how do you protect your tools,job box?
the neighbor next to the remodel project just got broke into,they took about 5000. worth of tools.i must be living right,my tools were scattered all over my house and it would of took about 3 seconds to pop out a glass and clean me out. anyway it’s got me to thinking about one of these steel job boxes to secure the main tools on the site. i’m not much into loading the tools back in the truck every night only to drive home and park it in the driveway waiting for someone to break into it! i’ve talked to my ins. agent and i really can’t get him nailed down on what ins.would pay for and what it won’t in case something happens. i’m thinking of a 4′ box,line the bottom with about 4 bags of ready mix for some weight plus bolt it to the floor if possible.i figure with the box at 100lbs + 300 lbs concrete+ 200lbs of tools,if the guy can get them loaded i’ll just call him ‘SIR’ and go on. let me know if you have any good ideas on how to protect your tools. thanks larry
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I dont know what anyone can do if somone wants to steal tools from me. they can break into my shop that i have my husky (big) and my black lab (med big) tied outside. or they can break the lock to my box trailer, open the doors and unload it or they could break the lock when i have it hooked to my truck and take the whole thing tools and all. . and they can even use them with my name written all over them. so you see thats what i do and i still know that if somone still wanted to steal my stuff it would be hard but not impossable. good luck! metal box with cement sounds o.k. best ive seen a steel box up in sky hooked to a crane over job site, that could be best. dogboy
You can't make a toolbox - or a house - that nobody can break into. What you can do is make a toolbox or a house that nobody can break into without you knowing about it if you're there. Then you can call 911 and/or arm yourself, or whatever. Active rather than passive defense. But then you're back to hauling your tools home every night and making sure they're inside your sensor perimeter.
The other approach, bigger and better locks, sacks of cement, etc. doesn't depend on your presence, and will deter the casual thief, but it doesn't protect you against the random sociopath, disgruntled ex-employee, disgruntled current employee, customer's crack head son, etc. who has decided you are tonight's designated target.
Rent a 20' C-container. It's one of those metal boxes that they take off a ship and set on a truck frame - containerized freight. Ground level trailer. I can't say they are bullet proof, but if someone were shooting at me (or trying to steel my stuff) I have found it to be a damn good option (in the later case anyway). If you have the right lock, they are very secure, save someone with a cutting torch.
Probably not what you had in mind though - more applicable to new construction.
Edited 12/24/2003 6:15:21 AM ET by DIRISHINME
Somebody used a cordless Dremel to cut the lock on one of those conex boxes that we had over a Thankgiving long weekend and got to the torch.
There was no stopping them then...Stuff was hauled off the truck load..
Who ever invented work didn't know how to fish....
we've used one of those shipping containers on a habitat site,in a neighborhood that the very first day a guy stopped and tried to sell us a chopsaw! i thought to myself he'll be back and unload our box some night,but it sat there for 90 days and nobody ever bothered it. i know that if you have a real thief ,he is going to get your stuff.but alot of times it's just a kid grabing and running looking to go sell your tools for 20.00 for some quick cash.
On one job site a contractor put all his tools into a large gang box and then places 5' square piece of concrete, 8" or so deep, on top of it with the crane or forklift. It had a couple of loops of rebar on top for easy hook up. Butt ugly but brutally effective. With something like, I'm guessing, 2500 pounds of concrete on top no one messed with it. Several other contractors loss stuff but nothing was taken from that box.
Like a previous poster said any man who lifts that off you call sir and ask if he would like you to hold the door while he loads his acquisitions.
I always enjoy seeing the air compresser on a job site dangling from the crane, 30 feet up in the air.
When I meet a man like that I introduce him to my friends Mr Smith and Mr Wesson.
letting big people get away withstuff because theyre big is not a good policy. You don't walk off with my stuff I don't care how big you are
a short man
You run into a guy that shifts a block of concrete like that by himself and without any mechanical advantage you better hope Smith & Wesson makes bazookas. A handgun isn't going to get it. A joke.
Of course it is not likely to happen because anyone determined enough to get around such an obstacle would be a dedicated employee and quickly hired at good wages. They would have no need to steal. Fact is that the vast majority of thieves are both stupid and lazy. This explains why even cheap locks and simple measures work as well as they do. Making your tools a tough target usually makes the thieves move to easier pickings.
Another trick is to hire a local tough, the bigger and more notorious the better, to clean up after hours and keep an eye on the place. Treated with respect, some of them it seems for the first time, and well paid, also not uncommonly a first, the right guy properly handled can become a dedicated and valued employee.
I knew one man who after seeing a rough local gang casing the site sat up all night long with a baseball bat and a .38 guarding the place. He guarded the place at considerable personal risk. He was only paid for 20 hours a week but served many hours longer than that. The boss, a smart man, made sure he was well taken care of.
Sheesh..I sat up all nite with a maglite and laser ductaped to my Win. 12 ga. ...jus to keep the possums from the chickens..btw, it worked.
We have used the 2' x 4' boxes for years on the job sites we work on. I also chain the box to something, even if it's only a 4" plastic drain pipe. We just try to make it hard for the casual crackhead to roll our tools down the street. I also chain the table saw, chop saw and compressor together. I used to use those cables that they sell for locking up your tools until we had someone cut thru a cable with a pair of yellow snips that he had found on the job. I know because he left the snips and took my compressor and nail gun. It must have taken him hours to cut that cable.... but it was on christmas day....
Putting bags o cement in the bottom of a job box isnt going to stop them. They dont have any intention of shleping the tool box, they just want the contents. A cordless sawzall and a new meatle blade will cut one of those things in half in abought 40 seconds.
most people around here has the, well fargo trailer and just take the tools home everynight.
The best employee you can have but you wouldn't want him as a neighbor " He the shifty type"
Edited 12/24/2003 9:56:01 PM ET by BROWNBAGG
After having my truck cleaned out of $10,000 worth of tools, I invested in a Knack Job Box. 3' x 3' x 4'. Heavy enough just by itself. But I do two things. Frist, I cut off the legs that it had (three inch high metal). I then screwed P.T. 2 x 4's to the bottom like runners. (Three pieces, front to back). No matter where we store it, (usually outdoors, in the clients back yard) we secure it to the ground. On grass,I use a grounding rod with the top threaded. I drilled a hole through the center of the box floor. On pavement or concrete, I use an expansion anchor. This makes it just about impossible to lift, even if you use a 2 x 4 as a lever. Then, I chain the thing to something huge, like a tree. They will usually futz with that first because they dont know about the ground anchor yet. The chain is large welded link grade 80 steel. A long length makes lots of noise.
A note of warning. The tools I mentioned above were covered by my insurance. I specifically got a tool rider on my policy to cover them. Last year, thieves broke into a client's garage where my job box, filled to the top, was securely bolted to the floor. So they stole all the large tools that didn't fit, like a brand-new Bosch elec jackhammer, two DeWalt Miter saws, a large compressor and a generator. That was when I discovered that my tool rider had a maximum per tool amount of $500. Didn't cover by half.
So three rules of thumb. Lock up everything as well as you can. Buy the strongest chain and best locks. Then document and mark everything. Write down the serial numbers, save the purchase receipts, and engrave your phone number into the tool housing. DONT use your S.S. number; that leads to a different kind of theft. Third, make sure you are insured for full value, in writing; and have you agent sign something that states that you are. If the insurance turns out to be short, your agent is on the hook for the balance.
I pay about $1500 a year to fully cover approx. $40,000 in tools. Worth it? Just think about the time you would lose. Thats less than a weeks pay, plus it is a write-off.
Attack dogs, man-traps, crane hung boxes; they are all lawsuits waiting to happen. Protect yourself as best as you can, and over-insure.
If you can't get your insurance agent to be exactly specific about what's covered and what's not, I'd think about going with someone who can, dang, call the carrier and explain your situation, might make what you need to do clearer. Personally, I would dump your agent as soon as possible.
To avoid any claims at all, we lag bolt our job boxes to floor joists, makes for a lot more room inside and we haven't had a box walk off yet...
EliphIno!
WOW! I have always lived and worked in a rural environment. I mostly took all my tools home at night, but a few times I left something behind, esp. when I was new, and had less invested.
I have always figured that the necessity was to remove the temptation, but you guys are talking about people who are clearly professional, and have targeted your job.
You make less money in a rural environment. But, on the other hand, I have never had to face the sort of thing you guys take for granted, thank God!
You have a really good point .
Rural people live a simpler life thats for sure.
Be relaxed,
Tim Mooney
I'd say get a better agent ...
buy some good insurance ...
take pics and make a list ....
All I gotta do is have my stuff "locked" ....
the HO's door locking behind me is enough ..... or locked in the van ....
just as long as I didn't leave it sitting out on the sidewalk over nite.
a thief's generally gonna get what he wants ..... lock things away to dicsourage the basic crack head ..... then insure against the rest. Have a company am ex on hand to make for one big shopping spree if need be.
Depending where I work .... which ever's safer ... and more convient is where the tools stay. Usually they ride around in the van .... but if it's a big job and the site is secure ... from thieves and the HO's kids/pets ..... they're probably safer in those rich suburbs than sitting in my van .... in the alley ... in the city.
Jeff
Buck Construction Pittsburgh,PA
Artistry in Carpentry