How to keep your valuables secure using fire safes
- 1. How to keep your valuables secure using fire safes Introduction When the temperature increases in the atmosphere, it removes from deadly flora and fauna thus making them more inflammable. This high temperature can also lead to precipitation, advancement of the spring thaw, extension of fire season A one degree increase mean global temperature would mean an equivalent median area being burnt every year due to wildfire in regions like Western America up to six times. Change in climate over a time, increase the intensity of wildfire up to 600%. Importance of Fire Safes to secure valuables Toughness, retrieval and continuity are some of the most commonly used words in business in the recent past, which highlights the importance of mitigating the risk due to technological dependants in the event of disaster. Any business, especially the highly regulated sectors like finance and healthcare know the fiscal benefits of having a safe place to secure their data and records. Such a practice of securing data and records in a safe haven is the foundation of best practices that such firms can follow. The archived data, safety conditions have to be considered appropriate and secure them from natural disaster, vandalism, fire or system failure. Hence another set of data has to be put in place. A safe warehouse alone can’t address this issue and safeguard the valuables from vulnerability. Albeit the presence of regulations and guidelines for safeguarding the data, older records can be best maintained in a media safe to ensure that the data is secure and safe. It’s worth an investment to make. Things to ponder before using a safe: Appraisal of highly valuable objects stored inside a fire safe in order to be secured from damage Home – owners’ insurance should be there to insure valuable items secured in a safe It is not advisable to store secure cash in a safe unless it is FDIC insured and it doesn’t yield any interest The valuables can be wrapped in a plastic bag instead of keeping it directly inside the safe in the event of flooding Things which are to be used often or to be produced on demand within a short notice period like daily wearing jewelry, attorney documents, passports etc., Lawyer’s suggestions can be taken in order to fix a location for storing real estate related documents
- 2. The price of a home safe ranges anywhere between $ 20 and $ 1200 or above, based on the level of fire protection the safe offers. Hence, according to safe experts, safes are to be chosen based on the security level required and also that the safes should be bolted to the floor or fixed in a wall. This can provide additional security for the safe Factors to be considered in buying a fire safe There are various factors that are to be considered before buying a fireproof safe to ensure the required level of protection is provided for the documents, digital media and other valuables. Some of them are listed below: 1. Form and type of the media to be secured 2. Underwriters Laboratories Rating (UL Rating – tested and certified) 3. Volume or capacity of the safe required 1. Form and type of media In the era of digital media, the kind of media is the most crucial parameter to assess the protection requirements. In terms of heat, every media has a breaking point or failure point at a particular temperature. This will figure out the required fire rating based on the type of media to be stored. 2. Volume or capacity required in a safe Once this is done, next comes the physical dimensions (size and volume) needed to store the media in the safe. 3. UL Rating It is a significant factor that measures the effectiveness of safety and protection. The rating is obtained by performing original tests in the safe to obtain ratings for the safe. Thus, it rests ensures the performance of the safe. Determining the contents to be stored in a safe is important in order to choose the appropriate level of protection for the safe. There are three different listings used by the Underwriters Laboratories to assess any record protection equipment: a) Class 350 - rate File cabinets To protect paper related documents. As a matter of fact, the heat produced due house fire can reach beyond 1100°F and go up to 1500°F in just three and a half minutes from the time it catches fire. 1600°F can be easily reached if it’s an office fire. b) Class 125 – Rated Data Safes It protects digital media from fire and heat. A media safe of this rating maintains the internal temperature of the safe at or below
- 3. 51.67°C or 125°F. Fire safes designed for securing documents, maintains the internal temperature below 176.6°C or 350°F. The requirements for physical storage of valuables will form the basis of decision making in purchasing a safe of appropriate size, which is needed to protect the media. This is also one of the key factors to be considered before a safe is purchased. Hence, the planning has to be accordingly to what the requirements are in the present and in the future as well. Having additional space will be useful in saving money in the future when more valuables are to be secured in the same safe then. This enables the owner of the possession to make a wise decision in buying a fire safe which enables him/her to attain the recovery, business, and regulatory objectives. Tips to choose an ideal fire safe Here’s a few easy steps by which an ideal fire safe can be chosen. Identify the needs and items to be stored in a fire safe. Be it paper, data, valuables, or metals – identification of the needs will enable to choose the right fire safe Studies show that an individual has only two minutes with him to rescue himself and his family in the event of a firebreak out. Hence, knowing the ideal size of the safe is where the majority of the safe buyers commits an error. Hence, sizing can be rightly done when the requirement or needs are well known up front. It is also equally important to know the fire – proof ratings of the fire safe to be purchased. The higher the temperature protection of the safe, high is the increase in burn time, which in turn results in higher fire ratings. o A 1-hour UL fire rated safes are ideal for less risky documents, which has a high melting point so that the spread isn’t rapid. It can withstand a temperature of into 1700 degree Fahrenheit o A 2-hour UL fire rated safes are medium rated safes, which can prolong the occurrence of fire in the safe and can stand a temperature of 1850 degree Fahrenheit. o 3 hours UL rated are superior safes, which are ideal for storing highly inflammable objects like paper and electronic media. This can delay the occurrence of fire by more than 3 hours. This safe can withstand a temperature of 1925 degree Fahrenheit. Typically, A UL class 125 Fire Safe should maintain the internal temperature below 125 degree Fahrenheit, while relative humidity being maintained at 80% in order to protect data from fire.
- 4. A UL Class 350 safe should have an internal temperature of350 degree Fahrenheit, while the relative humidity beginmaintained at 80% to secure paper and other easily inflammable substances inside the fire safe. It is possible to secure the possessions in a fire for safes, which are tested safe as UL ratings. A UL 350 test rated for storing paper documents can withstand high temperature and documents stored inside begins to char at 400 degree Fahrenheit. A UL 250 test rated safe is ideal for storing computer media. The media in the fire safe of this rating begins to melt at 140 degree Fahrenheit. Such UL ratings imply that the internal temperature of the fire safe does not exceed 125 degree Fahrenheit for data while UL35 - 350 degree Fahrenheit is maintained for paper documents. Check out fireproof cabinets online to buy fireproof data cabinets, filing cabinets, warehouse cabinets. The Fire Cabinets Direct offers fire safes for home and commercial use. Shop fireproof cabinets from Chubb, Phoenix and other top brands.