Opinions on Gardall 1612-2 Fireproof Safe?

should tell you at the Gardall web site..

you IMO can have burglary resistance, or you can have fire.. to get BOTH, you will pay dearly.. a 'normal' fire safe says, guarantee x degrees for y time.. and its rated for PAPER..no computer media.. it relys on the walls giving up water to hold the internal temperature below 350 degrees for the rated amount of time. so anything you put in MUST be able to stand 350 degrees at 100% humidity. IF you want burglary AND fire, then keep looking..and depending on size container you need you might pay $1,000 or more. they will advertise they are burglary resistant in some means.. for instance you get one that says TL15. means the door is tool resistant for 15 minutes which is a VERY long real time frame, the way they consider the rating rules. It would also say fire rated time/temp

'any' electronic lock, again, IMO, can fail SUDDENLY.. and they

99.999% of the time require drilling to get open (unless the batteries just died).. as opposed to a dial type lock that can fail..but they do not always require drilling to get it open.

--Shiva--

Are you saying that fireproof record safes (like the Gardall 1612-2) are easy to break into? We live in a rural area with only a couple neighbors with a mile or two of our home. I'm not worried about serious professional burglars, just casual break-ins by teenagers or drug addicts. Would someone like that, without any experience, be able to get into that type of safe easily?

I looked at several burglary/fire rated safes, but I soon realized that we couldn't afford one. I decided that, for us, fire protection is more important than burglary protection.

Are electronic lock failures common?

I asked the people at Gardall which electronic lock I would get if I ordered a 1612-2 safe with the electronic lock option. They told me that they install the S&G Z02 lock. However, when I asked the retailer the same question, they told me it would be the S&G 6120. Is either of these locks good? Is either of them prone to sudden failures such as you mentioned?

Thanks for your input Shiva.

Yes, but the failure rate for mechanical locks is rare and when the mechanical ones fail, they usually give some warning. The electronic locks just die for no apperant reason, usually just after the warrantee has lapsed.

probably not..it looks decent.. I MIGHT SUGGEST, look at the 1812/2 or the 1818/2, just because the cost is not a LOT bigger, but the size might be to your advantage.

as the other poster said, NO, but its a guaranteed SUDDEN and drill requirement when it happens

any electronic lock has an issue. and that is the electronics.. this is just like a TV or stereo.. MOST of the time they are great, but..the can fail, and in this case they call it a safe because it IS a safe..

DO TELL/ASK your insurance agent regarding contents.. MOST companies will not cover 'certain contents' unless they are declared on the policy as a rider.

--Shiva--

Yes as long as you don't need serious burglary protection and as long as you bolt it down to something SOLID.

It's steel walls and fire resistant filler.

outside and

A 6730 or other mechanical lock.