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I am trying to bolt down a safe. The 5/8 anchor bolt comes with a 1/2 plastic sleeve (barely shy of 1/2 actually) which I think I need to insert first.
How big is the hole I am supposed to drill? 1/2?
Oh, my floor is engineered wood floor. Do I take off the wood and sit the safe on concrete directly or do I drill through the wood and concrete?
Drill 5/8". A little slack is a lot easier to work with. Scribe and cut the wood around the hole and set it aside in case you ever want to put it back. Otherwise, it doesn't matter.
If you need to go to the trouble of bolting it to the concrete, you are treading into dangerous territory. Consider off-premises options.
The security of your safe is only as secure as your weakest link. If you bolt only to the wood floor, then it's going to be considerably less secure than if you bolt to the concrete. How long is the bolt? Are we talking 2 or 4 inches? The plastic sleeve probably goes around the 'grip' (or the smooth part of the bolt), most likely to protect the finish of the safe. If that's the case, then you need to make the hole 5/8" as harry mentioned. Drilling 2 or 4 holes into a concrete slab will not do any considerable damage, structurally. With the right drill bit, drilling into concrete is as simple as soft wood. Emphasis on the 'right drill bit'...
IMHO - secure the safe to the strongest point possible. That's why you bought it, right? I'd be willing to be that anyone who wants to walk away with a safe can and will. A prybar and a sawzall is all you need. And a strong back!
The box the anchor bolts come in should advise the size hole to be used on anchor bolts. Rent a large concrete drill at a rental center and even old conrete will drill like butter as they say. M ost supply the drill bit also.Unless fairly new concrete forget the smaller hammer drills.I;d first dril thru the floor with a wood bit and then switch to the concrete bit.
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