Question Keeping HDD in a car

[Sgt_Sykes]

Okay. Recently I had to move house and I also lost the spot where I used to keep my backup external HDD (5TB USB 3.0).

I can't pay for a safe or other storage solution right now.

Well as I was moving, I forgot the HDD in my car and I realized - that's actually a fairly good spot! That car is not being used, and it's such an old beater nobody would steal it or break into it.

I mean when it comes to safety, it's obviously not good but better than keeping both the backup drive and the PC in the same room I think.

What I'm worried about is heat - it's still quite cold in middle Europe but there is sunshine and it will get hot inside cars pretty soon.

What do you think, how safe is the HDD in a car? Can it survive the heat? Where would be the best spot to put it? Or is it such a fundamentally bad idea that I'm better off leaving it in the same spot as the PC?

 

[Deleted member 14196]

I don’t think it’s a good idea at all because of the wide temperature variations And humidity and condensation

 

[ElectrO_90]

If you have a car you don't use, how can you say you don't have money to buy a safe?
Sell it, buy a Safe
or do as I do, use cloud backup

 

[Sgt_Sykes]

The car is impossible to sell, it's been for sale for half a year. It's too crappy looking. But my daily driver is probably on its way out so it may still come handy.

I don't wish to give away all my personal information to some cloud company either.

I might figure something out later but right now I just don't have any other option - it's either the same room or the car and in terms of security, the car is safer. In terms of environment though, the car isn't good...

 

[popatim]

If you have a smaller drive, a Safety deposit box at my bank is only $50 /yr.
I know you said you're moving and wasn't sure if it was in the same area.

 

[jsmithepa]

Any of you too young to know about photographic films? Well, old skool photographers driving cross country stored their films in picnic coolers. Them coolers will provide enough sealed insulation to prevent wide temp swings.

 

[USAFRet]

A desk drawer at work or school.
In a sealed box at a friends house.

Can you leave it in an unused car? All we out here can say is "probably". But what if it dies the next time you power it up?

"keeping both the backup drive and the PC in the same room I think " is only a hazard if you're worried about fire/flood/theft.

How long will you be in this situation. A couple of days, no problem in the car.
Leaving it there for 6 months...problem.

 

[white.a.drew]

If you have a car you don't use, how can you say you don't have money to buy a safe?
Sell it, buy a Safe
or do as I do, use cloud backup

now big brother has your info hahaha jkjkjk

 

[Sgt_Sykes]

Thanks for answers.

If you have a smaller drive, a Safety deposit box at my bank is only $50 /yr.

Where I live it's 10 €/month for a tiny-a** box suitable for storing maybe a watch. Something for a HDD is 30 €/month at least. I can't pay for that.

A desk drawer at work or school.
In a sealed box at a friends house.

I don't have such options right now. I mean technically I could store it at some friend's place but at the moment I don't know anyone with whom I'd be both comfortable storing it and who would be flexible enough to let me go back and forth fetching it and then putting it back every week or so.
ATM I live with housemates I don't know so I'm not super thrilled with the option to keep both the computer and HDD in the same place, but of course the temp variants in a car worry me a lot too 🙁

Any of you too young to know about photographic films? Well, old skool photographers driving cross country stored their films in picnic coolers. Them coolers will provide enough sealed insulation to prevent wide temp swings.

Hey that sounds like a good idea...! I'll do some research if there are some boxes suitable for such a thing.