Hiding valuables, including weapons, is an age-old pursuit. Still to this day, treasure hoards from thousands of years ago are found every few months. Most of these are buried underground and have been long since forgotten.
Weapons have an immediate usefulness for defense and are less suitable than treasure for burying on a hillside somewhere in the woods – at least not your primary defense weapons.
Hiding weapons in your home requires a balance of camouflage, security, and accessibility, especially when you have curious children constantly rummaging through everything.
A compact pistol is clearly much easier to hide than a Barret .50cal, but all the same principles still apply. Here are some of the best places to hide your weapons in your home.
Negative Spaces
These are areas within objects around your house with “wasted” space. Inside of walls, furniture, and appliances, there is often enough space to conceal a weapon. Avoid obvious places that are common tropes in popular movies, such as hollowed out books, inside the mattress, and behind paintings on the wall.
To get the most out of these negative spaces, you will need to do some modification to create a compartment that you can easily access but is otherwise unnoticeable.
Coffee tables, desks, and walls can all be outfitted with compartments that blend in and are easily opened if the appropriate steps are taken. If all you have to do is push on a panel to open it, it is probably not secure enough. A hidden slider or release mechanism would be better.
Underneath a false tile, a liftable section of carpet, and inside of doors are more options. Wherever you choose, ensure it blends in with the surroundings and is not easily stumbled upon. For example, if you are hiding a weapon under the carpet, a panel and compartment should be installed to avoid any obvious lumps or soft spots.
Modified Containers
Plenty of containers around the house can be modified to hide weapons. Create hidden spaces in older, less valuable electronics, like a VCR. No one will steal a VCR, so you can remove the innards and create a compartment to store a weapon.
The same could be done with an old water heater that you install next to the one you use daily. Hollow out the water heater and convert the siding so that it swings open, inside you can hide long guns, ammo boxes, and even yourself if things get a little too out of hand.
A water heater is too big to easily steal and anyone searching your home will probably not even think twice about the presence of a second water heater, except maybe that you must really like long showers.
Between the drawers and the outer paneling of a typical nightstand or dresser, inside fake pipes, and inside the foam “root bulb” of a fake plant are more options.
Low Traffic Areas
The less someone travels through an area, the better. This is true for visual traffic as well.
If you have a shallow closet, it will undoubtedly be searched, but will not be searched again and again. Searchers will check the contents and look behind them, but how often do you look at the wall inside the closet above the door? There is enough space to hang up a rifle or two with easy access for you and well outside of visual traffic areas, almost hiding in plain sight.
Related: How to Grow a Food Garden Completely Hidden in Plain Sight
Between the window curtains and the wall above the windows, a holster fastened to the top rear of the headboard, and behind HVAC vents are more options.
Around Decoys
Decoys can be extremely effective for hiding your weapons. If you do have a hidden panel at the back of your closet with a weapons stash inside, get a cheap safe and equally cheap thrift store jewelry to fill it with. Put the cheap safe in front of the weapons panel. Anyone searching the closet will find the safe and think they found what you have of value. It will satisfy them and make them more likely to move on to another area or leave.
You can even use realistic airsoft or replica firearms that will not be missed much if they are stolen but can distract intruders from searching for your real weapons. A gun rack full of real weapons can be hidden behind a gun rack full of replicas.
⇒ You Will Not Survive a Looter Attack Without This on Your Property
A false utility panel and mislabeled containers in the garage are more options. A movable bookshelf with an obviously fake section of books filled with mundane items could also work, because the searchers would see the fake section of books and look there, distracting them from thinking anything is behind the entire bookshelf.
Areas with Psychological Deterrence
Anywhere that discourages searchers can be extremely useful for hiding your weapons. Behind heavy furniture, somewhere that requires climbing or crawling, or areas prone to “nastiness” like behind the toilet or under dirty clothes can all be effective. Inside the toilet reservoir is too obvious, but behind one is much better.
Inside an old boot with a bunch of other shoes on the floor, under the bottom step of the basement stairs, underneath insulation in the attic, and inside a sealed bag at the bottom of the freezer drawer or an oil drum are some more options for hiding in areas with psychological deterrence.
There are so many places to hide weapons within your home. Whether you are hiding them there, in your vehicle, or somewhere else, all these principles can prove effective, especially when combined. Misdirect searchers with decoys. Integrate hiding places with the surrounding environment by using common objects to conceal them. Employ psychological tactics to prevent searchers from even wanting to look somewhere. Reduce the chances of searchers accidentally stumbling upon your weapons by hiding them in low traffic areas and be sure to take advantage of negative spaces.
When it comes to protecting your firearms and valuables, hiding them in obvious places won’t cut it. Criminals are getting smarter, and you need to be one step ahead.
But security goes beyond just safeguarding your home—it’s about being ready for the bigger emergencies. This guide covers everything, from home security to stockpiling food and supplies, to making sure you’re ready when things go south.
Learn here how to keep your home from becoming a target during a crisis, whether from looters or government officials.
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