While fireboard-based safes do provide some fire protection, they are a substantially inferior fire safe that also offers little to no burglary protection. The vast majority of fire safes are constructed using one of the low-cost fireboard methods. The composite fire-cladding method is the only construction method that results in a safe that provides substantial protection from both fire and burglary attacks. Most fire safes are built using one of four construction methods: insulation/fireboard, reinforced fireboard, composite, and composite fire-clad. In addition to fire protection, the high-density concrete within the amalgamate increases the safe's already substantial level of burglary protection. The amalgamate forms a highly effective insulation barrier, shielding the solid steel portion of the safe from fire. Look for a safe with at least a B burglary rating (½" thick solid steel door and ¼" solid steel body.) As for fire cladding, you'll want a safe with approximately 2½" of concrete amalgamate. If you want maximum burglary and fire protection, you'll get the best performance from a composite cladded fire safe. Since it's very difficult to visually spot an "reinforced" fire safe masquerading as a burglary safe, unsuspecting customers happily buy these imposters, fully believing the overstated claims of protection. While this is an easy and economical method of reinforcement, the safe is still vastly inferior to a true burglary safe as thicker sheet metal walls are still quite weak when compared to those of a true burglary safe. Most fire safes are turned into false burglary safes by increasing the thickness of the safe's outer sheet metal panels. Visit our Fire Protection page for an illustrated explanation of the above. The big problem here is the core design of these fire safes can never make for a good burglary safe, and attempting to do so lessens the safe in its ability to protect from fire. Since very few people are interested in owning a safe that doesn't actually protect against burglary, most safe makers "reinforce" their fireboard fire safes to better withstand burglary attacks and market them as true burglary/fire safes. Over 90% of safes sold today are low-rated fireboard-based fire safes constructed in a similar manner to the composite fire safe described above, only they use insulation panels as their water-retaining medium because the resulting safe is lighter and cheaper to produce. The soft, fire-retardant medium provides no resistant to direct attacks. While this type of construction functions wonderfully to protect against fires, it fails to provide any substantial burglary protection as the safe's sheet metal retaining walls are purposefully thin to reduce heat buildup. Heat also causes expansion around the convoluted doorjamb, forming a solid seal. This steam also saturates the safe's contents to artificially raise the flash point. As high heat hits the outside of the safe, the fire retardant medium expels the retained water as steam. The doorjamb is highly convoluted with a heat seal. Nearly all fire safes are only intended to provide fire protection and offer no substantial protection from burglary.Ī true UL rated composite fire safe is made with two thin skins of sheet metal that house a water-retaining medium between (typically a concrete and vermiculite mixture). We're letting you in on a well-kept secret heavily guarded by most safe manufacturers.
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