Hide Valuables in Plain Sight
You’ve got some good stuff in your house. Stuff you don’t want the washer repairman to see, stuff you don’t want the housekeeping service to take note of. It might be ammo, coins, guns, bottles of Jack Daniels. Important stuff.
You’ve considered a safe. But they’re expensive and well, they’re also a target. Any invader knows that’s where the really good stuff is.
You’ve considered a home security system. But it’s useless when the power is out.
What about a dog? We all love our dogs, but most are more of a warning system than a way to hide gold coins.
What about just finding a way to hide valuables in plain sight?
Absolutely.
Here’s 6 ideas on how to hide your valuables using ordinary items you may already have hanging around. Just remember to create a dummy safe – buy a used one and put some bricks in it. This will keep a burglar busy.
1. Install false ductwork
False ductwork can conceal a lot of things – especially long, skinny things. And they can be placed anywhere – just run them horizontally so you can reach your stuff when you need it.
2. Create a false electrical panel
Create a false electrical panel in your garage and use it for hiding valuables. Many panels are lockable and the average thief wouldn’t take the time and energy to pry a lock off an electrical panel. Add a “DANGER” sticker on it to add further dissuasion.
Remove as many of the innards as makes sense. Store it next to your daily vacuum, with a note attached that says “Donation – Thrift Store”. Easily accessible and a burglar wouldn’t think twice about a dusty old vacuum slated for the thrift store.
4. Make a false candle
Melt candle wax in a double boiler. Pour some of the wax into a heatproof glass. Embed your valuables (wrap them up in some plastic first) into the center, and pour wax around and on top of your stash. Don’t make the candle fancy or with a lovely scent – burglars come in all forms, and you don’t want to tempt a woman.
5. Hollow out a pool table
How much guns and ammo do you suppose a pool table would hold easily? It would be a ton. And commercial pool tables often have a locking door on one side, making it easy to stash small things too. This could also be done with an old video game machine that was no longer working.
6. Install a PVC drain in the floor
Special Mention Bonus
When I was doing my research, I found this cool way to hide a SD Card— this little safe looks exactly like a coin. And it comes different countries’ currencies as well. It deserves a peek if you have an extra moment – you’ll want to see it! 🙂
Diversion Safes
I also ran across a couple of diversion safes that have very high ratings. Ratings on diversion safes are important – you want something that really works! My personal favorite is a can of Ajax (you know, the stuff you clean your sink with). Sprinkle a bit of the real stuff on the top to make it look real.
My other favorite is this set of hollowed out books. The company uses all sorts of different dull titles for it’s book safes. Very smart and they have great ratings (4/5 stars from 44 people at the time of this writing).
Photo Credits: Heating duct, Electrical panel, Vaccum cleaners, Pool table, Candle, Drain in floor
More ways to hide valuables in plain sight:
If you’re concerned about reaching to the bottom of the PVC pipe, use the pipe as a sleeve for a smaller pipe with two end caps. That way you can just slip out the inner container. This also works good for underground caches.
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