Have a client who wants a house safe installed in a wall. Something about the size of a file drawer or a little smaller. Any suggestions for brands or where to look online?
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Locksmith or Gun shop.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
a jewellers safe is handier because the door swings on hinges so you dont have to man handle the door as they can get heavy
dude, i think all safes are on hinges
I'm just sayin'
floor safes do not as i have installed a few of both kinds
But the OP specifically asked about wall safes. I was curious about your comment too. If the safe is installed correctly ( level) the door will swing easily at the touch of a finger. Once the door gets heavier on larger safes, there are bearings to ride on.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
hmm, never knew that, but any ways he's going for a wall safe
I'm just sayin'
harbor freight has several about the size you describe... find'n the place to put it is the fun part... always fun to hide stuff in plane sight...
I'm sure others here do this... but as i was building our house i made several places that pop open or slide out or lift up... if you know how & where... some as small as 4" x 4" by 10" deep... what could take 3 min to trim takes 4 hours to make open & close :)
p
There's a place (like a salvage yard) in a neighboring city to where I live that carries old safes (they also sell remnants of plastic laminate and carpet and so forth). Maybe someplace like that. I would think that when houses are torn down, or a business closes, they have safes that would be available for a lot less from a salvage company than from a place that sells them new.
Talk with a bank that is remodeling. About a year or two ago, the security rating was raised. Needs to be minimum Class 2 now, used to be Class 1. Whatever that is. Anyway, existing safes can remian in use until the branch is remodeled, than it has to be upgraded. Nothing wrong with the old safe, plenty of my contractors now have nice safes in their offices or homes. "Put your creed in your deed." Emerson
"When asked if you can do something, tell'em "Why certainly I can", then get busy and find a way to do it." T. Roosevelt
I have a massive one that came out of my old house. I plan on hauling it to a scrap yard simply to dispose of it..
Brinks.
make sure to bolt it down, cover it with a painting
I'm just sayin'
First thing to do is determine SAFE FROM WHAT? And WHAT IS TO BE KEPT SAFE? And HOW SAFE?
A fire safe is different from a safe for burglar protection (though some are both). A safe to protect documents from fire is different from a safe to protect digital media from fire.
A simple hidden locked door is probably sufficient to protect stuff from the casual burglar that doesn't know what he's after, but something more secure is needed if the burglar is targeting the safe.
Custom home? Put in two.
A fairly obvious cheap fire safe in the MBR. Most people want their valuables close. This is the fake one.
The real one is in concrete underneath the utility sink in the garage, metal plate on top, oil drain pain resting on top, full of used oil.
The Feds will find the second, but there are other ways still, depends on what you want safe, and from whom.
skipj
Like somebody else mentioned, safe from what is the first Q, then what budget is the other...
I have installed a few built in ones.
Some like a file drawer size that ran about $1200 bucks. American safe from a locksmith company.
Another slightly smaller from Walmart for about $150.
Would I feel as safe putting my stuff in the WM one as the locksmith's model?
not on your life. neither from burglars nor from fire.
Welcome to the
Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime.
where ...
Excellence is its own reward!
Trying to recall some of the details for comparison.
I could have exact details wrong, so take this generically...
For example, on fire safes, you see specs for a 20 minute rating or a one hour rating.
The ones made in east asia are tested to different standards than the AMerican ones. When they claim a one hour fire protection, they are tested at like 1200°, while the American ones are tested at 2000°.
maybe fire burns hotter over here - I know we have wooden houses while they have more masonry....
Point is, there are different standards for comparison to watch out for.
Welcome to the
Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime.
where ...
Excellence is its own reward!
I just installed a cheap safe that a client bought at Costco. Any safe works fine here as they are primarily for fire, and luckily our break ins are all done by casual (usually teenage) thieves looking for CDs, booze and cash.
In areas where there are more serious villains, I wonder whether a safe is the best approach. Houses offer a builder lots of places for innovative hiding places for valuables. False backs on kitchen cabinets, plumbing clean outs, gutted second hot water tanks or parcels stashed in attic insulation are a few off the top of my head. Once the security system has been beaten and they have the luxury of time, pros will get into anything.
It's probably worth a visit with a local safe shop, for information, if nothing else.
At the most basic level, there are steel tubes that are intended to be set in a poured-in-place concrete block. These provide pretty decent protection against nearly every hazard, but are not very large - maybe 10" in diameter.
There are other factors, such as ease of access, that you need to define with your customer before proceeding.
If theft protection is the priority, then there is no substitute for a monitored alarm system.
You also might chat wih a door supplier; there are steel entry doors out there, that can be fitted to a standard door opening, that have sturdy frames, and draw bolts around the perimeter - yet function as an ordinary door. Such a door, properly installed, can provide resonable security, in effect making an entire closet a 'safe,' without looking like one.
Make suer you look at the fire rating on it. Most house fires been at 1800+ degrees and the average time to put one out is 15 minutes from the time reported. I bought the biggest, (cause I knew I would fill it) heaviest, longest fire rated safe I could afford. It is now nearly 2 times the price I paid for it and nearly full. another thing to consider is location and thickness of steel. Can the delivery company get it into place. I put mine up on a pedestal I built cause if there is a fire the house will be flooded. Once again get the thickest steel one can afford.
check out fort knox or liberty.
ML
Like I mentioned before, be sure to find out what will be stored in the safe. A conventional fire safe is not good for digital media since the fire protection relies on a gypsum lining that emits hot steam in a fire. The steam will destroy digital media, although it's relatively harmless to documents and jewels.
Corporation: n. An ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility. --Ambrose Bierce
I'd like a safe but the problem is, if the crook breaks in and finds a safe he'll kill you if you don't open it.
So best to have a safe he won't find (or to not have anything worth stealing).
Corporation: n. An ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility. --Ambrose Bierce
"or to not have anything worth stealing"With neighbors like Luka's, eventhat doesn't always work.;)
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Steel does not protect from fire.Concrete and gypsum are used to protect from fire.I have a small media rated fire safe. It starts with the same design as paper rated fire safe. Then has an inner liner that takes up about 2/3 of the space and it cost about 4 times the amount of the paper rated one..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Next time I'll have a walk in poured in place safe built with a vault door.http://www.ftknox.com/redesign/gun-safe-images/vault-fire-gun-safe519.jpg
My father did wired some lights over the gold in the REAL Fort Knox..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Very cool. Did he get any pictures?ML
Security was high.I am not sure of the dates, but late 30's or early 40's..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.