What About A Safe?

[karenandcollins]

We're going full-time in a couple of months. We have a 41-foot diesel pusher with plenty of basement space. Any suggestions for a safe or whatever you're using for storing "important" stuff?

[garykd]

Hi karenandcollins,

This is a really good question. The only safes I have seen are those that come from the manufacturer. They are usually located in the rear closet and are built into the coach wall/floor. If this might work for you, consider contacting the manufacturer of your coach and see what they can offer.

[tbutler]

We have three safes on board. Two that we had before we went full time. Both are fireproof safes and are used to protect important documents in case of fire. A third safe we added a few years ago is larger and was needed to hold the large documents related to our retirement, trust and will. All three are "portable" and thus aren't really safe from robbery or thieves. We do store our cash reserve in one of these. Since we use credit cards as our primary method of payment we have relatively little cash on hand at any one time. One of the safes is in a well hidden compartment. One is under the bed and the third is in a cabinet in the bedroom. The one in the cabinet in the bedroom holds our backup computer hard drive, passports and a few other frequently used documents. Keys for the safes are in a coffee can in the pantry (not really but you get the idea).

We also have another safe that is in our daughter's basement. That safe holds an additional back-up hard drive for our computers. Being in a different location than the motor home should reduce significantly the danger of all our data being destroyed.

All our safes have been purchased at major retailers and are off the shelf versions. None is secured to the motor home in a way to prevent someone walking off with it. The safe at our daughters home can be secured to a floor and this would slow any thief but likely wouldn't really stop them if they were able to take their time working on it. Frankly, I'm more concerned with fire loss than robber or a thief. Most of what is in these safes would be worthless to someone else.

[kalynzoo]

A fire safe is a consideration if you travel with important documents, passports, insurance papers, vital records, etc. The concept of a security safe is to keep honest people out, as a determined crook will find a way of overcoming an obstacle if the payoff is great enough. I know personally of two safes that were ripped from permanent homes and stolen for the goods inside. Depending on the value of what you are protecting, you can purchase a light weight "Winchester gun locker" from Walmart or other retailers, at about $25. This steel case has a chamber lock and can be screwed or bolted to make it "difficult" to remove without tools. Most lock stores and many major big box retailers have an assortment of heaver safes to make access even more difficult. Just remember, if you are the target of a burglary, the thief may have 18V power tools. A portable sawzall will overcome anything I can image you could build in a motorhome. So camp safely, and be comfortable with your surroundings. Keep your valuables to a minimum and don't flash them to strangers. And most important, Happy Trails, and enjoy.

[ClayL]

We have a couple of Sentry fire resistant locking boxes. They cost about $25 or $30 each as I recall. We bought one at Staples and the other at Office Depot.

We have them in a place that isn't obvious (we hope).

We keep passports, social security cards, vehicle titles, birth certificates and the like in one, and insurance policies, some expensive software CDs/DVDs, and other papers we want to protect in the other.

We are more concerned about fire than theft.

[jrwitt]

A regular fire safe isn't the best for protecting CDs/DVDs/floppies. You need a data safe. They are also available in small protable sizes but more expensive than regular fire safes. Something to do with the type of insulation that each one has.

[ClayL]

I wondered how well they would work for Cds but haven't seen the data safes you mentioned. I didn't realize they existed so hadn't looked. Will have to see what I can find.

[gadget]

I wondered how well they would work for Cds but haven't seen the data safes you mentioned. I didn't realize they existed so hadn't looked. Will have to see what I can find.

Hello.

From the little iI know about safes....many of the inexpensive ones are not insulated well enough to protect what is inside from the high heat of a fire. Papers inside can turn to tinder. I think the safe will say something about fire proof. However any safe will be better than no safe. Just my uneducated bit of knowledge or lack thereof.

Take care...enjoy....and be safe.

[tbutler]

One of the factors that determines if a fire safe will protect the contents is the duration of the fire. With a motor home, the fire is usually over in short order. It isn't like the safe is going to sit in a pile of wooden embers cooking for hours after a house fire is put out. Motor homes go intensely for a short period of time. Depending on where in the motor home the safe is stored the contents may or may not exceed the temperature that would destroy them. I would avoid storing the safe in areas near tires or the fuel tank.

I believe a regular fire safe in a motor home could adequately protect data. The reason data (DVD/CD/Computer Drives and Memory Devices) require special safes is that they are destroyed at lower temperatures. Data safes are designed to keep the temperature lower during the duration of a house fire. The safe manufacturers aren't considering other types of fires and their disclaimers regarding data are based on the typical consumer using the safe in their sticks and bricks home.

It would be helpful to have several people who have had motor home fires share any experiences with fireproof safes and the contents of them.

[btparrent]

If you are concerned about keeping documents safe from fire, a good idea is to put them in a good sealable freezer bag and put them in your freezer. I am a Fire Chief and your freezer section of your fridge is very well insulated to keep cold in and it also keeps heat out. It may not be secure but most thieves are looking for valuables not documents and they seldom look for them in a freezer. If there are documents you don't often need it may be a good idea to use a home vacuum packer to seal them to protect them from moisture but a good sealable freezer bag works well. You might also keep some cold hard cash there as well! Happy traveling!

[tbutler]

That is an interesting idea that I have never heard before. It certainly makes sense. A good seal will be necessary to protect documents from the moisture that will accumulate in the freezer. Certainly gives a new meaning to cold hard cash!

[Guest Wayne77590]

Thanks for the freezer tip.

Also, for all those that are posting, be very careful what you identify that you have, had, or are gong to have, and where you are storing it. This is an open forum for the world to see. I wish it were members only, but that is just a dream I have. I'm sometimes paranoid when it comes to any type of security.

[leewhiz]

As a firefighter also remember that the lower you store your firesafe container the more likely it will survive. In a basement compartment is likely to be more fire safe, temperatures lower, than inside the coach. Fire burns up and it pulls in cool air at the bottom, also unless your in the real boonies, I would expect that the local fire company could respond in a reasonable time.

[oilmud]

Why store on a cloud, always available, etc cheap
Oil mud

[hermanmullins]

A word of caution to everyone. Safe or no safe. If you have a fire in your coach, There is nothing worth more then your life. Everything else can be replaced.

Get out, call for help, but be safe.

Herman

[manholt]

I'm not a full timer, but I spend on/off about 7 months a year in MH. Learned the freezer trick a long time ago and I have a brick of cash in there. All important papers, duplicate credit cards, testament, etc. including jewelry is in a bank box and the executor of my estate has a key also. That way if I need something, he can send it!

I fully agree with Herman....you can replace anything, but you have to be alive to do it!

Carl C.

[billbaldwin]

I have a small gun safe in my closet and a larger firesafe in my storage cubby.

I carry very little cash and only what's needed for ID.

Passport, Insurance and Titles/Registration.

Everything else stays with my daughter.