If you do not already have standard fireproof home safes or wall gun safes with vault doors and solid locking mechanisms in your home, then it is highly recommended you get one. Even if you do not own things like expensive jewelry or guns, the chances are you have some important documents around that could use the extra security. Things like birth certificates and passports should not just be lying around in a drawer somewhere. Though there are many types of safes to choose from for protection of your belongings, a large number of people prefer in-wall safes for the convenience of use and versatility of placement. Wall safes can be out in the open, in an armoire, or even hidden if desired. A further recommended upgrade is to ensure your safe is fireproof or at least fireproof, in the case of disaster. Though the precaution may seem a bit much at first, if you ever find yourself in the situation where you need it then it will have been a small price to pay to still have your most valuable possessions after everything else is gone.
Wall safes are made to fit in a standard wall gap. This means they fit between a 16-inch stud gap and are only 4 inches deep externally. A truly fireproofed box has very thick walls, over an inch thick, so it is not possible to find a fully fireproof wall safe. All officially fireproof rated safes are traditional standalone boxes or floor safes. If you absolutely need an in-wall safe for your space, though, the best you will be able to do is a fire-resistant safe. These are actually made of thin metal and not solid steel that holds fire-retardant material with flush doors and electronic locks. Unfortunately, this means that they are not necessarily burglar-proof as the metal can often be punctured or cut with ordinary tools. Therefore, it is important to understand exactly what you are getting and what the limitations are.
Fire-resistant safes are made to keep the internal temperature below 350 degrees, which is the temperature at which paper will start to burn. They are also meant to protect from smoke damage. What they are not meant to do is protect against water or keep the interior dry, so steam can occur inside the safe during a fire event. Do not keep any materials that will melt below 350 degrees or which can be damaged by moisture in a fire resistant safe.
This basic wall safe by Protex will resist fire for up to 30 minutes, if necessary. It is designed to be installed between standard 16-inch wall studs and comes with pre-drilled holes, so it is fairly simple to self-install if you are comfortable with a bit of drywall work. This is a bit deeper than most wall safes so be sure to install it somewhere that is appropriately sized. It opens with an electronic keypad and has a backlit LED screen so you can see what you are doing even in the dark. It is powered by AA batteries but also has a backup keyed entry in case the batteries die. This safe also includes removable shelving for a bit of extra organization. Protex makes the only fire-resistant wall safe that can be purchased on Amazon.
If you already have a safe or do not like any of the fire resistant and fireproof safes here, an inexpensive but effective solution for your important documents is this fire-resistant document bag made by Colcase. It is inexpensive but can protect items up to 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. It is 11 inches by 15 inches so most standard official documents, such as deeds, passports, birth certificates, and social security cards, can fit inside with ease. You can even protect small valuables inside this bag. Though this bag is made of fiberglass, it is coated in silicone to keep the fiberglass from shedding and irritating your skin. There are cheaper document bags available, but be careful when budget shopping for these. They tend to be made from fiberglass since this is a cheap fire-resistant material. If they are not properly sealed, however, they can shed fibers and irritate the skin of anyone who handles them. You may want to pull documents out and put them back on a regular basis and wearing gloves to do so is probably not practical. It is worth the extra few dollars to get a higher quality bag that will not irritate your skin.
You might have a lot of items that you want to store, such as long guns, handguns, jewelry, and documents. If that is the case then consider a long gun safe in which you can store the guns as-is, but then pair it with a larger fire-resistant document bag for the paper and smaller items. For example, this fire-resistant document bag by D-Cover is fairly large at 11”x15”x3.5”. Since the wall cavity is usually only four inches this bag is about as deep and wide as the entire interior of a standard wall safe. You can fill it up with all of your important documents and jewelry and rest easy knowing that even if your safe does not withstand the heat and smoke of a fire, your bag is protecting the items that really matter.
If your heart is set on a wall safe then there are not very many options that are fire-resistant and none of them are fireproof. If the Protex brand safe is not going to work for you then you are probably better off either getting a regular wall safe with a fire-resistant document bag. Alternatively, there are many safes that are not meant to go in the wall which is graded for fire endurance. For example, this freestanding SentrySafe Digital Safe is both fire and water safe. It is UL classified for fire endurance up an hour at 17oo degrees Fahrenheit. You would have to find somewhere to keep it other than the wall but at least you know your valuables are being protected from fire. Whatever direction you choose, make sure that the fire protection is officially certified and not just a buzzword on the packaging.
