Storing Guns

MoreIsLess

MoreIsLess

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Atlanta, GA
I am selling my home and will have prospective buyers trapsing thru my home when I am not there. It's just me and my wife living there, so I don't have a gun safe. I want to store them somewhere where nobody will see them or even have an inkling there are any guns in the house. I thought about storing them in the attic (in the short term) as I am pretty sure nobody will be going up there, at least in the early stages. This may change later after somebody agrees to purchase the house and inspectors start looking around, But I'll deal with that later.

So, for now, is it safe to keep them in the attic, it gets hot up there? Will it hurt the guns any? There are about 7 or 8 guns and of course they will be unloaded.
 
MoreIsLess said:
So, for now, is it safe to keep them in the attic, it gets hot up there? Will it hurt the guns any? There are about 7 or 8 guns and of course they will be unloaded.
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I'd be very cautious about that. I put a few guns in the attic once when we were in the same sort of situation (having the house recarpeted and no more room in the safe) and a couple of weeks later, when I got the guns down, they were covered with light layers of rust. And we live in Idaho where the average annual humidity is only 55%.
I see you're in Georgia though. I've never been to Georgia, but our middle grandson was recently stationed there (Army) and he told us that we Idahoans can't even imagine what real humidity is. :uhoh:
That said, it's really easy to build gun racks above the doors in closets. That way, the guns are out of sight - unless someone actually sticks their head in a closet and looks around. And to protect the guns from rust, all you have to do give them a light coat of oil (or paste wax) and put each of them in one of those silicone impregnated gun socks.
At least silicone impregnated gun socks help keep guns rust-free here in 55% annual average humidity Idaho. You might have to take further precautions in Georgia. ;)
 
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The Night Rider said:
I would rent a small unit at a storage place.
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Rent at a Climate Controlled facility, as this can add a layer of security, but also means less worry about rust.

You probably want a Stack-on or similar cabinet, as the unit door is just a sheetmetal roll-up with a padlock on it.

Some storage places are persnickety about firearms. So, in lieu of the cabinet noted above, a person might want to go find a stand up freezer for sale cheap in the paper or local CraigsList or the like. Easy enough to fit that with a hasp and a padlock, and a 15 cf freezer will fit in a 5x5 unit and not raise an eyebrow wheeling it in (or out).
 
Ohen Cepel said:
Job Site Box often draws little attention and provides a fair amount of security (for a metal box).
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yup. something ordinary. some containers can just get bolted to the floor and or wall. for a temp set up I probably woud not bother, just saying it is commonly done that way.
 
If they are not locked up they are considered to Not be in your control, and thus you are considered negligent.
 
The last time I sold my house (20 years ago) I rented a storage unit and moved a lot of our stuff in there to make the house look larger on the inside and less cluttered. This was advice I got from my realestate agent. My guns were kept at a friends house but I would have been comfortable with the storage unit.

An attic would work but probably not optimal. Like mentioned above oil the guns and use desiccant to ward off any rust. My father stored his Remington 7600 in the attic for years. There were no problems with rust but eventually the finish on the stock started bubbling and flaking off. I refinished the stock when it became my rifle.
 
Personally I would not put a firearm in a storage unit. Buy a safe, you need one anyway. Sell it with the house or take it with you. Hopefully your real estate agent will screen out the tire kickers...
 
I live very close to the beach on the West Coast and humidity fluctuates between 30-70% with 50% about average. I use a medium size Stack-On for one safe, keep my handguns in silicon rugs (Bore Store type) and a couple of bags a desiccant. A little oil or Ren Wax and I've never had issues with rust or moisture. Keep the locked safe in a locked closet that is keyed differently than any other lock in the house.
PS: never store handguns in leather holsters in a safe for any length of time- that will create moisture.
 
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I wouldn't use the attic for any gun that's valuable. I kept some old 22 rifles in the attic for a few years, wrapped in an old blanket without any issues. Didn't see any rust. But it's not a good idea. Temperatures in that attic probably ranged from 40 to 150 throughout the year.

I moved this year. I took the guns to the new house before I sold the old house.
 
An old school chum just came to me last week with a similar problem. His living situation is 'fluid' at the moment, and he asked me about temporary secure storage for his firearms (two handguns and a shotgun.)

I suggested the following, in my order of preference:

1) a trusted friend with extra space in his safe
2) paying a monthly fee to an LGS to store them for a set period
3) commercial rented storage, in moisture-proof cases or a security cabinet

I know of a couple legal situations where the LGS storage option was used for several months while issues were being resolved in court.
 
My first thought was to get a trusted friend or neighbor to store them for you. 2nd thought was to replace the door knob on one of your closets with one that can be locked and store them there. I would probably shy away from the attic!
 
Dave DeLaurant said:
An old school chum just came to me last week with a similar problem. His living situation is 'fluid' at the moment, and he asked me about temporary secure storage for his firearms (two handguns and a shotgun.)

I suggested the following, in my order of preference:

1) a trusted friend with extra space in his safe
2) paying a monthly fee to an LGS to store them for a set period
3) commercial rented storage, in moisture-proof cases or a security cabinet

I know of a couple legal situations where the LGS storage option was used for several months while issues were being resolved in court.
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Monthly fee to a gun store- I hadn't thought of that.

One of the pawn shops I used to frequent had a suit of armor displayed. There was no price and it seemed like it was always there, so I thought it was just decoration.

The owner would pawn it for a nominal loan while he was out of town- for security. Then he would pay the loan to pick it up whenever he was back in town.
 
For those recommending storing guns at a FFL/gun dealer:
-it's not a transfer of possession if the dealer has a locker/safe/cabinet that you and only you, have access to. ATF letter on providing firearm storage services .
-it's not a transfer of possession if the guns are handed to the dealer for the purpose of gunsmithing or repair. That includes cleaning and function checks.
-the dealer bears liability for loss, damage or theft of your guns. Expect to pay a fee. That fee would likely buy you a nice storage cabinet that you could lock in a closet.

It is a transfer of possession if you just walk in, hand over your guns to your dealer and ask him to "store my guns"....he is required by law to record them as acquisitions and before he hands them back you have to complete a Form 4473 and pass a NICS check to regain lawful possession. Your ownership isn't the issue, lawful possession is.

Given the number of thefts that occur at self storage places I would never recommend them. Anyone that has access through their gates needs only a $20 set of bolt cutters to make off with the contents of your storage unit. I've had three customers lose firearms stored in a "secure" self storage location. Video cameras had excellent photos of guys in hoodies and sunglasses.
All three THOUGHT they had a really good padlock on that storage unit. Spend five minutes watching Lock Picking Lawyer and you'll never trust a padlock to do anything but deter a nine year old.
 
dogtown tom said:
Given the number of thefts that occur at self storage places I would never recommend them. Anyone that has access through their gates needs only a $20 set of bolt cutters to make off with the contents of your storage unit. I've had three customers lose firearms stored in a "secure" self storage location. Video cameras had excellent photos of guys in hoodies and sunglasses.
All three THOUGHT they had a really good padlock on that storage unit. Spend five minutes watching Lock Picking Lawyer and you'll never trust a padlock to do anything but deter a nine year old.
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Insurance. The only advantage of the self storage place is they might offer insurance. But you ought to have insurance on your guns at the house anyway.

I second the opinion on the padlocks. I had a job where I had to access places through unattended gates all the time, and my most important tool was pair of boltcutters and a bucket of locks. Some storage places have the Ace locks that you can't get with boltcutters, but there's a tool even a clod like me can use to open them in 30 seconds. If not, a $50 cordless angle grinder or drill opens just about every kind of lock there is.
 
Ohen Cepel said:
Job Site Box often draws little attention
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Given that this is a temporary situation, a decent box, like a Knapp might represent a lot of dollars to invest for a one-time thing (and they are not exactly common on the resale sites for being "local only" due to bulk).

But, mostly, I'd not recommend them as a 5x5 storage unit typically only has a 3' wide door. and the 5 foot dimension is to the center of the demising walls--this does not leave a lot of room to get a Jobbox in.

That, and hoodlums "working" a storage building are likely to see a Jobbox as full of tools that cane be dropped easily on pawnshops, and roll the entire thing out the door.

Whereas a beat-up freezer is not likely to attract quiet that much attention.

Maybe.
 
If you choose to to go to a storage unit, you might want to consider one that is "climate controlled". An inside unit will be less likely to be burglarized as well.
 
Dave DeLaurant said:
2) paying a monthly fee to an LGS to store them for a set period
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Dave, that is an Idea I haven't heard before, and a good one. The LGS already has security measures in place. If you ship the guns in any way, where they leave your sight and your control... keep all the breech bolts ( or any other small but essential part ) with you . Should the unthinkable happen, be it theft or loss , the guns are useless and you incur no liability .
 
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