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by jasonpeacock·4y ago·view on hn ↗
Everything goes digital using a document scanner. I have a Fujitsu Scansnap, it connects to my computer via wifi so it doesn't have to be near my computer.

For digital, I use Google Drive, with rough organization of Taxes/2021, Taxes/2020, ..., Health, Family, Notes, etc. Don't obsess too much, you rarely go back in time so it's OK to keep it lightweight and optimize for the "now" when inserting and spend that little extra time searching later when retrieving.

The exception are things that are too tedious to scan (50+ page mortgage doc), are required to be paper for legal reasons (birth certificates), or sentimental items. Those are surprisingly few, and go into a hanging-folder plastic tub that has a waterproof gasket on the lid.

Most damage from house fires is the water from the firehoses, so it's important to protect from water damage first, then worry about fire damage if you keep your documents at the top of your home (attic). I store my document tub in the bottom of my closet, so it's relatively safe.

1 comments
I would highly recommend using some automatic gdrive backup system. If you’ve read HN for a few years, you must have seen how occasionally Google makes an automated mistake and locks or even deletes your account and its data.
100% agree! I have local digital copies too :)

And honestly, I'm slowly de-Googling my life and will moving (or at least replicating) my online storage elsewhere.