Keep It Dry: Five Essential Tips for Avoiding the Damaging Affects of Moisture in Your Gun Safe

Excess moisture can cause the wood of your guns to rot and the metal to rust. Because of that, you need to keep moisture out of your gun safe. Here are some tips to help:

1. Invest in a waterproof safe.

If you live in an area prone to flooding, plan to spend a bit extra when you buy your gun safe, and invest in a waterproof one. Ideally, you want it to be sealed when you close its door, and you want it to have a favourable water resistance rating. In most cases, this is measured in terms of the depth of water the safe can handle for a certain amount of time. The higher those numbers are, the more waterproof your safe is.

2. Position the safe in a safe spot.

Don't store your gun safe in the basement as that is typically the most humid area of most homes. In addition, to avoid the risk of floods, keep your gun safe out of the garage and off the ground floor. Instead, put it on the first floor.

There, bolt it to the ground against a wall that is not near pipes and in spot near the center of your home, away from windows. In that position, your guns are likely safe even in most flooding situations or in the case of burst pipes.

3. Use a humidistat.

Of course, it's not just flooding you need to think about, you also need to consider humidity. This is especially important in coastal areas. Keep a humidistat in your gun safe so that you can keep an eye on the humidity levels. If they get too high, consider turning to dehumidifying tactics.

Talk with your gun manufacturer about the optimal humidity levels for your gun.

4. Use a dehumidifier in your safe.

To absorb excess humidity in your safe, use a dehumidifier in it. There are electric humidifiers made for safes that are shaped like rods. These rods create heat, which stabilises the temperature and humidity levels in the safe.

Alternatively, you can save energy and use silica packets. You can buy these from a gun safe supplier or through a variety of online vendors. When they are saturated, you can replace them, or set them in the oven at a very low temp and let them dry out so you can use them again.

5. Keep the humidity low in the room with the gun safe.

In addition to trying to keep the humidity in the gun safe low, also pay attention to the humidity levels in the room with the gun safe. Make sure the room is well ventilated, and use a dehumidifier as needed.

Want more tips on keeping moisture out of your gun safe? Contact a gun safe company like Askwith Company.