Although many people keep all their guns, ammunition, and valuables together in one safe, there is a school of thought that advocates separate ammo storage. Why?

Let’s take a look at some of the reasons you might want a strong box, or even a second safe, to keep your ammunition in.

Kids
Having a second safe keeps your kids and grandkids safer. If you keep your guns locked in a safe and unloaded, and keep your ammo in a separate safe, it’s just one more step to keep kids from accidents. It’s also a good idea to have a pistol safe near the bed if you keep a handgun nearby for home protection. I know that’s a lot of safes, but they’re called “safes” for a reason!

Guns and Valuables
A second safe keeps your guns and valuables protected. If you should have a fire, the heat may be enough to discharge your ammunition. The flying bullets will stay inside the safe, but may cause some serious damage to your firearms, and will most likely destroy any valuables. If you have important papers or fine jewelry, you will want to keep them away from volatile gunpowder.

Outgrowing
In some cases people simply split their gun and ammo supplies because they have outgrown a single safe and need to acquire another. In this case it is simply a matter of convenience—one safe for arms and valuables, another for ammo.

Long-term Storage
If you want to store large amounts of ammunition for a long time, a safe with a dehumidifier is your best option. Though most rounds will still work even after years of exposure to elements and moisture, if you want to fully protect your investment, you should think about a secondary safe.