Responsible gun owners appreciate the importance of handling guns safely and keeping them out of the hands of unsupervised children. If you have guns and children in the home, it’s important to keep the firearms secured to avoid unfortunate accidents. Here are a few options you might want to consider for safely storing your guns.
1. Educate Your Children
Make a hard and fast rule with your children to always run away from guns. If they are at a friend’s house and they see one they should run away and come straight home. They should be told that, under no circumstances, should they ever be around guns without you there. Make sure they understand the risks of a loaded gun. As your children grow, you can teach them the specifics of gun safety with you there to supervise.
2. Trigger Locks on Every Gun
Keep trigger locks on every gun, even if they’re secured in a safe or cabinet. This simple piece of plastic can save a life. If you want to keep a gun in the home for protection, then invest in a fingerprint gun safe that will open only for you at a moment’s notice.
3. Safes are Smart
While a trigger lock is incredibly important, it does not guarantee that the can cannot still be discharged. One of the most fool-proof methods of storage is a quality gun safe like those at SafeWorld in Canada. A combination safe is virtually impossible for children to bypass, and it will help keep them safe. In addition to keeping safes away from the children, you can also protect your guns from fire and moisture with the right safe.
4. Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Even curious children will forget about something they don’t see on a regular basis. If possible, put the gun safes or other containers in a closet or footlocker. A locked closet is ideal, but even a simple bedroom closet can be enough to remove some of the temptation from children.
5. Make a Puzzle
You can disable guns by removing key components. Another safety measure is to take the guns apart and leave components stored separately. This will not protect your gun from criminals, but it will prevent children from playing with them.
There are many options for keeping guns away from the children that can save the life of your child or someone else. If you don’t think you can afford the safety measures to secure a gun, you should not purchase a gun for your home. The price is too high if an accident occurs.