Before we get into the reasons why safe ownership in your home is such a good idea let’s first go over the different types of safes that people often put in their homes.
Here is what we find to be the most common types of home safes we install and repair:
These are not only a good idea to have if you are a gun owner but they are often required by law in several states too. Currently in Illinois the state laws only require that a handgun be stored in a safe or have a locking device on it at all times when not in use. We of course advocate the use of gun locking devices or gun safes for all stored firearms until they are taken out to be used.
Gun safes come in all different shapes and sizes. They can be small and used to store just a single handgun or they can be vault sized and store many big guns and other valuables too. They will offer limited protection usually in the event of fire or flooding. Many gun safes these days are built using sophisticated biometric locks to keep them as secure as possible and allow the owner quick access to their guns if they are ever needed.
Birth certificates, Social Security Cards, Passports and other paper records are things that are not easy to replace if they are lost, stolen or destroyed. That’s why it’s best to always store them in a fireproof safe that gives them at least some chance of survival if a fire ever breaks out in your home. These come in all shapes and sizes and most safe types on this list offer at least some level of protection for what’s stored inside them in the event of a fire.
These are much like any other type of safe in that they come in all different shapes and sizes. Some are hard to get into but easy to just pick up and carry away while others need to be delivered to your home using fancy equipment and a team of many people. Stand-alone safes generally offer some protection against fire, water damage and can be fitted with some very sophisticated locking mechanisms too.
Unlike in the movies these are not just for rich people and they are a lot more affordable to install than you might think. What is like the movies is that these safes are usually recessed into walls so they are not as easily detected as other types of stand-alone safes. They are placed up high so they can survive flooding, usually have some degree of fireproofing and the locks on them can be made to be very sophisticated too.
These tend to be the most difficult types of safes for a thief to find. They almost have to know of their presence in order to find them because they can be hidden so well in any floor in your house. They are also among the most secure safes you can buy for your home and among the more expensive home safes too.
They are often encased in concrete which means they are not going anyplace unless a thief tears your house down first. They usually offer good fire protection, some water protection and can have very sophisticated lock mechanisms built into them.
