Has Anyone installed A Small Safe?

[WhyPaulo]

Maybe it's not worth considering, but I was curious if anyone has installed a small safe that can be bolted into the frame, to keep a few things you wouldn't want to lose, should your 5th wheel get broken into while traveling. Seems like that would be a good option to have in a 5th wheel. Is that something anyone has done anything about, or do you figure if your trailer is broken into, they'll likely steal the small safe before they leave? I was thinking something like you see in many hotels. We've never traveled on long trips with a 5th wheel yet, but are about to do so and are wondering if this is a concern for anyone else. Obviously paying attention to where we are staying is important to minimize risks like this. Sorry for the rookie question, but your thoughts, experience and feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks all,

Paul and Kristy

 

[gordofuchs]

That is a good question, and one that I will be doing, along with a number of other additions and modifications. I did obtain a small safe, which I bolted down to the center console of my truck. I have been looking for the right type of safe to mount in the fifth wheel, and I will be interested in the responses that your question generates.

Gordofuchs
Cleveland, Ohio

 

[Scott and Jan]

We wanted to do the same in our old Travel trailer, but had the same concern about stealing whole safe. We took a 34 day trip out West 3 years ago, took $8,000 in cash with us. We hid cash in $1,000 increments in places we thought would not be checked by a thief. ie: in bottom of laundry soap box, in bottom of green tea box, in bottom of tampon box, in an empty frozen sausage box, and one behind back seat of truck in case trailer burned.
Hard part is remembering where they all are. Lol. We were hoping we would find hidden money after trip, didn't happen, guess we spent it all.

 

[lajones]

We have put these in our trucks for years and love them.
http://www.consolevault.com
As for the 5er, I am undecided, but this one looks interesting.
http://www.stealthsafeco.com

 

[Glazier]

The best thing we have found is the drawer type safe like you would use in an office, or the console type. The best place I have found to put it is under the bed, bolted solid to 3/4" Plywood. I use a Brinks Fire Box, it will hold all you need to hide.

 

[2hams]

Scott and Jan's response made me chuckle. I guess I come from a long line of money hiders! Of course they grew up during the depression and had businesses and couldn't get to the bank but maybe every other week. My uncle had a gas station. My aunt never lived down the saying that she had money to burn after she forgot about the money in the oven and preheated the oven.

My parents had an old fashioned market (Red & White). Meat was wrapped in white butcher paper, stuff to freeze wrapped in white freezer paper. That package in the freezer about the size of a nice slab of bacon, labeled bacon, was most likely cash.

It must be an inherited trait. Always search all the pockets in the old purse, you might find enough to buy a new one.

 

[Gsport]

I've got a safe in our solitude and have never used it..

 

[johndeerefarmer]

If I hide money I forget where I put it. My dad use to wear a money belt.

I remember when I was a kid and I read the Hardy Boy's mystery books they hid their spare cash under the horn button. Try that now and the airbag will probably blow up in your face!

 

[GenTom]

We use a Brinks fie box. In our old 5th wheel I was able to securely bolt it under the bed. Have not decided how to do that or where in our Solitude. We use it more for important papers and such to protect in case there would be a fire. In this age of credit cards we find that we don't need to carry a lot of cash.

 

[WhittleBurner]

We've been tossing around the safe install also. Under the bed would seem to be the best option for bolting down, but not the best for quick access if you need to get anything out in a hurry.
With the memory foam on the bed , lifting it isn't easy and getting something out is a 2 person job.

We tossed around the linen closet but the thin wood makes ripping it out an easy task. To easy to walk off with a whole drawer so that's no good either.
Maybe the bathroom cabinet, under the sink. But potential for leaks kind of put that idea to the back of the line.
That leaves the space under the the bedside tables in our 303.. negative to that is it's an obvious spot to look for valuables. Or under the sleeper couch.

 

[WhyPaulo]

After reading everyone's replies and thinking about this in more detail, the less inclined I am to install a safe in the "rig", as Kris prefers to call it. I had wanted a secure place to put a laptop and SLR camera, but most safes don't provide that much space. Also, if we're staying in safe RV parks and campgrounds, the risk of someone breaking into your rig is probably very low. Like Marcy said, if it's too inconvenient to get to, you may not end up using it too frequently. So making sure you're aware of your surroundings and picking out safe places to stay is probably the better answer. I think the safes designed to mount in the console of the truck look very secure and great for storing cash, check books, etc. we don't carry much cash and use cards for everything we can. Of course this is our first year to own a fifth wheel and a truck, the first year of retirement and the first month of living in a house on wheels, so we have yet to learn many of the things that most of you already know. That said, we're liking it so far and looking forward to moving the rig to warmer weather as our travels continue this winter, Fort Myers FL or bust.

Thanks all,

Paul

 

[apulido]

our 355TH came with a lock box under the master bedroom bed. Simple key lock box for securing small items. I am weapons owner, yes guns and ammo. What would you expect from a former Marine and such and retired to from the USAF reserves. Its a hobby like many others. Right now biggest issue is transporting rifles and pistol to competitive events like camp perry. Every year its something different across the US. I do not live in my RV full time, yet, but I will require a safe of some kind in the future. I thought about false bottom or back of the drawer or something like that.

 

[gws154]

I'm kind of a fan of carrying a gun when I travel with the RV. That said, I needed a gun safe as much to keep the gun from falling into the hands of a child as I did to keep it from being accessed by a criminal. Keyed boxes are useless for accessing a weapon, so I chose a safe with biometrics. I liked the Liberty Safes HDX-150. American made too. They make bigger boxes for securing other valuables.
Since everyone likes a locked box in different locations within a unit, it would be almost impossible for the factory to locate a safe that everyone liked, in a location everyone liked. The factory doesn't even install a toilet paper holder, so I'm guessing that mounting a safe is out of the question. It's just something that the owner needs to acquire and mount.