Wall safes can be a great choice to secure your valuables if you have limited space and want to add a layer of concealment to your home or business safety plan. They are compact, lightweight, and easy to install almost anywhere.
Keep your valuables safe and securely out of sight by installing a wall safe. If you are a homeowner or business owner looking to not only protect but also hide your valuables, a wall safe is an excellent home or business safety solution.
With advances in safe technology and an increase in residential and commercial robberies, choosing the right safe might feel overwhelming. So we have broken down some features you might want to consider when deciding which wall safe best fits your needs.
What Is a Wall Safe?
A wall safe is a small metal box that mounts directly to the wall or floor of your home or office. Some models are designed to be placed inside a closet or cabinet, while others work well as freestanding units that can be hidden away in any room of your home or office. Wall safes are designed to blend seamlessly with your home's decor, so they do not attract attention or look out of place.
The Advantages & Disadvantages
The main advantage of a wall safe is that it can be installed (concealed) in any location within your home. This makes it an ideal storage solution to stash cash, important paperwork, or jewelry. You can also use it to store your everyday items, while your other valuables are stored in your main safe.
One disadvantage is that they cannot be bolted down or anchored to concrete floors like other safes can. This means that if someone discovers where it is and has the right tools, it can be cut from the wall with a saw or pried off with pry bars.
How Much Do You Want to Spend on Your Wall Safe?
Sometimes, the most important consideration when buying a wall safe is the amount of money you want to spend. While we know there are plenty of wall safes on the market under $100, you will want to consider a few things when purchasing any safe, and more importantly when choosing a safe at a "cheap" price. Your valuables and your budget deserve the best protection possible.
Considerations when choosing a safe under $100: quality, customer service, warranty, brand reputation, seller reputation, how long you want the safe to last, and always read the reviews, both good and bad.
What to Consider When Buying a Wall Safe
When you are shopping for a wall safe, there are a few things that you should consider.
- Size of the safe: This is important because it is not always easy to find an empty space in your house where you can fit a sizeable wall safe. Also, wall safes can only be as deep as the wall they are in. If your walls are made with 2-by-4 studs, like many American homes, your safe will be just under 4 inches deep.
- Strength of the safe: The structure's sturdiness can prevent burglars from using tools to break through the walls and access what is inside. Remember, most wall studs are made of wood, so if a burglar finds the safe, they can saw or pry the safe away from the wall, unlike a floor safe or a safe bolted to the foundation of a home.
- Fire resistance: Your items will not always be protected from prolonged fire damage inside this type of safe. Some wall safes do offer fire protection.
- Burglary resistance: These safes are burglary-rated; they are designed to withstand attacks by criminals seeking access to the valuables they contain. Because of the nature of wall safes, they will not be as resistant to sawing, crowbar attacks, or other tool attacks as floor safes or other large safes.
Fire Resistance
Fire rated safes are a great way to protect your valuables in the unfortunate event of a fire. The following is an explanation of Underwriter's Laboratories' fire resistant container testing standards.
If fire is a concern for you, then it is important to choose a wall safe that can withstand fire for at least 30 minutes.
Why: These safes feature a good fire rating that will protect your belongings for 30 minutes or greater.
Burglary Rated Wall Safes
The first and most important step to ensuring that your wall safe will protect your valuables is to install your safe where it will not be found. Because if the burglar cannot find the wall safe, they cannot break into it.
Burglary resistance is determined by how long it would take for someone with tools or brute force (such as a crowbar) to break into the safe. Some wall safes carry a B-rating, which tells you the safe has at minimum a 1/8" steel body and 1/2 inch door. The B-rating is an industry rating, which means it is not verified, nor are there any formal written standards to which manufacturers must adhere.
Why: These safes feature a 1/2 inch steel door or greater. They require at least 10" of depth behind your wall.
Lock Options for Wall Safes
Manual Safe Locks (Key Locks)
This is a popular type of lock for safes, and is also the least expensive. This type of lock uses a key to open the safe, which you can use to lock and unlock the safe at any time.
Combination Safe Locks
This type of lock is more secure and advanced than a key lock. The technology for this lock has been around for over 100 years and is one of the most reliable locks on the market. It does not require any batteries or keys that could get lost. You do need a locksmith to change the combination if you ever want it to be different in the future.
Electronic Safe Locks
This type of lock allows you to choose your own combination so that no one else will know what it is. Simply program your own personal code. It also gives you quick access to your contents when you need them. These locks do require that you change the batteries about once a year.
Biometric Safe Locks
Biometric safes have a fingerprint scanner so that only those who have registered their fingerprints with the lock can access them. These are very secure, but they are also more expensive compared to other types of safe locks available today.
Popular Wall Safe Brands
Some of the most popular and highly reputable manufacturers of wall safes include: American Security (AMSEC), Barska, BlumSafe, Gardall, Hayman, Hollon, Liberty, Mesa Safe, Protex, SnapSafe, Sports Afield, Stealth Safes, Tactical Traps, Tactical Walls, Tracker, Viking, and V-Line.
What Size Wall Safe Do You Need?
The size of your safe is an important consideration. It should be proportional to the amount of valuables that you wish to store in it. If you are storing documents and small valuables, a small safe will do. However, if you are storing a lot of jewelry, firearms, or other items that take up more room, then it might be best to invest in a larger model that can hold larger or more items. Make sure to measure the depth behind your wall to see which wall safe will fit. If you have a place with more depth behind your wall, you will have more room to fit more valuables inside.
What Else to Consider?
There are a few other things to consider before you buy a wall safe.
- Will you outgrow the safe? Make sure to buy a safe that has enough room to grow with your needs.
- CDOJ Rating: Will the safe be in California, and will you be storing a gun in it? California-approved firearms safety devices, such as safes, need to meet the requirements of California Penal Code Section 12088 and the regulations issued within. You can find CDOJ rated safes here.
- Warranty: Check the warranty on any given model. Generally speaking, longer warranties indicate better quality or durability in terms of construction, materials used, and overall design.
- Waterproofing: Are wall safes waterproof? No, wall safes are not waterproof. We recommend putting your items in zip lock bags or Tupperware containers if you want to keep them 100% waterproof. You can also buy a fire and water resistant bag to put your items inside: Medium Fire & Water Resistant Bag or Large Fire & Water Resistant Bag.
Questions? Our safe professionals have decades of experience and they are ready to help answer any questions you may have. Please reach out to us by phone, chat, or email if you need assistance.
CDOJ Rated Wall Safes & Gun Storage
As of January 1, 2002, no firearm may be sold, transferred, or manufactured within California unless that firearm is accompanied by a DOJ-approved firearms safety device (California Penal Code section 23620, et seq).
Why: These are California-approved firearms safety devices that meet the requirements of California Penal Code Section 12088 and the regulations issued thereunder.
Hiding Your Safe
- Leaving your safe in plain sight is the easiest way for burglars to find it, so do not do that.
- Do not hide your safe in a place that would be obvious to burglars. If you store it in a closet, for example, they can easily look there first and just keep looking until they find it.
- If you have a safe with some kind of electronic lock on it, make sure you know what the code is, and do not write it down anywhere.
- You should also not hide your safe where guests are likely to be during house parties or gatherings. They may think, "All I need to do is come back another time," and then the next thing you know, your valuables are gone forever.
Where Should You Install a Wall Safe?
You should install your wall safe in a place that is not easily accessible to children or burglars. You should also consider the possibility of fires if you live in an area with high winds and lots of lightning.
Walls are typically made from drywall, which will burn if exposed to excessive heat. The same goes for cabinets where you might keep emergency supplies like food and water. These can be damaged by fire just as easily as your wall safe can be destroyed.
Before You Install Your Wall Safe
- Make sure you have the right tools.
- Make sure you have the right space.
- Make sure you have the right wall.
- Make sure you have the right size wall safe.
- Make sure you have the right wall safe installation kit.
- And finally, make sure you have all of your instructions in one place and follow them carefully.
How to Install a Wall Safe
Tools needed to install a wall safe:
- Tape measure
- Hammer
- Level
- Drywall saw
- Drill/driver
Why: These safes feature an adjustable back or a fixed deep back, making them far deeper than typical wall safes. Note: you will need a deep wall, or the back of the safe will appear in the adjacent room.
Did We Leave Anything Out?
With these considerations in mind, we hope this guide helps you make an informed decision about which wall safe is right for you. If you still have questions or would like to talk to a safe professional, we are here. The team at Safe and Vault Store can help you through the decision-making process.
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