Most crimes committed are related to the theft of personal property from residential locations. There are lots of ways to secure your home, from locking your house to installing an alarm. You can also take it one step further by installing a safe in your home.
Ground Safes
One of the hardest parts of buying a safe is getting it home. For safety we recommend using the services of a professional locksmith to deliver and install your new safe. Safes are heavy making them dangerous to move. Safety is extremely important and nonessential persons, especially children need to be out of the area when moving them. If stairs are involved, then it becomes more dangerous. Moving a safe to a ground-floor location is usually possible using one or more people with the proper tools. Safes up to 700 pounds should use a moving dolly with pneumatic tires or a heavy-duty appliance dolly. These can be inexpensively rented from a store. If the attempt to move a heavy weight placed on small diameter wheels can damage floor tiles, wood, or vinyl flooring, sheets of plywood should be placed to dissipate the point load and protect door thresholds if necessary. If there are more than three stairs involved in the move it will require special equipment, more men, or even better, a professional. Hiring a professional locksmith will save you time and money overall.
Placement and Anchoring of the Ground Safe to a Concrete or Wood Floor
Placing your new safe in the garage may be convenient, but unless it is bolted to the floor, it can be an easy target for burglars. Many thieves have no problem backing their truck into a garage and loading your safe onto it in broad daylight. If it is bolted down, you should cover it to hide it from view. Remember that heat rises, making the first level or basement of your home the best way to protect the safe and your belongings in the case of fire. For security and safety reasons, your safe must be bolted down to the floor.
Wall Safe Installation
The installation of a wall safe is a great way to further the security of items inside your home. It will never completely prevent theft but will seriously slow down the attempt by anyone to do so. It should be installed in an area that is inconspicuous and you shouldn’t tell anyone where it is. Wall safes are easily hidden and represent “free” storage space since they are tucked in the space between your wall studs. Choose a safe that will fit into your wall and choose a location in a wall that is free from any piping and wires. Locate the studs with a stud finder or look at the baseboard trim for finish nail locations. Always confirm stud location with a visual hole. Don’t apply above electrical sockets as many times the wires come down from above. The dimensions of the safe you choose will need to be transferred onto the wall. Most wall safes have a face flange. Be sure the hole isn’t cut too large or the flange will not overlap and cover the exposed wall. Secure the safe with the supplied fasteners into the studs.
