The question above must be one of the most discussed inquiries in forums online. The truth is that everyone has their own opinion to answer the matter on hand.
The short answer is NO! We can give you many reasons as to why an unheated garage is not the place for a gun safe. However, if you have limited space, there are different things you can do when storing the gun safe in the garage.
So let us look at the negatives and positives of keeping your firearms and ammunition stored in the garage.
Climate Control and Why the Garage Might Not be the Option to Choose
You already know when placing your firearm collection in a garage you need the right gun safe. The problem is it does not end here. You need to consider other important things such as the temperature and a perfect spot to place it.
The problem is the biggest destroyer of weapons is rust. In an unheated garage, moisture can build up on the inside of the gun cabinet when standing against outside the wall.
According to gun experts, the ideal temperature you need to maintain your guns is 21° Celsius (70° Fahrenheit.) Furthermore, there needs to be 50% humidity.
The garage has a concrete floor that is ideal for bolting down a safe, but it is not temperature controlled or insulated. Another problem compared to rust is that you need to disguise the gun safe and hider it out of sight.
You do not want to open the door and everyone passing by sees that you have weapons stacked in the garage. One more problem you face is that you have tools nearby making it easier for a thief to break into the safe, which is one good reason not to keep a gun safe in a garage.
A fact is that the garage is the first place a burglar goes to steal expensive tools. The problem is that they might stumble onto your gun safe. Further, a garage door is often they place a burger will try and enter a home as they can break the emergency release to open the door.
Finally yet importantly, if you have a vehicle standing in the garage, a thief can use it to yank it out. Taking all the temperature variations and security issues into consideration, it remains a wrong place to keep a gun safe.
Nevertheless, if you have no choice but to keep it stored in the garage, there are specific steps you can take to prevent moisture built up and keep it secure.
What You Should Do If the Garage Is the Only Place for the Gun Safe
If you do need to keep, the gun safe in the garage you can take some precautions to prevent the above scenarios from taking place:
- Preferably, invest in high-quality climate controlled gun safe made with durable steel and locks that has a vault design.
- Try to build a cabinet around it or cover it with a Safe Cloak made for gun safes. The fabric will make it look like a storage cabinet. You can attach it to the safe with the magnets included and hangs down to the ground. A good location to place the gun cabinet stand is in a corner out of sight.
- Prevent delivery and service personnel from entering your home through the garage—let them use the front door.
- Another, fantastic way to keep a burglar away is by putting up signs stating cameras are monitoring the home and garage (even if it is not true.)
- Always keep the door of the garage locked and make sure you bolt it to the wall and floor.
- Lastly, never keep pry tools, torches, sledgehammers in the same area as the safe.
Now that we have covered the security measures, you may be wondering about what you can do about the temperature in a garage gun safe.
Check out my other post on foam cases for rifles.
How to Avoid Fluctuating Temperatures in the Gun Safe
Installing the gun safe in the garage with excessive humidity is not the only thing you will face. A garage can be dark, and so it is better is to place it close to an electrical connection. The majority of gun safes do provide you with an electrical point for positioning a light inside or a dehumidifier.
Not only will the dehumidifier prevent the guns and ammunition from rust damage it helps keep valuables such as jewellery and cash safe. Another essential thing to consider is convenience and ease of access. You need to have it within reach and in your sight to use it every day. You may also wish to consider a temperature controlled gun safe,although a bit more expensive. You might also be interested in reading my post, do gun safes need dehumidifiers?
Furthermore, as the first warm days of spring moves in the ground remains cold. What happens is that the cold floor keeps pulling warmth from the safe. The safe begins to sweat and encourages rust. We are sure you have seen many old antique safes with rust marks on them.
You need to provide as little contact with the floor for goof gun safe climate control. You can use thin plastic or wood squares at the corners to minimize the problem. Prevent raising the gun safe too far above the ground. With more significant gaps between the safe and floor, it is easier to remove.
Another thing you need to consider is batteries on electronic locks has a shorter lifespan when cold.
Other Important Products You Can Use for Storing Guns
While a dehumidifier placed inside the gun safe is one way of controlling moisture there are other ways as well:
Oil – An effective method of protection is to use a light coat of oil over your guns. The lubrication will prevent moisture build-up from getting in contact with the metal. Not only will it prevent rusting but keeps it lubricated. However, do not use too much as it causes dust build up and remains an essential requirement.
Cosmoline – For placing firearms in storage, you can dip it in a vat of the substance. The matter is similar to Vaseline and is thick but once heated it becomes runny. Cosmoline is a great rust preventer, but it is not an oil or lubricant. The main problem is that you will have to clean your gun when you want to use it, so use it as a long-term storage solution.
Silica Gel – Every time you want to throw away, the annoying small packets when buying shoes make sure to keep them. The packs filled with silica gel that works as a dehumidifier. The gel absorbs water out of the air inside the safe. For small spaces inside the gun safe, it is perfect. You need no electricity, and you can even buy them as rechargeable products. Once it has absorbed the water, you pop them in the microwave to dry out and pop them back in the safe. You can place them into the gun case and ammunition boxes. Another fantastic thing is that some packets have colour indicators showing you when it needs a recharge.
Of course, the most effective way remains the dehumidifier and is perfect for large spaces. Whether you want to dry the air inside the safe or surrounding area, the device is perfect. You can find different models on the market ranging from small to huge ones. If you do not have, the funds to dish out for a large one, you can look at the Goldenrod gun safe dehumidifier.
The products popular and works wonders. It will help decrease the humidity inside the safe and keep it warmer than the outside.
Final Thoughts
As you can see placing the gun safe in an unheated garage is never a great place to keep it. However, there are products available on the market to help control the humidity and temperature if you do not have any other place. Having a safe place to keep your firearms is more important to prevent children from getting their hands on it and theft. Pick a reliable gun safe that is fireproof and waterproof and add the precautions mentioned above to keep your collection safe.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/07/opinion/sunday/the-deadly-combination-of-heat-and-humidity.html
https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/how-weather-works/humidity