Getting Nervous... So I Bought A Safe

My girlfriend was over at Christmas and we were talking about my collection(s) and during the course of the conversation she made me aware of just how much I had accumulated in a short span of time. I knew somewhat what I had but because I added to it slowly, it grew without me realizing how much in dollar value was sitting around. I have a safety deposit box that I keep my better stuff and important papers in but because I've been buying almost weekly, I wouldn't have enough room in it for what I have at home. I'm also researching and photographing some of it, and it would be a pain to make a daily trip to the bank to retrieve something I wasn't done with.

After reading about all the break-ins recently, I got worried.

So, today I bought a 400 pound safe. It's an old office style one, kind of like the ones you see in the movies. A friend of mine has offered to wire it up to the alarm system on a different circuit, so if it gets tampered with, it'll set off the sirens.

I never dreamed I would get to this point but I feel a bit more relieved that I can lock up my stuff but still have it accessible when I need it.

 

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That's a great move. My girls have been telling me that I need to get one of those 400 pound thingy's......

 

Getting a safe is a good move. If you can, bolt it to the floor.

 

Smart move I got mine after Hurricane Ike, I thought my house was going to blow away. At least my safe will be standing bolted to my slab

 

Guns, dogs, alarms, safes, and video surveillance all help.

All pale in comparison to the security of a safety deposit box, IMO.

 

Ofcourse you realize that the theatrics of having a 400 pound safe delivered to your home and your buddy knowing about it and most likely telling all his buddies about how he is gonna wire it up is like renting a billboard in Times Sqaure that says HEY ....LOOK AT ME ! I HAVE SOOO MUCH VALUABLE STUFF THAT I NEED A BIG A$$ SAFE.

On the bright side, this thread of yours is only accessible to folks in the entire world with access to the Internet.

 

I hereby nominate this as the funniest post I've read thus far today.

(OTOH, it's only 9:30am ET!)

 

A safe is a good idea. It is amazing how quickley a person needs one.
Another benefit is, that if the safe if fire proof (or as fire proof as it can be) you can keep important papers in as well.
It's just a good piece of mind having one more obsacle between your valuables and the outside world.

 

Took the words right out of my mouth!

There are a million places in a typical house you can hide and stash valuables, places where thieves wouldn't even consider looking.

Most robberies and break-ins are quick affairs, and the thieves want to get in and out quickly. A safe just tells them where to focus their time and effort...

 

If the safe was the only thing protecting my "valuables" it would be a whole different story. I've invested in a monitered security system and none of my coin collecting activities are visible when I'm not home or when company is over.

My most valuable items are kept in a safety deposit box. The reason for the safe is to keep those items that I'm working on for a short period of time and for the convenience of having them accessible.

There was no drama involved in the delivery of the safe. No circus clowns or barkers around announcing it. The person wiring it up is in the business and has done work for my previous companies in the past. He's not just a "guy" from a coffee shop whom I've just met.

If someone does break in and bypasses the alarms and gets past my boxer and wants to work on the safe to get a few handfuls of wheats or nothing if the safe is empty, good luck to him.

 

I wired my safe so that if its tampered with it explodes, just like the lotus in for your eyes only. Now thats a theft deterrent

 

People are people and there is one really great experiment in most Psychology classes. You start with whispering a short story to one person and it is whispered around the class. At the end of about 10 individuals, the story is now told and is completely different.
This is what happens as individuals tell about a safe in a house. You start with a few thousand dollars in valuables. This grows to millions in no time. Yes a 400 pound safe bolted to the floor is wonderful. You can tell that to the guys with the guns at your family's heads saying open that safe and best not be any problems.
Sounds silly? You would have to tell just how silly this is to a neighbor of mine. He only spent a few months in a hospital.
As people see it delivered, come over for a visit, etc. the stories about that fantastic safe with all the millions will grow and grow as it is told.
Now don't forget as you close that safe you need something to absorb humidity of it stays locked in to that safe. One nice thing is in case of a fire the flames will not get to your coins. Of course the safe will get hot and melt all the plastic and anything else soft. This will run all over your coins you know.

 

I'm going to give the responses the benefit of the doubt and assume that they are being presented (albeit in sarcastic tones) for others to give some thought to the ideas.

The whole idea of getting a safe was for added peace of mind. Anybody can suffer through a break-in (I have) or home invasion regardless of whether there is a safe or not.

I do take precautions, I'm not naive. I've been around for a lot of years and know how to be aware and cautious.

 

Oh yeah?! Well you guys will have to get by not one, but two, domesticated cats if you try to enter my house!

And if those cats are not curled up somewhere comfortable, dozing off, they might consider sauntering over to any intruder . . . to rub against your leg, and maybe even ask for some food. (Well, or probably to go outside. They're just like teenagers -- they come home only to eat and sleep).

(Slow days at work this week . . . :hail

 

I think the fact of the matter is (being serious for a moment) is that any layer of protection reduces your chance of crime significantly. Most burglers and/or other criminals don't want to try to do anything complicated. They want to keep it simple. And so merely keeping your front porch light on is enough to deter many would-be burgers. A sign for an alarm system deters more. By the time you ramp up to real security systems, barking dogs, safes, etc., you've deterred a whole lot.

To state the obvious: nothing's foolproof, but in most cases, anything is better than nothing.

 

My thoughts exactly. I'd rather have them move along because of the risks of getting caught. The combination of signs, alarms, the dog etc. is enough to deter the majority of the smash and grab thieves.

On another note..... this is the cat I want protecting my place:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KFUImd6z5k&feature=player_embedded

 

My safe is only to keep the kids and wife out of stuff,otherwise I don't depend on it for true security. Some of you all are severely paranoid,or live in places that are unfit for humans!

 

I got one even better, Our whole neigherhood is Drunks & Rednecks with lots of guns.

 

You could live in the so called nicest safest place on earth and still be subjected to a robbery or break-in. Happens from time to time. As for the paranoia aspect remember one thing. Paranoid people got enemies too....

 

To me, a safe would attract a burglar, and they could just walk out with it. So I just keep my collection hidden.