How to Select a House Safe

Check for the UL (Underwriter's Laboratory) rating. Many insurance companies have a minimum UL requirement for safes. You can save money when insuring your valuables if they are stored in a good safe. Find out your insurance carrier's requirements before you buy.

Choose a wall safe if you have a house you don't plan on leaving. These safes are easily hidden behind artwork or in closets. The only negative is that new homes have thin walls, so this may not be an option if you need a larger safe. The side walls of the safe should be constructed of 1/2-inch-thick solid steel. The door should be 1-inch thick. Use very large and long screws to bolt it in place so it's harder to remove.

Buy a floor safe, as it's the next safest style you can get. It bolts directly into the floor of the house, which makes it very hard to remove. These should be bolted down with large and long nails into a cement or plywood-based floor, or even into the wall they stand next to. The problem with these is that they are also difficult to remove if you decide to move.

Make sure that safes are labeled "burglar resistant" and "fire resistant." If the cost of a safe with both features is too high for your pocketbook, buy a smaller fire-resistant safe to fit inside the burglar-resistant one for the same protection at a lower cost.

Select a safe that has a combination lock rather than a key, as they're much harder to get into. You can get a feature on many safes that will freeze the bolt up and seal it closed if someone tries to drill into it.

Choose a gun safe if that's what you want to lock up and protect. These are huge (about the size of a large wardrobe closet) and extremely heavy. These are a wonderful choice for people with children. If you have a combination lock, they're impossible to get into by kids and burglars alike, and they absolutely won't be carried off. These are often big enough to house your gun collection and many other things as well, so they can do double duty.

Compare the prices of safes. Check out office supply stores, hardware stores, furniture stores and home security stores. Look at the stores which sell only safes or home security items first, as they will probably have people on staff to advise you. Get as much information as you can and shop around for the best prices.

Avoid a carry safe that anyone can pick up and take home. Even if they can't open it, it will still be gone. Unless you can hide these in a foolproof place like high in an unused chimney, a fake laundry chute or up in the back of an attic, these are usually not worth buying. They are just too easy to carry off. For more information about safes, look up the home security information website listed in the Resources section below.