Welcome back to the Central Alarm blog! We hope your summer has been spectacular thus far. This time on the blog we are looking something that’s just adjacent to our field of expertise. You see, here at Central Alarm we are all about security for both homes and business, and as such we supply the alarm, camera, sensor systems necessary for that. But that’s just one side of the puzzle. See, you can also go those extra steps inside the home to further secure valuables. We’re talking about the best home safes available and what features to look for in your own shopping!
What to Look for in a Home Safe
Before buying a home safe you need to understand what you’re buying it for. The main things safes are made to protect from are theft (of course) or fire, or both! Think you won’t need a safe for a fire? The National Fire Protection Association states that there is an average of one in four chances of experiencing a house fire severe enough to call the fire department.
When it comes to fire, the idea behind it is that you want to protect the valuables inside from being destroyed by the fire and the heat it creates. Safes designed to protect against fire will be made of different materials to keep the internal temperature regulated. What temperature do you need to keep? This will vary depending on the contents of the safe itself! For instance, if you are looking to keep paper documents safe in a fire you need to make sure your safe is rated to keep the internal temperature lower 350 degrees. More sensitive items like film or disks/DVDs will need to be kept even lower. So before you buy, have a clear idea of what you will be storing.
As for burglar protection, the big thing is creating a hassle. Most thieves make a quick run through of the home and take whatever they can get their hands on. As soon as they’re encumbered they’re out the door. Most home safes with roughly a foot of cubic space available are going to be 100 lbs. empty making them anything but easily carried off with.
Other considerations include cost, where to buy them, where you’d be able to store it in the home (a small fire chest is going to take up a lot less space than a huge safe), and what to store in it. Need ideas?
Here are some documents worth holding onto in a safe!
Birth/Death Certificates
Estate-Planning documents
Life-Insurance
Savings Bonds
Tax Returns
Stock Certificates
Some of these you will want to hold on to forever (in the case of birth and death certificates) or less (when coverage ends on life-insurance policies) so make sure you’re not turning your safe into some sort of hoarder’s treasure.
Top Home and Smart Safes
SentrySafe 0500 Fire Chest
It’s affordable (you can even buy it right on Amazon, where it has many high ratings) fire resistant but it is unfortunately portable, certainly not a lick of help when it comes to stopping burglary! But still, a worthy choice.
Protex PWS-1814E Electronic Wall Safe
This one is covert, sitting tucked just inside the wall but while it is secure it is also not fireproof, and it’s size leaves a bit to be desired.
American Security AMSEC UL1511
Fire resistant, tamper-proof, durable. It’s heavy duty, and by that we mean heavy. It’s not going anywhere should you choose to put this bad boy in your house. It is, however, quite expensive. But hey, when you’re getting something at the top of the line, you expect to pay for it.
BARSKA Mini Biometric Safe
It’s affordable and features a fingerprint scanner with room for up to 30 authorized users! If you want to bring your safe game into the future, this may be the one for you. However, it isn’t resistant to fire and it’s size leaves much to be desired.
