Request List
- What is a Fire-Resistant Safe?
A fire-resistant/ fire-proof steel safe is essentially a compartment made out of steel, that is insulated with fire-resistant materials to protect your valuables in case of a sudden fire. These fire-resistant safes come in different sizes and fire ratings and have different storage capacities.
- How do I check if I need a Fire-Resistant Safe?
IF you are someone that prefers to keep their valuables at home, within reach but still wants them to be protected, you should seriously consider investing in a fire-resistant safe. Yes, they are expensive but not only do fire-resistant safes have a resalable value, but they are literally protecting your lifetime earnings and should not be taken lightly.
- Which Fire-Resistant Safe is suitable for my needs?
Choosing what safe would best suit your requirements is fairly easy. You have to ask yourself a few questions:
- What am I storing in this safe? Jewelry, perhaps guns or will you also be storing important files such as deeds to your house, insurance papers, etc.
- Where will you be storing/hiding this safe? How accessible will this place be in case of a sudden fire?
- How much money are you willing to spend to protect your lifetime savings?
- Where you live and how long would a fire truck take to reach you? This would help you choose the fire-rating you should opt for.
- What Is Fire-Rating?
Fire-rating is the duration a safe will protect your valuables for, in the case of a sudden fire. Safes are given different fire-ratings, based on the amount of time they have been tested and proven to withstand extreme temperatures and humidity. These ratings are given by companies after having tested their products for a certain amount of time. The higher the fire-rating the better protection it will guarantee. Moreover, the higher the fire-rating is, the more expensive a safe will be.
- Where Should I Place My safe?
In our experience, one of the most difficult decisions for customers is where to place their safe. If you do not have a burglar alarm system in your home or business, then placing your safe “out of sight, out of mind” is very important. While not every situation is the same, we offer you some considerations before you invest in a safe:
- Will the placement of the safe encourage you to use it? If your safe is hard to reach or in an area that you normally do not like to go (dark, dusky part of the basement) will you be committed to using it?
- Is there adequate light to see inside the safe as well as how to operate the lock? A dark corner of a closet might be great for hiding the safe but if you cannot see the hash marks on the combination dial, you are going to be frustrated.
- Is the location adequate to hold your safe? A heavy safe needs strong flooring to support its weight.
- What Is The Minimum Fire Rating To Protect Paper and Money?
Our research shows that paper typically starts burning at 450℉. Therefore we advise our customers to always choose a fire-rating of over 2 hours. Reason being, since fire-trucks are not very reliable in Pakistan, it won’t be wise to risk all your valuables in case a fire truck shows up late. However, we realise that not everyone has the budget to get the top-of-the line safe that has a fire-rating of upto 4 hours, therefore, we have also designed a safe that accommodates our clients with a smaller budget and has a fire-rating of upto 45 minutes.
- Should You Use A Wall/Floor Safe?
Wall/Floor safes are wonderful little safes that can be concealed and don’t take up a lot of room, but they have severe limitations when it comes to burglary and fire resistance. Wall safes are typically constructed of thin gauge metal and are not the best place to keep large amounts of cash, high value jewelry or gold, silver and coins. Why? No need to break open the safe with heavy tools when all you need to do is saw the wall to extract the safe. The question always comes up, “But a wall safe can be hidden whereas the other safes are right there in plain sight.” The problem with this reasoning is that we tend to underestimate the intelligence of burglars and must consider that these people already plan on looking in odd places (like closets, refrigerators, mattresses and ovens) for your hidden valuables.
- Why Can’t You Rely On A Fire-Resistant Safe to be Burglary Proof too?
First, let’s define what we mean by “fireproof.” We use this term because many customers come looking for a fireproof safe. These safes are really fire “resistant” meaning that they resist heat and smoke (and some protect against water) over a given period of time.
Fireproof safes do a great job of protecting paper documents (and even small amounts of cash) from heat and smoke damage, however, fireproof safes use very thin (16-18 gauge) metal in the construction of the safe which makes them easier to attack for a burglar. The metal is primarily used to hold the fire retardant material and can be easily punctured, cut or sawed with simple hand tools.
Therefore, if you want a fire-resistant safe that is also burglary proof, then opt for our Armoured Series that is made out of high tensile carbon steel plates and is therefore gas-welding resistant as well as fire-resistant for upto 4 hours.
- So What Should I do?
Still can’t decide what to do? Don’t worry because we are here to help. The good news is that if you have invested in the right safe, whether it is the threat of fire or burglary, you can peacefully go to sleep at night knowing that you are protected.
If you are looking for more specific information according to your special needs, we encourage you to talk to one of our safe experts. We carry the most comprehensive line of safe equipment in Pakistan that can fulfill virtually any safe related need you may have.