House fire and loose ammo

[Handgunner]

Browning, Heritage, AMSEC, Liberty, Patriot. We're all familiar with the most popular names that protect our firearms, ammunition and related products. However my g/f recently brought up a question that I thought I'd pose to the forum and see what answers I received. You see, while I have a perfectly good 2 pistol safe on a shelf in my b/r closet, it is not large enough to store all the ammunition I have for my various calibers. It simply contains the firearms and loaded magazines - the boxes of ammo lie in my holster drawer.

The question was - what to do in the event of a fire. While I would dash to get my guns and the misses would attempt to retrieve her jewelry, there is still the problem of leaving a few hundred rounds in a burning building. I'm aware the most logical option would be to throw 2 grand at a Liberty and call it quits but in the meantime, how would you suggest I handle the storage of ammo. I mean even an economical Stack-On safe is hardly sufficient to withstand 2000 degree heat, though may halter the efforts of a less-than-determined thief. Suggestions appreciated.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Ram Rod]

House fire and loose ammo= run!

[retsupt99]

In the event of a fire, I'm not going back in for the guns and jewelry...life is too short to worry about that stuff...it's just stuff.

I also wouldn't worry about ammo in a fire...you could throw ammo directly into a fire without worrying about who's getting shot.IMHOYMV

http://www.defensivecarry.com/vbulle...re-hazard.html

[NC Bullseye]

Guns and jewelry are not worth your life. Running to grab possessions in a fire has been the last act of many. Fire equals get out NOW!

Loose ammo that is in a fire poses no real danger. Ammo still chambered in a firearm IS an issue. It's been proven that loose ammo when detonated by fire can be deflected by normal turn out gear.

Get the fire safe and relax.

[dnowell]

Get insurance and document those guns and jewelry. You'll get it all replaced, and won't have to risk your life doing it. For God's sake, don't go back in to a burning building. That's how people die!

[Kawboy65]

I have one of those $2,000+ Liberty safes. However, I do not keep any ammo inside of it. Even though the inside temperature is supposed to stay below 300 degrees farenheit (or whatever), I do not like the idea of having explosives inside my safe with my guns, coin collection, important documents, ect... I just leave my ammo in cans inside my closet.

[Sandbagger]

Mythbusters did a segment on ammunition stored in an oven. the had trouble getting them to fire in the heat of the oven. When they did get them to fire there was little to no damage. they could only get the oven glass to crack with a .50 cal.
they determined because the ammunition was loose and not being bound by the barrel of a weapon which focused the power out the barrel ; that the power dispersed in all directions and was not as dangerous.

All that being said I agree I wouldn't waste time with retrieving my ammunition; and I would most certainly tell the Fire Dept. of the ammunition. But I would make sure my insurance was paid.

[Superhouse 15]

$2000 would go a long way towards installing residential fire sprinklers to protect your whole house, your family, and all of your posessions. Most of the time you will also get considerable savings on your insurance.

And don't stay around grabbing stuff or pets. Trust me, I've seen that (epic) fail more than once.

I've seen commanders pull everybody out of a fire and go defensive and I've seen others not care too much when ammo or gunpowder is involved. Your local FD may have a policy about it, mine does not. Honestly there's plenty of stuff that's more dangerous in a typical residential garage than some loose ammo.

[Handgunner]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the feedback. I was under the impression ammunition would absolutely react to the heat of fire. It's nice to know that there is at least some margin of safety. I would definately discourage my g/f from collecting her jewelry - it's just not worth the risk.

[OldVet]

What to do in case of a fire? That's pretty general. Stove fire? Raging inferno in the middle of the night? My idea is let the insurance company pay for it.

A couple of things to consider:

Are there any local ordinances/codes about how much ammunition you can store in your home? These are usually established in case of fire and for responder safety.

Unless you have a safe that's fire-rated, ammo should be stored in wooden cases (think army ammo boxes). While wood will burn, it's more resistant to heat transfer than metal. Metal ammo boxes, while cheap and convenient, are not the best containers.

[J0eyg86]

Plz no matter what dont go back it get out fast and call 911 thats the best thing you can do. even if the ammo does heat up enough to discharge on its own as long as the round is not in a barrel of a gun the brass or alum of the casing is lighter then the actual lead round itself and that will move instead