A hygrometer is a type of device being installed in firearm storage safe to report and measure internal humidity levels at a specific point in time.
It is not a secret that excessive humidity is among the biggest and most serious threats to safe storage not only of weapons but also other personal effects.
This is why you can never afford to neglect to monitor your safe’s atmospheric vapor levels.
Quick Comparison Chart
*(Click on the images to see more high-quality pictures and details)
| Name | TemperatureReading | Price |
La Crosse Digital |
YES | CHECK PRICE |
AcuRite 01080M Pro Accuracy |
YES | TOP PICK |
AcuRite 01083 |
YES | CHECK PRICE |
SnapSafe 75909 |
YES | CHECK PRICE |
Habor Digital – Budget Pick  |
YES | CHECK PRICE |
Contents
Top 5 Gun Safe Hygrometers Reviews
La Crosse Digital
La Crosse Digital can be one of the best tools you can use for monitoring the levels of humidity and temperature inside your rifle safe. This is suitably manufactured with the appropriate features and has gone through vigorous testing to guarantee accurate readings.
The specialized model can measure Relative Humidity in terms of percentage points. This can also read room temperature in degrees Fahrenheit and Celsius alike.
Aside from this, the stylish finish of La Crosse can add a touch of flair to the feel and look of your rifle safe.
The current humidity and temperature recordings are also easy to understand and read. The figures are being displayed on the LCD screen of 2 inches that is difficult to miss.
If you are worried as to how you can mount it, there is no need because you can easily hang this on any wall inside the safe.
This tool can also record the minimum and maximum values of relative humidity and room temperature within a period of 24 hours.
You can set up and use La Crosse Digital Humidity Monitor right away as it comes with CR2032 batteries for free.
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AcuRite 01080M Pro Accuracy – Top Pick
AcuRite 01080M Pro Accuracy is among the most in-demand hygrometer models that you can find in the market right now. A mere look at all the positive customer reviews that continue to grow by the day, you can be sure that your purchase of this model won’t go to waste.
This moisture sensor device from AcuRite can measure relative humidity that ranges from +/- 2°F, +/- 2% RH with topnotch accuracy. It can read indoor humidity in the range of 1-99% RH and temperature from -4 to 158°F ( -20 to 70°C). It helps keep you updated about the current state of your weapon storage when it comes to temperature and humidity.
If you wish to get alerted every time the level of humidity reaches a specific threshold, you can always buy AcuRite 01080M Pro as it can do exactly just that.
You can also get to program the custom low and high humidity levels. Once the internal conditions of your safe reach these points, it’s loud built-in alarm will start to beep automatically.
The hygrometer also works hard behind the scenes. It measures the atmospheric conditions for every ten minutes.
Moreover, they indicate and stores different low and high figures for the past twenty-four hours.
- Manual calibration option.
- Sound alarm for low and high values (for humidity only).
- Magnetic back.
- No backlight
- Is not waterproof if you want to use it outside
- No sound alarm for temperature.
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AcuRite 01083
Indoor humidity and room temperature may have a particular impact on one’s comfort, safety, health, and condition of the valuables in your house. The levels of humidity are very high, which may result in an increase in pollutants including dust mites, fungi, viruses, bacteria, and mold. The levels of humidity that are very low in your house may cause skin irritation, nosebleeds, static electricity, and difficulty breathing.
Through using AcuRite 01083 Pro, monitoring humidity and temperature can be done easily with professional accuracy, so you will be aware of whether the environmental adjustments are necessary for protecting your possessions and family. The monitor also features professional temperature and humidity sensors to provide precise measurements as well as fast data reporting.
The thermometer and humidity sensors of this monitor provide professional-level accuracy. The data measurements are always updated for every ten seconds and shown on its digital display.
It may be calibrated manually to improve the data readings. The instruction manual of the product guides you through the process of calibration so you can boost the data accuracy of humidity and temperature sensors.
Its humidity sensor measures indoor levels of humidity from 1 percent to 99 percent RH using bold and large numbers so you can monitor the room conditions easily. Its colorful display bar shows whether the humidity levels are very high, very low or enough.
Humidity monitor also stands upright once used on a tabletop. It comes with a magnetic backing and wall-mountable design, enabling the monitor to be mounted conveniently and quickly in any room.
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SnapSafe 75909
SnapSafe 75909 can help you provide the best possible environment for accessories, firearms, and some valuables in your vault room or safe. It comes with various features. One of these is its big LCD display that will let you read the information clearly.
Depending on your preferences, it displays the current humidity and temperature as well as recent extremes in Celsius or Fahrenheit.
Its fold-out stand is beneficial, especially if you don’t have much storage space.
However, compared to other devices, it is powered by 2 AAA batteries. You have to buy the batteries separately.
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Habor Digital – Budget Pick
The Habor Digital, for some users, is a budget hygrometer for a firearm locker that you can try to use.
With its comfort level indicator and high accuracy and reliability, you can be sure that the weaponry will never get exposed to excessive moisture.
High Accuracy and Reliability
This digital hygrometer has a fast response with its ability to measure every 10 seconds.
This comes with 24 sensitive VENTS to offer accurate and updated readings.
It also has a wide measuring range that can measure temperature ranging from 32 degrees Fahrenheit up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
Meanwhile, its temperature accuracy range about more or less 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit.
Its humidity sensor can measure humidity ranging from 20 to 95 percent, with a humidity accuracy of around 5 percent more or less.
Its high accuracy and reliability are what makes it an ideal tool to use for monitoring humidity levels.
Comfort Level Indicator
It features level icons that indicate normal, comfortable, and uncomfortable conditions.
The Habor Digital can also measure indoor temperature and indoor humidity in a specific given of time to help in adjusting the humidifier, the humidistat, and dehumidifier settings.
These features make it perfect for monitoring the humidity level inside the weapon locker.
Also, if installed in other places, this is also ideal for monitoring the health and living conditions of your whole family through preventing dry skin, allergy, asthma, colds, and mold.
When you know the comfort level, you can adjust and change the settings accordingly to suit your needs.
It has a height of 2.3 inches with a width of 1.8 inches. Here are some other features:
Accurate Humidity and Temperature Measurement
Sensitive humidity and temperature sensor with its high accuracy are what makes this small digital hygrometer-thermometer the perfect option not only for your gun safe but also for your work and life as a whole.
Its measurement every 10 seconds offers updated readings and fast response for you.
User-Friendly
It can also be used to monitor both outdoor and indoor temperature and humidity.
The humidity gauge is also compact, which means that you can carry this with you outdoor to let you adjust the arrangement in time.
It has three mounting choices that let you display this on the wall with a hanging hole, place it on top a flat surface with a support bracket, or put this on the fridge or other places with its magnetic backing.
This convenient mounting feature makes it ideal also for other rooms in your house, such as the kitchen, garden, basement, guitar room, office, baby room, and greenhouse.
Easy to Read Display
Its large LCD screen displays large digits of humidity and temperature at the same time that makes it clear and easy for you to check the readouts even in a far distance.
Aside from that, its fashionable back appearance also lets it match with ease to any place where you choose to install it.
The Habor humidity gauge indoor thermometer doesn’t have any complicated function button.
The indoor thermometer can also display temperature either in Celsius or Fahrenheit.
In addition to the black and bright front panel with clear LCD display, this also comes with 6 months working time and CR2 batteries.
Make sure that you remove first the protective film prior to using it.
Also, don’t forget to replace its battery once the battery had already run down after several months.
You also need to clean the device on a regular basis and never use this near water.
Lifetime Warranty
The Habor mini humidity and temperature monitor that is light and small enough to save space and carry around also comes with a Lifetime Warranty.
Specifications
| Temperature Display Range | 32℉~122℉（0℃~50℃ |
| Humidity Display Range | 20%-95%RH |
Habor Digital User Manual
You can always take a look at the Habor User Manual(pdf format) if you want to learn more about this device or if you are looking for more in-depth technical information.
Customer/User Impression
Users you have bought this device claimed that despite its small size, it still does what it needs to do.
Some of them didn’t realize that this was actually tiny but they loved the fact that it can do its job as expected.
It is obvious that what they really like is its small and compact size and the fact that this works similar to a professional weatherman’s meter.
It can check, update itself every 10 seconds, read in either Fahrenheit or Celsius which depends on the chosen setting.
This also comes with a magnetic pickup point on its back part similar to a refrigerator magnet. This means you can stick this on a metal sign or other similar materials.
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What Humidity Level Should My Gun Safe Be?
Having moisture inside your weapons storage it is a bad idea. They will rust.
In order to have your weapon vault at an ideal humidity level, you should use a good hygrometer and keep those levels at 50%.
At What Humidity Do Guns Rust?
Rust has long been around as firearms were made of metal. This means that gun corrosion happens almost always all the time.
Steel and iron will rust if the relative humidity (RH) will be over 50%.
Hunters, sports enthusiasts, law enforcement officers, and the ones with concealed carry licenses may all take extra care in making sure that their weapons are properly oiled, cleaned, and kept in a dry and cool place.
A storage plan which involves anything less than vapor corrosion inhibitors will not ensure that your weapon will stay free from decay, particularly during summer.
Summer Increases Risks of Gun Rust
Technically, your firearm and/or its parts can always be at risk of rust whatever time of the year it might be. Remember that these items are made from metal and any type of metal which comes into contact with moisture and oxygen can get exposed to possible corrosion.
The carry guns, in particular, have high rates of corrosion considering that they often get into frequent contact with oils from human skin.
Sweat may cause more corrosion aside from the moisture since sweat is high in terms of salinity. You have to take note that salt is corrosive. If the environment is hot, you’ll sweat more. With this, there’s a greater chance that your firearm will be exposed to damaging salt and wetness.
Moreover, more people handle and use their weaponry at outdoor ranges when the weather condition is nice.
There is another reason why summer can be risky. It is the fact that the levels of humidity in the air are higher compared to usual. Warmer air basically holds more wetness compared to cooler air.
Even though cold winter air is saturated, it tends to contain less dampness compared to warm summer air. That is the reason why relative humidity is dependent on the temperature and one of the reasons why more rusting in a saltwater coastal region.
If you have problems with rust on your guns then check the video below that will teach you a simple way to clean the rust off.
Can a Gun Safe Be Too Dry?
You should take care of your safe if you want it to last. If it is too dry, it doesn’t really pose as many problems as dampness.
A hydrometer is a tool you must be using to keep an accurate watch of the level of dampness in your vault. The goal should be 50 percent relative humidity.
Humidity below 40 percent can cause steel and wood damage. If you are living in a humid area or particularly near rivers, lakes or sea, you’ll absolutely have to keep the moistness level low. The temperature must be around 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit.
It is also important to note that metal and wood have different requirements.
When it comes to metal parts, low humidity is required to avoid corrosion.
For wood, the humidity should be around 45%-50%. Some steel safes may be around 35%-40% relative humidity and 60-70 degrees, particularly during winter. Wood sages would take moisture during the summer season and heat up.
Therefore, you will need something to avoid moisture and must dry it easily once it is wet. The relative humidity for wood gun safes must be around 50 percent while the degrees may remain to about the same level as steel ones.
Temperature rises would affect the levels of relative humidity. Once the temperature rises, air would hold a greater amount of water. That is why temperature must be constant as well as not higher than seventy degrees. If the air is very dry inside the wood safe, it may crack and expand.
Avoiding the risks of moistness, dryness, theft, and fire basically starts with the right placement of your storage. If you don’t have a garage or basement, you may store it in your bedroom closet where risks of moistness and dryness are low. Coat closets are also a good option to place them.
Basements are not a good idea for vaults storage. It brings the most temperature and humidity problems. But, such issues may be resolved by placing the storage safe in the right place.
How Do You Keep Moisture Out of a Safe?
The fact that you purchased a weapon locker shows that you absolutely consider security your main priority. You have to know the ways to keep weaponry inside of this well-preserved. Knowing the ways to keep the locker free from damp and dry would do that.
A lot of people think that if you lock your firearms in the safe, you do not have to worry about anything. Well, this is the sad truth because it might lead to damaged firearms. Imagine getting a damaged weapon because of moisture in case of a home invasion. The risk is not worth it.
Below are some of the ways on how you can keep your gun locker free from dampness:
Silica Desiccant Packets
The first method you may consider to keep your vault dry is placing a silica desiccant inside. Click here if you want to buy these things from Amazon.
Silica desiccant packet is used to keep a lot of stored items dry. You might have seen some of these packets in the box of some products or when you buy shoes. These packets hold porous and dry silica beads, which absorb lots of moisture.
The only disadvantage of using such packets is that they’ll have to be regenerated for every few weeks. Since they absorb lots of moisture, you can be assured that they’ll reach their limits in the long run.
The process of regeneration is simple. The only thing that you should is to heat the packets for 90 minutes in your oven with a temperature of 250 degrees Fahrenheit. This would dry the packets and you can use them again. You may think of such packets as a reusable sponge.
Personally, I don’t like the hustle and I prefer the next method.
Small Dehumidifier
Buying a small dehumidifier for your safe is another common method you may take for consideration.
Dehumidifiers should be plugged to a nearby outlet to operate in a consistent manner. Some people drill small holes at the back of their vault to run the wire through.
Battery powered dehumidifiers are more convenient, yet it’s always a good idea to choose the one with a wired power source.
Light Bulb
If you want a cheap alternative to purchasing dehumidifiers, you can place inside a lit light bulb. The heat from your bulb is enough to keep the air dry and warm.
You’ll have to drill a hole at the back for its wire to run through. There are safes that have predrilled hole on its back for running wire through. This can help you save more time.
I personally don’t like this method.
Air Conditioned or Heated Room
Other weapon enthusiasts say that purchasing an extra dehumidifying unit isn’t necessary as long as the locker is in air-conditioned or heated area. They claim that you only have to open it up to let the fresh air in.
Although it sounds like a simple method, the surrounding environment should be considered. If it is situated in dry area or climate, dehumidification systems aren’t really needed. But, if you are living in a place with a humid climate, one of the techniques mentioned above must be considered.
Do Gun Safes Need Dehumidifiers?
The answer to this question is yes. Jewelry and weapons don’t do well in humid conditions since moisture may corrode anything metallic.
Keeping the damp out of your vault will make sure that your safe will last long and the items inside won’t incur any damage.
If you have decided to buy a dehumidifier, there are many options to choose from. Each one also comes with different features and functionalities.
Depending on what you prefer or your budget for a dehumidifier, choose the one that would benefit you the most. With this, you can guarantee that your weaponry will always maintain their good condition.
If you want to be on a safe side you will also need a dehumidifier. I wrote an article on what I consider the best dehumidifier for the gun safe.
Final Word
A gun safe is an important place where you keep equally important belongings aside from your firearm.
This is why controlling its humidity is a must to ensure that no damages will be incurred.
