I just moved into a new house. The closet where I put my safe has 2 of 3 walls made of rock and is under the stair-well in the center of the house (no exterior walls). The closet is on the first floor and the first floor is on a slab foundation. There is no A/C vent in the closet. When I walk into the closet I notice a cave-like smell and can tell the humidity is higher than the rest of the house. So I put a humidity gauge in the closet. Today, the main house was 41% humidity and the safe closet was 10% higher at 51%.


First of all, should I be concerned that my guns will quickly rust? Secondly, I wonder why the closet has 10% higher humidity than the rest of the house? The house is new and was completed just 2 months ago. Could the rocks and mortar in the closet be giving off moister, and possibly they will dry over time???

Note: I have used this safe for 5 years in my previous house and have never had any rust issues. I did not use decandesent bags or a heating rod. However, the safe was always in a room that had heating and A/C vents.

It takes MONTHS for a new house to dry out. Rust is temp and humidity related. 50% humidity and 50F rust is slow, 90F and 90% humidity rust is fast. In a new house you need air circulation to dry out everything. Putting guns in a stale air area [musty] is a quick way to rust up a gun.

I'd say yes, worry about rust.

I say this, because I was raised in AriDzona, and never had to firking worry about moisture or rust.  Then I moved to Seattle, didn't really notice that my apartment was humid or anything.  I kept a few guns in the same condition I had always stored them in in Arizona and after a couple months checked on them.  There was rust developing over much of their areas.  I was floored (mostly at myself, but also at this ridiculous wet city in which everything decomposes before your eyes).

Who makes the best electric heater rod to put in a gun safe?

Quoted: Who makes the best electric heater rod to put in a gun safe?

Being on the coast of Florida I know a wee bit about humidity, and I swear by GoldenRod®

My safe is in the basement with a dryrod, and a large can of dessicant inside. Humidity is a constant 40% with the temp about 63 in the winter and 68 in the summer. Storing the guns in a basement safe is new to me, so I'm curious too.  I run my de humidifier, but the overall humidity stays at 40%. Humidty on main floors is usually 15-25% depending on the weather and how often the doors are open and closed.

I had kept them in a locked cabinet in my master closet off of the master bath....all that shower steam and no rust issues.


roy d...Time will tell.

A few cans of dessicant in the safe and spraying the down with Boesheild and you should be fine.