If you are considering putting a safe in your home to keep your valuables out of the hands of burglars, it only makes sense to buy a small fireproof safe for additional protection. Fire-rated burglary safes keep all of your valuable assets and important documents from being stolen or destroyed. In order to find the best fireproof safes, you will have to pay attention to several different ratings. The first of these is the construction rating, which has been established by the insurance industry. The lowest rating is B, while the most effective safes have ratings of E, ER, F or G.
Fireproof safes for the home should also include two performance ratings from Underwriters Laboratory. The first is the UL fire label that provides the maximum temperature that can be withstood by a fireproof burglary safe, which ranges from 1,550° F to 2,000° F, and a duration of time the safe can withstand such a temperature, ranging from one-half hour to four hours. The second performance rating is the UL burglary classification, usually TL-15 or TL-30, which rates how well safes will stand up to drills and other hand tools.