JWR’s Introductory Note: This is an update to a SurvIvalBlog article that I posted in March, 2007. Many home security technologies have advanced, especially with the advent of inexpensive webcams and trail cameras. So this is a fairly important article update. I have also added mention of an alternative modular gun safe manufacturer.
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I’m often amazed to hear some of my relatively wealthy consulting clients tell me that they don’t own a home gun vault or safe room. I ask why not, and they make excuses like: “I’ve been too busy at my job to shop for one” or, “A gun vault is too heavy to move, and I seem to move every three years”, or “vaults are too expensive.” Yes, they are expensive but not nearly as expensive as having some of your key survival tools stolen. In essence, you can pay a little now, or pay much more, later.
A burglary can be psychologically devastating. I have a good friend in California who was burglarized in 2004. By God’s grace, only a couple of his guns were stolen, since most of his battery was either cached elsewhere or locked up in his gun vault. (He had a few too many guns for them all to fit in his vault.) The burglars also walked off with several thousand rounds of ammunition. Despite the fact that his loss was relatively small, my friend still talks with anger and bitterness about the event in nearly every phone conversation with me for the next four or five years.
Burglaries are especially devastating for survivalists, since most of us carefully and systematically stock up tools, communication gear, optics, guns, ammunition, and precious metals. These are all choice targets for residential burglars.
A built-in basement walk-in safe room is ideal. They can serve multiple functions: As a vault for guns and other valuables, as a storm shelter, as a fallout shelter, and even as a “panic room” for use in the event of a home invasion. In areas with high water tables where a basement is not practical, a safe room/shelter can be built on the ground floor of a newly-constructed “slab” house, or as an addition to an existing house, with a reinforced poured concrete floor, walls, and ceiling. Regardless of the design that you choose, it is important to specify a vault door that opens inward, so that it won’t be jammed shut by debris in the event of a tornado, hurricane, or bomb blast.
I realize that most SurvivalBlog readers cannot afford an elaborate walk-in safe room, but 95% of you can at least afford a heavy-duty steel gun vault with an Sargent & Greenleaf dial lock with re-locker. Be sure to bolt your vault securely to the floor. And, if possible, build it into a hidden compartment or hidden room. Burglars cannot attack a safe if they don’t know that it exists. There are a lot of vault makers in the U.S. and Canada, so it is a very competitive market. Do some Internet research and comparison shopping and you can save a lot of money on your vault purchase.
Vaults are quite heavy (typically 700+ pounds), so shipping them is expensive. So it is generally best to buy one that is made within 200 miles of where you live. One exception to that guidance is for folks who move often: The two brands of free-standing gun vault that I highly recommend (and that I own personally) are Zanotti Armor and SnapSafe. They both make vaults that can be taken apart into six to eight pieces for ease of transport. They are held together by bolts (SnapSafe) or large steel pins (Zanotti), inside the vault. They cost only about $200 more than comparable vaults that are welded together in the traditional manner. The nice thing about the Zanotti and SanpSafe vaults is that even with their largest models, no single component weighs more than about 150 pounds. That makes them much easier to install in a confined space such as a basement. Assembly is a three-man job, since extra hands are needed to get everything lined up before the pins or bolts are installed. Assembly only takes about half an hour, and disassembly only takes about ten minutes. An open SnapSafe is pictured at the top of this article.
Alarm and Camera Systems
No matter what sort of vault you choose, you should definitely supplement it with a home security system. Monitored alarm systems can be expensive–especially with monthly service contracts. But these days, web cams and trail cameras are dirt cheap. I recommend that you buy several of them, and mount them in locations where they are not likely to be spotted immediately. (Such as up amongst books on your bookshelves.)
An important note on webcams: Unless the motion-triggered images captured are immediately uploaded to a cloud server that is off-site, then it is essential that the computer that controls the cameras and the hard drive that stores the images be housed inside your gun vault or your safe room, or perhaps in an attic or a crawlspace. Otherwise, the burglars will walk off with the evidence. (They love to steal home computers, too.) Don’t forget that any disruption of phone service or grid power will nullify the protection of a monitored alarm. Anyone living off-grid or anyone who foresees a period of extended blackouts should get a battery-powered self-contained camera system or perhaps just the now ubiquitous trail cameras. They are now so inexpensive that you have no excuse for not buying 10 or 12 of them. With prices now under $22 each, you should buy plenty of them, and hide them well. Burglars might find some of them, but they are unlikely to find all of them. Remember that one key piece of evidence is the license plate numbers of the burglar’s vehicle. So have at least two cameras facing your home or retreat’s parking area.
Photographic evidence is crucial for both tracking down perpetrators and for substantiating insurance claims. Don’t skimp on this important piece of your preparedness!
Getting Insurance
Another must is having fire and theft insurance policies. Given enough time, determined burglars can penetrate even the most elaborate vault. As previously mentioned in SurvivalBlog, many homeowner’s insurance policies have specific limits on firearms, often absurdly low dollar figures unless you get a separate “rider ” to your policy, at additional cost. If you aren’t sure about your coverage, then pull out your policy and read through it in detail. Take note that adding a firearms rider to a policy may require submitting a list of gun descriptions and serial numbers.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) formerly offered a $2,500 firearms insurance policy called ArmsCare that was free with each NRA membership. Sadly, that free coverage was discontinued in 2018. But comparable insurance is available from a wide variety of reputable insurance underwriters.
Insurance Records
As previously mentioned in SurvivalBlog, I also recommend taking a list of serial numbers and detailed descriptions of each gun, camera, and electronic gadget that you own. I have found that using 3″x5″ index cards is convenient for updates, since your inventory will change over time. Also, take a few detailed photos of each item. Store the 3″x5″ index cards and hard copy pictures annotated on the back with each item’s serial number. (Option B is the electronic equivalent, on a waterproof USB stick.) Regardless, those photos should go in a vault belonging to a relative or a trusted friend and offer to do likewise for them.
In closing, I feel obliged to reiterate: You can pay a little now, or pay much more, later. Set your home security budget wisely, and do not dawdle. – JWR
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