Materials to Safely Store Your Seed Phrase
Hey anon, welcome back to the “Crypto Seed Phrase Playbook” article series.
So that’s it. “You are your own bank”. You created an account using a software wallet, or much better you got yourself a hardware wallet. The app asks you to “store your seed phrase somewhere safe” and recommend “never to store it on a digital device”. Many questions popup in your head: “where?”, “how?”… but then you think “F*** it, I’ll just write it on that stupid piece of paper and worry about it later”.
I wish someone had guided you dear newcomer! Here are a few tips I wish I had known when I started my journey.
Articles of the series:
- Crypto Seed Phrase Playbook. Let’s begin 🏌️♂️
- Mediums to Safely Store Your Seed Phrase 💎
- Brute Forcing, 12 vs 24 Words, Seed Phrase Splitting 🌶️
- More to follow in the coming days and weeks ⚡️
Paper Inside Plastic Zip Bag = Waterproof Paper
What was a temporary solution often becomes permanent. How about protecting that precious paper from damp and water by putting it into an inexpensive zipper poly bag? 😱
Something like that amazon.com/dp/B085TL858G/.
Kudos to Dan for the tip!
Some people also like fireproof documents holders (or boxes).
Fun Stuff: Invisible UV Pen
The ink is invisible unless you light it with a UV light. See an example product on amazon.com/dp/B07CPKYJNC. This can be convenient if you store your seed on paper somewhere mildly safe.
Time passes, you have much more funds kept safe by your wallet but your still store your seed on a piece of paper in your cupboard at home. What to do?
First, you must figure out a better location(s) to store your seed. Maybe split it in several pieces? What if it was written on something so durable you could even bury one part in your parents’ garden? This leads to the next point…
You must write it on a better medium: something more durable/hard-to-destroy (water resistant, fire resistant…), a common solution is to engrave the seed on metal plates.
Ready Made Metal Plates
Titanium plate: amazon.com/dp/B077CYKHZ6/
Stainless steel plate: amazon.com/dp/B094JSRP12/
Copper plate: amazon.com/dp/B07CLMK3WJ/
More options: CryptoEtch ($40), coinkite’s seed plate ($49), Keystone Tablet Punch ($24), Hodlinox (€13). The famous Jameson Lopp even put an epic list of metal storage options.
Titanium is known to be stronger than stainless steel and copper.
Pick it thick enough so that it is very hard to bend, at least 3mm.
DIY Metal Plates
In short: plates that were not specifically made for writing your seed, but can be used for that.
In many countries, the “ready made metal plates to write your seed” can be hard to find and/or expensive. Save yourself time and cash: use something else.
Something like this: amazon.com/dp/B07D7VV7DK/, or on the Spanish Amazon amazon.es/gp/product/B08BZGP529/
Engraving Tools for Metal Plates
Engraving tools are also known as “rotary tools”.
Cordless chargeable via USB amazon.es/dp/B09V7TXZ7H
Cordless w/ AAA batteries amazon.es/dp/B07XSP46BT/
Cord amazon.com/dp/B0000302YN/
Stamps: I do not like stamps as when softer than the plate, they’ll easily get damaged (flattened) and become unusable. Additionally in some countries it can be difficult to have access to the required stamps, rotary tools are easier to find.
Closing Thoughts
Even though metal seems to be the most enjoyed material because of its longevity. For some reason seed backup kits with metal plates are rarely sold together with hardware wallets and are often overpriced.
As a result, many people write their seed phrase on paper only. Will you be that vulnerable person? It’s up to you.
All the articles of the series:
- Crypto Seed Phrase Playbook. Let’s begin 🏌️♂️
- Mediums to Safely Store Your Seed Phrase 💎
- Brute Forcing, 12 vs 24 Words, Seed Phrase Splitting 🌶️
- More to follow in the coming days and weeks ⚡️
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