I know that I need a safe to protect important documents, valuables, backed up computer files etc. I do not want a large, heavy floor safe, but what are my options? With a little research I discovered that there are a lot of different types of safes available to suit most any need or lifestyle. Some have been around for while, and some are new and innovative. I discovered which safe is best for me, what about you?
Often when I think of a safe,
I think of a large, rectangular, reinforced metal “box” for placing valuable or firearms. Though these large types of safes are available, and there is a very good reason to have one, they are not the only options out there for protecting your valuables. We do not have any firearms in our house, so we do not need large. But we do have some valuables and important documents that we would like to keep safe, especially in case of a fire. After doing a bit of research, I decided that I really like Sentry safes, so I took a look to see what they offered, and was impressed with the large range of different types of Sentry safes.
One nifty type of safe is the in-floor safe. It is a cylinder tube that is about 15” high that is installed in the floor of your house. With the top flush with the floor, the safe is easily concealed under a rug. It comes with a combination lock and contoured handle. It says that it is easy to install in wood or concrete floors, and can be used in new or existing homes. It is not very big, but if you do not have a lot of items to protect, and have a desire to keep it hidden, an in-floor safe is a good option.
For a small family or single person, a great option from Sentry safes is a security chest or box. They are not very big, but are perfect for protecting basic documents such as birth certificates, wills, insurance papers, passports etc. Small external hard drives or thumb drives also easily fit, though you would want to make sure that the chest is classified to protect such data since electronic media is damaged at a lower temperature than paper . They are very compact and versatile and easy to grab and take with you in an emergency. Chests are also available with waterproof seals. I found out that these are some of the most popular Sentry safes in the world!
Most everybody has certain files that must be protected, and even all the documents that we have are sometimes nice just to keep better organized in a file type system. For those of you are are super organized, a security file may be for you! More than a file cabinet, it is an actual secure file box, with the same fire and security protection of any of the full sized Sentry safes. Also available with a waterproof seal.
If you have a business with a lot of keys for different buildings or vehicles, then Sentry safes offers keyboxes. It allows you to keep all of your keys organized and color coded, as well as secure from theft in one nice, safe location. Also great for small businesses which has to move cash around are Sentry’s safeboxes. They come with removable cash trays. Both of these types of Sentry safes are key locked.
A nifty little safe that I had not seen before are Sentry safes for autos. It seems that more and more people have valuable in their cars, especially with all of the electronic gadgets available today. The auto safe is compact and fits easily underneath a seat so it is out of sight from quick hit thieves. It has a key lock and a steel cable that allows you to anchor the safe to a seat or in the trunk, so the thief cannot just grab the safe to quietly break into somewhere else.
Last but not least, and one of the coolest and innovative things to hit the market, is the fireproof and waterproof external hard drives by Sentry safes. They have direct USB connectivity to your computer so that you can keep all of your files safely backed-up. The concept of keeping your files backed-up is not new, but the extra peace of mind to know that your external hard drive is also safe from fire and water damage as well as dust and dirt is truly peace of mind that cannot be found in a regular thumb drive or hard drive. You can also just keep it on your desk, and do not have to remember to back up your files and then put your hard drive back into a regular safe, so very convenient! Developed with Maxtor, this is probably just the first of this type of product to hit the market.
After doing this research, I think that I need more than one type of safe! I like the chest safe for basic documents, the fireproof hard drive for all of our electronic media (especially since we have so many digital family photos that I would hate to lose), and an auto safe for the valuable items we seem to often have with us in the car. So, of all the Sentry safes, which ones are best for you?
