Are you having trouble deciding which type of safe is the perfect one for your home? Don’t worry, choosing your first safe can be confusing, but with a few helpful tips, you’ll be well on your way to choosing the right one for your home.
One of the biggest mistakes that homeowners make when choosing a new safe is skipping over the necessary research. Consequently, a lot of people end up with safes even a part-time burglar would scoff it.
And you know what? Nothing feels worse than seeing that safe you had so cleverly picked out out broken into. So, now that you’ve considered who you don’t want to be, it’s time to go over the aforementioned helpful tips to get you started on the right track.
1. Choose a Heavy Safe
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One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to choose a light safe that a single man or woman can pick up. And while this tip may sound obvious, just look at the number of lightweight safes that pop up when you search online for a home safe.
When you choose a lightweight safe, the burglar doesn’t even have to crack it or break into it. All they have to do is run off with it and crack it later in the comfort of their own space. The bottom line is to choose a safe with enough weight that an individual person or even two can’t pick it up.
2 . Choose a Discreet Location
If you prefer to stay away from a large heavyweight safe, a wise alternative is a hidden wall safe that’s mounted between studs. Plus, you can go a step further by choosing a hidden fireproof wall safe suggested here for ultimate protection.
The advantage of a fireproof wall safe is that it’s great for valuables and important documents. Also, the fact that it can be easily hidden behind a portrait or in a discreet location that potential burglars won’t likely look like makes it a sure winner.
Remember, in most cases, burglars want to be in and out as quickly as possible, so the more time it takes them to find or crack your safe, the higher the likelihood of you hanging onto your valuables.
3. Anchor Your Safe Properly
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As a complement to Tip #1 comes Tip #3. If you prefer to have a freestanding safe rather than a wall safe, then it’s critical to anchor it to an immovable object. This means, you’re not anchoring your safe to a piece of furniture that can be broken.
Another scenario you want to stay away from is anchoring your safe with a security cable that can be easily cut. Is that really the way you’d want to secure your jewelry? Of course not. Instead, your safe should be anchored to your home’s concrete foundation with the proper anchor bolts.
Also, another option is to install your safe in a corner or against a wall where you can anchor it to both your wall studs and concrete foundation. This way, no burglar is easily running off with your safe because their only option is to crack the safe which leads to the next tip.
4. Evaluate the Locking Bolts
The last thing you want to do is choose a safe with dinky locking bolts that are are few and far between. The name of the game here is to choose a safe with diesel locking bolts that are well-positioned for ultimate pry resistance.
After all, your safe’s locking bolts are the #1 guard against pry attacks and chances are, burglars will first try to pry your safe open rather than sit and try to crack it. Two things to look for when choosing your safe are the depth of the locking bolts when the safe is locked and the bolt carriage.
The bolt carriage needs to match the security of the bolts to ensure you get the highest level of pry resistance. If not, a cheaply constructed safe will fail with just the use of a crowbar.
5. Avoid Backup Key Access
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While a backup key may seem like a great idea for the sake of convenience and if the main locking mechanism fails, it’s actually not. Backup key access makes a safe susceptible to a picking attack, and believe it or not, a lot of popular home safes are very easy to pick even for novice lock pickers.
When choosing your primary home safe, it’s best to minimize access methods, especially if you plan to secure you most valuable possessions and rarely access your safe.
6. Consider a Safe with a Relocker
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One of the most effective anti-theft features in a good safe is a relocker, particularly a glass relocker. With a relocker, you get maximum protection against drilling attacks. Essentially, a glass relocker is a piece of glass embedded inside the walls of the safe.
When a burglar attempts to drill into the safe and breaks the glass, the safe automatically engages locking bolts that were held closed by the relocker. All in all, a safe with a relocker is for homeowners who are serious about securing their most valuable possessions and investing in a safe for the long haul rather than one that might need to be replaced.
Final Thoughts
By this point, you have all the basic knowledge you need to choose a secure safe for your home, along with tips on how to install it to prevent theft. One final tip to consider is to invest in fireproof document bags should you choose a safe without fireproofing.
With the addition of fireproof document bags, you give yourself added protection against fire damage that could destroy your most important documents. Plus, they give you space to put your jewelry and other small valuables that you would also want to save in the event of a fire.
Lastly, it’s important to never cut corners when choosing a home safe or when installing it because what’s the point in a having a safe if it doesn’t get the job done when you need it the most?
