New Safe - Question

[etrain16]

Hey folks. I just ordered my first official gun safe - a Cannon CA33. I'm pretty stoked to finally have a proper place to store my guns and ammo. They've all been locked up until this point, but not as secure as they could be. My daughter is getting older and I want to keep as much distance between her and these as possible when I'm not right there with her.

Since this is my first safe, I wanted to ask some opinions on the humidity issue. I know a lot of folks use a variety of different dehumidifiers to help keep the safe environment less conducive to rust, etc. I've seen the rod type, the gel type, some rechargeable ones. I've been reading reviews but none of them seem to be 'the one'. Since I've managed to keep my guns from developing any kind of rust or corrosion over the years, I'd like to keep that record intact. The safe will be going into the garage (against a back wall and anchored to the floor) so the temperature extremes will be more substantial than having them stored in the house all these years.

Any thoughts? Do I need just one type of dehumidifier? Do I need to combine electric and gel? Should I bother putting in a hygrometer to monitor the humidity level? Just FYI, the safe comes with a built-in AC receptacle, so powered devices are no problem.

Thanks for your input.

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[ZA_Survivalist]

I use a few rechargeable dehumidifiers one on each "level" of the safe seems to help.

 

[techiej]

I use the rod type without any problems...the safe is in an unheated, detached garage.

 

[Joe13]

I use a few rechargeable dehumidifiers one on each "level" of the safe seems to help.

+1^^^. I use the rechargable ones in my safe on the various levels and inside anmo cans.

Takes 2 hours in a 280 degree Ovan and they are recharged. The pellets are bright pink when charged and dark blue green when they are saturated with moisture.

 

[jbett98]

I use a Golden Rod and a rechargeable desiccant for my big safe.
eBay sells small battery powered electronic humidity/temp monitors for around $5.00.
The Golden Rod keeps the interior a couple of degrees warmer then the outside, so when the temp/humidity rises, it keeps the dew point stable inside, so there's less chance of any metal sweating.

My cheap neighbor was using a light bulb in a large safe stored in his unheated garage, and last winter the bulb burned out.
Every gun was covered with a fine layer of rust. What a mess.

 

[BAMCIS]

Congrats on your new safe. You won't be disappointed.

Your question is a common one. Near the top of every page on NWFA is button called "SEARCH FORUMS". I typed in simply "humidity inside safe". After about 3 minutes of weeding through the non-relevant postings I came up with these:

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/threads/gun-safe-humidity.163085/#post-1062202

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/th...afe-what-do-you-guys-use.158307/#post-1026844

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/threads/safe-storage-rust.128098/#post-856066

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/threads/best-dehumidifier-for-gun-safe.124445/#post-812387

There's lots more out there. Not only on this forum but other gun forums as well.

 

[JustShoot]

Fire Rating doubles on exterior wall, over an interior wall for your placement choice .

a small 10 or 20 watt bulb works great for dehumidifier . it takes ' Very Very little small ' bit of radiant heat for complete De-humidification of a closed safe . made by a very tiny low-watt bulb .

But if you never shoot & never open your safe but twice or once a year like average firearms owner, You will never notice if it burned-out bulb . , .. but nowadays, these new low-watt energy efficient bulbs seem to burn forever also .
.

 

[Joe13]

I open my safe daily to remind me I need more guns to fill it.

 

[etrain16]

Congrats on your new safe. You won't be disappointed.

Your question is a common one. Near the top of every page on NWFA is button called "SEARCH FORUMS". I typed in simply "humidity inside safe". After about 3 minutes of weeding through the non-relevant postings I came up with these:

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/threads/gun-safe-humidity.163085/#post-1062202

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/th...afe-what-do-you-guys-use.158307/#post-1026844

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/threads/safe-storage-rust.128098/#post-856066

http://www.northwestfirearms.com/threads/best-dehumidifier-for-gun-safe.124445/#post-812387

There's lots more out there. Not only on this forum but other gun forums as well.

I've read some of those already. I do try to do my due diligence when researching a topic, so I'm familiar with the search window. On a topic like this, I find two things - one, that there are a lot of different opinions, and two, since this is a more common question, I find it can be helpful to bring it up again from time to time to allow newbies to see the discussion and to allow others to weigh in that may have missed the previous threads.

Thanks for posting those though.

Fire Rating doubles on exterior wall, over an interior wall for your placement choice .

a small 10 or 20 watt bulb works great for dehumidifier . it takes ' Very Very little small ' bit of radiant heat for complete De-humidification of a closed safe . made by a very tiny low-watt bulb .

But if you never shoot & never open your safe but twice or once a year like average firearms owner, You will never notice if it burned-out bulb . , .. but nowadays, these new low-watt energy efficient bulbs seem to burn forever also .
.

I've got 2 potential locations for the safe, one on interior wall, one on an exterior wall. I'll keep that in mind when I select the final location.

As for the light bulb, that's an interesting thought, though I wonder with the gradual replacement of all incandescent bulbs with fluorescent and LED, how much longer that would be an option.

And as for opening the safe, mine will definitely be opened on a regular basis - I like to actually shoot my guns

 

[jbett98]

You can't beat a real GoldenRod for safe dependable humidity protection.
The two arguments against using a light bulb is, will the light bulb always keep burning, and where was the lamp socket made. (In China?)
I see a lot of lamps thrown out because of Chinese made socket/switch failures.

• The Original GoldenRod Dehumidifier delivers hands down, the most power of any dehumidifier on the market
• Providing permanent, maintenance free solutions to humidity problems, primarily found in smaller enclosures such as gun safes and boats
• Coverage for up to 100 cu. ft
• Made in the USA

 

[etrain16]

You can't beat a real GoldenRod for safe dependable humidity protection.
The two arguments against using a light bulb is, will the light bulb always keep burning, and where was the lamp socket made. (In China?)
I see a lot of lamps thrown out because of Chinese made socket/switch failures.

• The Original GoldenRod Dehumidifier delivers hands down, the most power of any dehumidifier on the market
• Providing permanent, maintenance free solutions to humidity problems, primarily found in smaller enclosures such as gun safes and boats
• Coverage for up to 100 cu. ft
• Made in the USA

I've heard some good reviews of the Golden Rod, but a few folks really disliked it. Hard to say why. As for the lightbulb option, yes, you want to be sure you have quality components and wiring if you did that. As an electrician, I'm pretty comfortable I could make it work safely, but I am looking at all options before I make a final decision. Thanks for the input.

 

[misplacedtexan]

The Golden Rod isn't actually a 'dehumidifier' as someone else mentioned. It just warms things up to keep the dew point spread wide enough that the metal won't sweat.

I have 2 remington rechargables that I use. Have to plug them in every....3 months to dry them out, but they've been doing the trick for 4 years running. Safe stays a nice 65%.

 

[Tony617]

The Golden Rod isn't actually a 'dehumidifier' as someone else mentioned. It just warms things up to keep the dew point spread wide enough that the metal won't sweat.

I have 2 remington rechargables that I use. Have to plug them in every....3 months to dry them out, but they've been doing the trick for 4 years running. Safe stays a nice 65%.

I have two Remington rechargeables as well and check them weekly to see if I need to plug them in to an outlet or not.

 

[Hrethgir]

I have a rod on the wall and a humidity gauge on the door. So far, even on the really humid days, it's stayed in the Dry/Safe range, no rust in there. My safe is indoors in my bedroom though, so won't get the same swings as one in the garage. But I still gotta think the rod-style dehumidifier is probably the best way to go. Heck, I tossed some partly used rechargeable desiccant gel packs in there too (they were about halfway to needing to be recharged), but I don't really need them at all. I can tell because they have gotten DRIER sitting in the safe with the rod, lol!

 

[rocky3]

Hi, I live in an area that goes without electricity for up to a week at a time. So this is my answer I wrap each gun in a terry towel with a good spray of WD 40 all over the inside of towel. This will work for a long time 1-2 years, than Once a year I clean and oil my guns.
I also lag bolted my safe to the floor and sub floors, another senior moment I can't think of the 2X10 's under the sub floor. Be sure to remove the wheels if it came with such.
Good question.

 

[ZigZagZeke]

I recently acquired an American Security 6526. It's a 24 gun safe and 400#. I bolted it to the floor in my office. It's backed up to an interior masonry wall. I don't expect to have a humidity problem. Am I wrong?

 

[jbett98]

Go on eBay and buy one of these, then you will know without a doubt, what is really going on in there.
Only $1.77 free shipping.

Large Dial Wet Hygrometer Humidity Thermometer Temp Temperature Meter TH108

 

[Kruel J]

Hmmm, I must be in the minority as I don't use anything. I open my safe regularly and I keep my firearms clean and oiled. Never have had any rust in 20+ years.

 

[nwo]

........................................
I have 2 remington rechargables that I use. Have to plug them in every....3 months to dry them out, but they've been doing the trick for 4 years running. Safe stays a nice 65%.

Every 3 months?! I have two of them as well, and mine go from Blue to Pink in about 3 days.

 

[etrain16]

Hmmm, I must be in the minority as I don't use anything. I open my safe regularly and I keep my firearms clean and oiled. Never have had any rust in 20+ years.

Do you keep your safe in the house or the garage? I would think that a safe stored indoors would be less likely to have high humidity. I've never had a problem with the guns I store in the house. But I'm more concerned about it when I move them into the garage due to the more extreme temperature swings.