All of that would probably be missed easier/quicker than a couple of movies from a large collection. Not to mention it's easier for the workers to dispute a couple of "missing" DVDs than it would be jewelry.

You were actually the first person that I thought of whenever I saw this thread. Out of curiosity, do you have any pictures or specifics about what system you use (cost, etc)?

Not to reply on his behalf, but I'm a college kid, so I don't have art and jewelry laying around the apartment. As such, my DVDs are easily my most valuable asset. A majority of my very limited expendable income goes toward my collection. Sure, I have a TV, a stereo, a computer and etc, but my DVD collection is definitely the most valuable thing that I own (this includes my beat-up little 1991 Honda), and it's the one thing that I worry about the most whenever a break-in or fire crosses my mind. Bear in mind that there are a lot of people like myself; college kids with little to call their own. Not everybody here has begun that march down the path that we call adult life just yet.

Regarding security: naturally I have plans for my future home. I don't expect my first home to be large enough to have an entire room dedicated to a HT set-up, but I definitely intend to do something similar to what Gut has done by converting a closet into a "film vault" of sorts. As it is, my collection is simply displayed on shelves in my living room. I share a small apartment with my roomie, and the only people who come in and out are he and I (and our mutual friends), so the only worry would be a break-in...and there's not much I can do on my budget or in this location to prevent those guys from making off with whatever they had their mind set on stealing. I can only hope that something of that nature never happens.

-JP

No, they are not my most valuable asset. Funny that this thread has come up again - it is a year old.

Anyway, expensive jewelry is easily secured in a safety deposit box. Computers and any art that went missing would be noticed immediately. The point I was making is that when you have a sizeable collection of DVD's on shelves, you simply would not notice if a few went "missing." That's what I was looking to guard against. I think I will get some locking cabinets this summer. I think they would certainly be a deterrent to petty pilferage.

It's interesting that my general concern was justified a few weeks ago when an 11 year old friend of my son's stole my Leatherman tool (a Christmas gift) I had out on the kitchen table. My son suspected that he took it and accused him of same, which he, of course, denied. My son even told the boy's dad about it, but he did not take the accusation seriously because my son did not actually see him do it and the boy denied taking it. I confirmed the tool was missing and, after talking to my son - who told me how he saw the boy put something in his pocket and that he acted very defensive when asked about it - I went to talk to the boy's dad. He doubted his son took anything but asked him to turn his pockets out, which, of course, revealed my Leatherman tool.

I only noticed that theft because of my son's concern and the fact that it was unusual for it to be out on the kitchen table.

Go out and buy the biggest metal dog dish you can find. With a hammer and ice pick pound dents into it that look like big teeth marks. Then get some blood red paint and paint the name SATAN on the dish. Place dish in most likely spot an intruder will see it.

I have lockable cabinets like those shown above, actually bought from www.storehouserock.com as also mentioned above.

Geez, just noticed that this thread was started a year ago. Nevermind.

When work is being done in your house, simply get some painter's thick clear plastic sheets and wrap them around your shelving units and tape down distinctly with masking tape. You'll want to protect from dust in the air anyways. I doubt one of the workers will want to risk tearing open the plastic and tape to get at the discs. The covering could be done in such a way to make it obvious if anybody had broken the seal.

Take out the discs you intend on viewing during the period when the work is being done and store them separately locked away.

I've definately lost more movies to "borrowing..." in fact... I've only lost movies to "borrowing." Luckily, all three that I've losted have been bargain-bin ($5 or so) movies, so it wasn't any big loss. But I don't lend out anything like my TV sets or anything to anyone I don't trust with my life.

I have mine stored in my closert, sure it doesn't look nice and I can't proudly show my collection. But if I had them out, people would treat me as a free blockbuster

3 words..."Sharks with Lasers"

I live in an apartment with my roommate...my DVD's are easily the most valuable thing I own. I keep them on shelving in my room (which only my girlfriend and myself normally go, my roommate if he has to print a paper or something). However, against break-in, I've got nothin'.

I actually had what the original poster was talking about happen to me recently. I went to watch Se7en, and it's gone...poof, thin air.

= J

The best advice is to have your DVD collection, and other valuables covered by homeowner or renter's insurance.

Renter's insurance for me.

DVD's in the closet and renter's insurance.

Minimal precautions here. I live in an apartment and I lock my front door. Having grown up in a crime-ridden area (unlike the low-crime suburb I live in now), I know that if somebody wants to steal something, more than likely nothing less than armed guards and a bank vault will stop them (and often not even that). I just don't let myself worry about these kinds of things as you can take all the precautions in the world and still get ripped off.

As for the repairman stealing an odd DVD, I have my DVDs in a particular order, and I'm blessed with a photographic memory, so if anyone swiped one, I'd know immediately, and be on the phone to whatever company dispatched them. But I never let repairmen in my place when I'm not home. I've got a few OOP or slightly rare titles, but nothing irreplaceable. So my motto: Don't worry, Be Happy

Security? I must live in a different world.

I will usually lock the front door when I am going to be away from the house for more than two to three hours... when I remember. Not that it would do any good if someone really wanted to break in since I live in a forest with the nearest neighbors a quarter mile away. Last burglary in my neighborhood I can recall was six or seven years ago and I am much farther off the beaten track. Crime is almost non-existent in this one stoplight county, population 4200.

The only DVD protection I worry about is keeping them out of the sun so the covers don't fade. And I am thinking about buying an enclosed cabinet, similar to that shown in the OP, to keep out the dust as well as the sun.

I set up tripwire all around my DVD collection, which triggers an alarm that goes straight to the F.B.I. headquarters in D.C. From there, I have already prepaid for two fighter pilots and their jets, which are on standby, to fly directly over my house, open fire and injure any suspect, in or around the vicinity. Of course this is only the extreme route I would take.
Normally I have four guard dogs, who are trained in the art of Brazilian jiu-jitsu to take care of things. I spray all my DVD's with sour apple dog repellant, so they don't chew through the cases. They hate that stuff!

Until the van full of psycho-killing spree nutjobs drive by one night.

Pa Psycho: "Junior, let's check out that house in the trees".
Junior Psycho: "Goll Darnit, Pa! I aint cleaned my axe yet from the house a quarter mile back".
Ma Psycho: "I hope they taste better than that last batch".

Voice of trailer guy:
"A quiet, one stoplight community"
"Far off the beaten track"
"Population 4200"
"The nearest neighbor a quarter mile away"
"Where crime is almost non-existent....until..."
Forest House "Where no one will hear you scream and scream and scream......"

Just kidding.

^ ...First they have to find me...

Actually, one reason to leave the front door open on my two hour (six mile) walk to the mailbox—to check for DVD packages, of course—is so that I can get inside quickly in case I am being stalked by a mountain lion. Last month the Division of Wildlife trapped a mother lion and her kitten on my lot and used my garage to tag and GPS radio collar them before releasing them back where they caught them. They want to monitor how the lions are getting along in this growing rural mountain subdivison. The mother weighed 101 pounds and the kitten weighed 24 pounds. ("Here, kitty, kitty, kitty...")

Life is different here...

And hope they don't have blasters.

I set up an axe that hangs over the collection. It's out of site.

If anyone happens to unlock and open the doors.....

Well, they shouldn't have been snooping.

P.S. I did know this guy who set up rat traps in his house. Seriously.

For those of you worried about your collection ending up in a pawn shop, there is a simple precaution you can take: On each of the DVD cases, put a sticker that says "Stolen from the collection of (YOUR NAME)." That way, when you need to prove someone stole your discs and dumped them in a pawn shop, it's pretty hard to argue otherwise. Traditional keep-case DVDs are the easiest, just put the sticker behind the insert in the plastic. For box sets, there are any number of hiding places -- and clear labels with your info work well too.

For concerns of damage, get insurance - either renters' or homeowners, depending on your situation.

I know this thread is old, but those cabinets pictured in the OP aren't safe at all. Even if it's locked, the hinges would be pretty easy to pop out. They can swipe whatever they want, pop them back in, and you'd wonder what happened.

I second the insurance, it's cheap compared to the alternative.

For you renters, Renters Insurance is super-cheap too (at least with some companies). So cheap its silly to not have it. Since I got it with the same company I have car insurance with, it came out to something like an extra $15/year.

Renters insurance is so cheap, you'd be a fool not to have it. It really came in handy years ago when our three year old decided to color his feet with four bottles on food coloring on the carpet. The carpet was toast and our insurance paid for it to be replaced. After our landlord saw how good the insurance was, he started requiring it on his rentals.

I don't know how they are on theft, but it's just silly not to add it if you're a renter.

I have a trained attack wiener dog....



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