Safes are often much overlooked in household security with house owners opting for Burglar alarms instead. Alarms are all well if somebody responds to the alarm bell, but all too often alarms are ignored and often cause a nuisance to other people especially if false alarms are common!

A common fix to this problem is to have a auto dialler fitted which rings a specified number on activation of the alarm. These alarms are often covered by a service contract which will cost you a monthly fee. When the alarm is activated the dialler calls the service contract centre who in turn contact the police, what a great idea you might think!

Remember what I said on the security centre page "You cannot stop someone from breaking in, but you can make it hard for them"? In most cases a burglar could be put off by an alarm especially if it is on a service contract however this system is not 100% fool proof and all the burglar has to do is telephone the house from a payphone or Mobile and make sure the line is engaged! The Auto dialler cannot call the service centre if the Line is busy! The burglar is then free to burgle your home at will.

Which safe?

Safes which protect from both theft and fire are recommended as they serve a dual purpose. The cost of these safes has dropped considerably in the last few years making them even more affordable! Your insurance company must be informed if you have a safe! For large valuable items it is advisable to insure them individually, take a photo and keep it in your fire safe!

Safes have different ratings depending on what value of items is being stored in them. A safe with a cash rating of £5000 will also cover £50000 of valuables, to get the figure of valuable protection multiply the cash rating by ten.

Securing a safe

After choosing your safe it will be necessary to secure it either to the floor or to a wall, although most safes are heavy it is best to make removal as difficult as possible! Locate the safe where it will be free from prying eyes as if it is hidden then there is even less chance of a burglar finding it.

A safe can be fastened to a wall or a concrete floor with ease, which will make removal very difficult! Most safes have pre marked holes through which to drill in order to fasten it to the floor or wall. Strong fixings are recommended for this such as Shield anchors.

Here on the back of my safe you can see one of the anchor points, there are four on the back and four on the bottom of the safe. You need to decide if you are anchoring it to a wall or to the floor and drill out the relevant holes. Instructions on how to do this will be with your safe and should be followed to the letter. After drilling the holes you can locate it and mark through the holes which you have just drilled so that you know where to drill the fixing holes. Remove the safe and drill the holes for the fixings, insert the fixings and then relocate the safe. Fasten the fixings tightly and there you have it, a fixed fire proof and burglar deterrent.