Many Business and home owners might overlook the need for a safe, but they can help protect your assets. Even if you don’t keep monetary assets on-site you likely still have important documents or other personal items that are at risk of theft or damage due to fire. Knowing what to look for will help you in picking the proper safe for your needs whether if its for your home or business.
UL RATING
The UL (Underwriter’s Laboratory) rating is the governing body for safe security ratings. The UL is broken into two categories: burglary safety and fire safety.
BURGLAR RATING
This rating represents the difficulty level of either safe-cracking or attempts to physically overpower the locking mechanism or safe frame.
“B” Rate Safe: Has a fourth-inch body and a half-inch door and is the most vulnerable safe. It is usually only for residential use when keeping less important valuables secure.
“C” Rate Safe: Has a half-inch body and a full 1-inch door and must have a hard plate and a re-locking device. Stronger however still not recommended for commercial use.
TL-15 Rate: The 15 represents the amount of time in minutes it takes for a professional safe-cracker to enter the safe using a variety of safe opening equipment.
TL-30 Rate: This particular safe withstands 30 minutes of safe attacks and safe-crackers are allowed to use extra heavy equipment to break into the safe.
TL-30X6 Rate: To test this safe the engineers attempting to break in are allowed to enter through all 6 sides of the safe and are allowed to have blueprints of the safe and understand the fundamental build and weakest points within the frame. It still requires 30+ minutes to break into this safe.
FIRE RATING
Fire ratings are evaluated by testing to see if safes withstand varying furnace heat for specific amounts of time. For example, the UL Class 350 2-hour fire rating means that the internal temperature of the safe will not exceed 350°F for at least 2 hours when exposed to external temperatures over 1700°F. This rating represents the safe’s ability to protect from fire or other heat damage. You will typically find these ratings at 1/2 hour , 45 minute, 1-Hour, and 20-Hour
INSTALLATION
Once you’ve selected the correct safe you need to properly have it installed. Having the highest rated safe wont help to much if the burglars can just walk away with it. You should bolt down your new safe with 1-4 bolts to secure it.
B&E LOCKSMITH ST. GEORGE, UT. SAFE SERVICES
We have over 10 years of locksmith experience and can help you or your business purchase and install the correct safe. Feel free to reach us by phone at 1-435-414-9753 . If you have any questions contact us we would love to help you.
