Are you ready for the upcoming winter?
Wintertime in Canada shouldn’t be underestimated. Over the last few years, we’d be having an unseasonably warm fall, and then, WHAM! We’d get hit with a massive snowstorm that closed down schools, streets, and sometimes entire towns.
Given this pattern, you should think about doing your winter prep a few weeks before the snow hits. For example, you might want to change your regular car tires over to winter tires before the first major snowfall. If you’ve noticed any drafts in your home, you should get them plugged before the temperature drops. And if you have a firearm collection, it would be best to make sure they’re safely stored in an optimal environment before the winter arrives in full force.
Basics of Safe Storage
Regardless of the season, your firearms should always be stored securely in your home.
This means that putting your rifle under your bed just won’t cut it. What you need is a secure storage solution, like a gun safe. With a high-quality firearm safe, you can be sure that no one will be able to get in and access your guns.
The problem with gun safes is that they are costly. Yes, smaller, lower-quality safes might be affordable, but they aren’t a good value. If you have more than one gun, you’ll need multiple smaller safes to store them. Those cheaper safes might not offer any fire or flood damage protection, making them absolutely useless in a natural disaster.
On the other hand, excellent-quality firearm safes are incredibly heavy and take up a large amount of space. While these are useful security features (small-time crooks probably aren’t equipped to move a giant, heavy safe), it does mean that wherever you place your safe in your home, that’s where it’s going to stay forever.
Where NOT to Store Your Firearms
If you have a basement, chances are that it’s used primarily for storage. Having a basement is a wonderful luxury, but there are certain things that you shouldn’t store below ground. For example, your firearms.
There are optimal temperature and humidity levels at which your firearms should be stored. Outside of this kind of environment, you’re going to be risking damage. In warmer temperatures (generally something you don’t have to deal with during the winter in Canada), there’s mould and mildew to worry about. If there’s excess moisture in your gun safe, your guns could be slowly damaged over time. Even worse, that damage might not be visible on the outside of the firearms. Instead, rust damage could be happening from the inside out.
Why You Shouldn’t Store Your Firearms in Cold Temperatures
While cold weather is obviously much less of a moisture risk, the second you take your firearms out of the safe, you’re going to be putting them in danger.
You know the condensation that develops on a cold can of pop on a hot day? The same thing will happen with your firearm if you take it out of a freezing cold environment and put them in a warm one (like your home or car). Condensation will develop on the freezing cold metal, both inside and out. Even more so than moisture in the air, this kind of water exposure can cause significant rust issues.
The Best Solution
The best and safest storage solution for your firearms in the wintertime isn’t in your home. Instead, we recommend off-site storage in a secure facility that can offer an optimal environment for your firearms. In other words, GTA Guns Secure Firearm Storage!
Whenever you want your firearms, you simply need to call ahead to pick them up. In our facility, we offer 24/7 monitoring, protecting against any possibility of theft. Your firearms will be stored at optimal temperature and humidity levels, preventing any kind of condensation, mould, or mildew from building up and damaging them.
When you store your firearms with us, you can count on them being insured for their full value. Our entire storage facility is insured, meaning that if the unthinkable happens (for instance, a natural disaster), your firearm collection will be fully covered. Even better, we’ll take care of the paperwork for you!
One of the best things about putting your firearms in our care is that you’ll have one less thing to worry about during the wintertime. No prep needed. Once they’re in our facility, you can count on us to take care of them like they were our own firearms!
If you’d like to learn more about GTA Guns safe storage, or any of our other services, please feel free to contact us! As the GTA’s foremost firearm experts, we know exactly how to best store your firearms for the wintertime to make sure they are still in perfect working order by the spring!