to store papers and others items inside. The safe has a Mosler MRK 302 combination lock which has recently been serviced and has the following outside measurements:

38"D X 22"W X 57.5"H

There appears to be no evidence of fire proofing/resistant material in the safe at this time. Someone once told me that the reason that there is not any evidence of fire proofing/resistants is probably because the government would rather have seen the material inside destroyed than chance someone being able to get their hands on whatever was inside and it be in useable condition.

The safe also has minor scratches to the outside in which the paint has been scraped off to bare metal. I would like to have the safe repainted to something besides the ugly gray that it currently is.

How would you recommend that it be painted, for example - taking it to someone who has the facilities to paint cars or what?

Thanks

K. Hendo

I wouldn't be concerned as much with paint , as I would be to making sure you bolt that gun safe to the floor or to a back wall. It seems most thieves use a van for hauling stolen items away and also carry the two wheeler dollys in those vans. There's not much they can't remove from your home with a two wheeler. Just a friendly warning. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

Look at the wall thickness, it's usually made up of 2-3 layers of steel seperated by fire resistant material.
You can line the inside with "Sheetrock", which is what the factories do BTW. If your doing it as a built in (set in place than boxed in) line the outside with 1-2 layers of "Sheetrock" also.

They also make a cement board that is often used as a subfloor under tile. That may work a little better than the sheetrock. Lowe's or Home Depot sells it and one brand I know of is DuraRock.
For the paint (depending on how much you want to spend), find someone who does powder coating. The finish will come out much better.

You might also put some thought into securing your tools as well. I read an article that claimed that it was almost unheard of for thieves to bring tools to crack a gun safe but that there had been several cases where thieves had used available tools.

I translated this to read, "Put the regulator for your acetylene torch inside the gun safe, dummy."