Do you need a home safe? Your answer might be no, because you don’t think you have anything particularly valuable, but you do. It doesn’t have to be gold bars or beautiful jewelry that you want to keep safe — keepsakes and important documents are just as important as money. However, when you have a safe, thieves will always assume the most valuable items are in there, so it’s important to get a good safe.
There are a few things to look for — one, it should be a fairly big safe, big enough to deter a thief hoping to make a quick getaway. It should be fire-proof, in case of emergency, and it should be able to be either bolted to the floor or manted on the wall. It should also have a good lock, though there are a few types of locks.
- Keypad locks: These safes are usually smaller, and have a keypad built into them. To unlock, simply punch the correct combination of numbers and you’re in. These are usually the types of safes that you see in action and heist movies, because they’re often thought to be uncrackable.
- Manual dial: Just like your locker from high school! These locks have no bearing on a safe’s size, and can be a little difficult to open if you don’t get everything exactly right. They’re considered a little old-fashioned, but still reasonably safe.
- Key locks: As it sounds — you’ll have a key to open the safe. This is probably the least secure, given that you’ll need to keep track of the key at all times, plus these locks can be opened with things other than the key. It’s the most traditional, but probably not the best.
Overall, even if you only have a few items or believe you have nothing of worth, it’s a good idea to have a safe in the home. In case of emergency, you can have paperwork and cash stored as well as keepsakes that might be sensitive to damage. If you’re worried that having a safe may make you a target, pick a secure location within your house to hide the safe and don’t broadcast the fact that you have one!