Value Safes

Buying a safe and placing it in a closet may seem like a good idea, but if it’s not bolted down it can be carried off by a determined burglar.  Most burglars don’t have the skills necessary to quickly access a good safe, but if they carry it off where they have time to work on it, that’s a different matter.  So look for a safe that includes boltholes in the bottom.  These boltholes go clear through the bottom of the safe, so you have to unlock the safe to gain acess to the nuts that have the safe bolted down.

If you’re having a new house built, make sure that they include the bolts in the concrete foundation or wood floor.  If you have an existing house, go ahead and take the trouble to have the bolts installed or install them yourself - your safe may not be really protecting anything if you don’t.  Also, be sure to check the burglary and fireproof rating of the safe you purchase for an even more secure setup.

A floor safe is designed to be mounted in a wooden or concrete floor, but provides the most security when surrounded by concrete.  This is true because a floor safe has a drill-resistant steel top plate that a conventional drill bit won’t even scratch.  Most burglars do not have the necessary skill to quickly open a safe with a good locking mechanism, so they usually rely on carrying the safe off somewhere else to work on it.  This is not possible if the safe is mounted in concrete.

A floor safe can also be purchased with a slot in the top, allowing for items to be deposited into the safe without opening it.  These are known as depository safes.  They are not quite as secure as a regular floor safe, though, so you should periodically move the contents to a safer location.  Floor safes come with a variety of locking mechanisms, including the electronic keypad type locking mechanism and the more traditional mechanical combination dial.  For more information on the floor safe.

Floor safes, when mounted in concrete, are one of the most secure type of safe available.  Most burglars do not have the skills necessary to quickly break into a safe, and usually rely on carrying the safe away to a secure area to work on it.  This is not possible with a floor safe.  Floor safes are available in a variety of sizes, and some even have an opening or slot in the top for depositing items without opening the safe.  This type is more vulnerable though, and you should move deposited items to a more secure location periodically.

Look for a drill resistant hard plate when purchasing a floor safe.  This is a top plate of hardened steel that cannot be penetrated with a drill bit - one won’t even scratch the surface of a drill resistant hard plate.  This is important, becuase this is the only area of a floor safe that is vulnerable, the rest is surrounded by concrete.  Also look for a model that has a corrosion-resistant polymer outer coating to protect the metal used in the safe from moisture and the resulting rust.  For more information on floor safes.

Floor Safes Review.

I get many phone calls from people wanting floor safes.  Most start by looking for the old fashion round ones.  Then realize you really can’t put paperwork or files in a round floor safe without crunching up the paperwork.  So I wanted to review the different types and features to look for in a floor safe.

First lets start with what a floor safe is….its a safe that gets concreted into the foundation of a home or business.  It doesn’t sit on top of the floor but flush with the floor and foundation.  Normally installed before the slab is poured but I have jackhammered many a slab to install after the home has been built.

1. Steel NON B-rated Floor Safe. They are good safes but use only the bolt on the lock to keep the door secured. Just like on your front door of your home. Now think about having several giant steel bolts that go into the door but are controlled similar to your deadbolt. Sounds much safer and stronger doesn’t’t it? That comes in a B-rated floor safe and we will touch on that next. The combo lock used on a floor safe are pretty much all top grade locks except the Sentry Floor Safe model.

2.The B-Rated Floor Safe. Has a Group II dial, either LaGard or Sargent & Greenleaf, this lock controls a steel bolt work system that keeps the door secured. These are very strong against attacks and I have never heard of anyone getting through the door on one of these other than a locksmith.

3. Polyethylene Body Floor Safe. These are under patent by the Hayman Safe company. So you will only find them with the Hayman Safe name on it. The body is made of polyethylene or plastic to prevent rust in what would normally be a steel body. As a side note, to prevent rust in the steel body floor safes it is best to wrap the safe in a plastic tarp before you pour concrete around it. That will help your floor safe last much longer than without. However, the Polyethylene Body Floor Safe has you covered. It also expands and contracts well with the soil. Safe door can be B Rated or just Non B Rated and you will know this if the model number has a letter “B” in it…this is ONLY with floor safes. Personally, once you go to all the trouble of putting one of these in your foundation go ahead and get the B rated. Its not that much more and you get the very best.

4.Floor Safes for wood floors or RV Safes. Have a large flange that gets screwed into the wood floor since there is no concrete to keep it in place.

Many people ask why we don’t sell electronic keypads with any of our floor safes. This is because of moisture issues and it is next to impossible to keep the keypads from getting wet in the installation process. This caused our keypad failure to be around 80 percent. It’s also just a poor idea to keep anything electronic on the ground. Flooding of hot water heaters also ruins keypads.

Floor Safes are not a fireproof safe in the typical sense. But, when buried in concrete, the concrete will give you protection against fire. They all come with cover plates for a smooth surface on the floor. The concrete floor is the last to have fire actually get close to it. And of course concrete will not burn. However, the firemen get water everywhere.

Floor Safes offer the best protection against theft when compared to most models of safe. This is because it goes in the ground and is covered with you carpet or rug. Out of sight, out of mind is great protection. Next you have the whole foundation hugging the safe and unless you take a jack-hammer to the foundation…its there to stay. As I am writing this I am reminded of a pair of new home owners that were re-carpeting their house after they had moved in and found a floor safe. They called me to come read the lock as the safe was unlocked. The point being they had lived there for several months and never new it was there! Too cool.

So if you want to go to the trouble of installing a floor safe, you will not regret it.