What Is a Burglary Safe?

Other than through the description provided by the seller, how do you know if a safe is burglary proof? What features make a safe a burglary safe? Compared to the rather subjective “high security” category of safes, the “burglary” category is easier to define. The features and general classification are discussed below.

Classification and Features

To belong under the “burglary” category of safes, a safe should at least be in class TL15 or tool resistant for up to 15 minutes. This means that the safe is designed and is thick enough to be able to withstand attempts to have it forcibly opened using mechanical or electrical tools. These tools include lock picking devices, power saws, grinders, hand drills, carbide drills, and grinding points. Also, it should not be easily destroyed with the exertion of brute force through hammering.

All safes from TL15 to the higher classes are considered burglar-proof. Essentially, the idea is that the safe prevents unauthorized access particularly through means aimed at destroying the safe’s door or puncturing a hole into other parts of the safe. Other classes of safes deemed burglar-resistant are TL30, TL40, TRTL30, TRTL60, and TXTL60.

TRTL30 and TRTL60 safes, in addition to being tool resistant like the TL15, are torch resistant or capable of withstanding the damage induced by a blowtorch or oxy-fuel torch for 30 and 60 minutes respectively. TXTL60 safes, on the other hand, are safes designed to be capable of withstanding the impact of high explosives like nitroglycerin.

Size and Setup

Anti-burglar safes come in various sizes and designs. If you are planning to get small tool and torch resistant safes, though, it’s important that they are attached to the wall or floor so burglars cannot easily lift them out instead of taking the time attempting to break into them. Also, hidden or concealed safes embedded on walls or fllors are always better. A TRTL60 safe embedded on the wall is as good as the more expensive TRTL60x6 or one designed with TRTL60 protection on all 6 sides.

There is no prescribed size or dimensions for burglary safes. What’s important is that the safes are able to effectively prevent burglars from forcibly opening the door or creating holes on the walls to gain access to the contents.

Other Features

Tool and torch resistant safes may also be fireproof and waterproof. These features are recommended for safes that are intended for important documents, bills, and data storage media like hard drives, DVDs or Blu-Rays, and flash drives. It’s important to point out, though, that fireproofing and waterproofing in safes are never absolute and infinite. The guarantee that a safe can prevent fire from damaging its contents is only for a limited period of time, usually a minimum of 1 hour. That’s why it’s still important to promptly retrieve a fireproof safe when it is already safe to do so. Additionally, you may also want to consider a safe with rearrangeable interiors to make it easier to fit in the things that are to be put into them.

If you are looking for a burglar-proof safe, be sure that you choose something that is at least a TL15. However, don’t rely too much on the ability of a safe to prevent unauthorized access. There are also things you can do to help fend off a burglary like installing alarms and concealing the safe.