Underground Storage

By: Len Cranford
Date Posted: Friday, 1 April 2005

If you store stuff "underground", my actual experience & advice is to protect stuff from moisture as much as possible. Moisture - the problem to focus on. Someday you may have to consider underground storage of guns, ammunition, and food, etc. I`m already practicing this with a cheap method that is working well. The problem is "moisture". I dug a pit appproximately 4.5 x 4.5 x 8 ft. [Not easy work!] This is braced with old pallets, boards, and plywood to support the walls of dirt. Inside this area is a plywood box 2 x 2 x 4 ft. with a hinged lid. It`s painted with latex paint on the outside and there is a 6mil. plastic lining on the inside. Also a thin foam rubber gasket around the opening. The floor of the pit is dirt to soak away moisture. The box is elevated alittle on blocks and covered with plastic then a plywood 4x8 sheet with plastic covers the pit with about 4 inches of dirt on top of the whole thing. So far after months of storage in winter and summer the box and contents are staying in great shape with no intrusion of moisture. But the pit and pallet bracing get quite moist so maybe a 10 year life is expected for the pit pallet bracing. I was concerned because I didn`t want my guns to rust, so I checked on it about every 3 months. Everything inside was just as it was when put there through both seasons.