Is A 2-Hour Fire Safe Enough For Storing Money ?
 

I'm looking to buy a home safe, but from what I see, most models that I found have a 2-hour rating and I was wondering if that's enough.

I'm gonna use it mainly for a money stash, but fear that I could lose it all if I had the misfortune of a fire.

What do the rest of you use ?? I know that the safest place is in the bank, which I do have money in there, but I don't want it all sitting in there, nobody needs to know all that I have :)

I can tell you alot of structure fires last longer than 2 hours.

If you make all your money online they know what you have already trust me . lol

I think they sell fire proof safes aswell.

He is looking at fire proof ones. :winkwink:

Put your money in a container filled with water inside the 2 hour safe. Sure to last!

well if I was you I would get a 2 or 4 drawer file cabinet thats a firesafe too

http://www.staples.com/catalog/searc...e+cabinet+fire

keep whatever you want there, bank records, cash, porn etc.

Or it will make denim soup.

ill hold the money for you

Buy the safe and then get some aluminum foil wrap it around the safe then get 1/2 in steel plate cut to a size that you can then have welded to make a box that you can put your safe in and then have a hinge attached to a piece of steel that will act as a door. You can have this done at any local tech school for free usually and there you go a great safe for only $25 more or so...

Brilliant!

Seriously. Look into one you sink into the floor. It will last the best when it comes to fire. Not to mention people robbing ya would not ussually look at the floor for anything.

Yeah right

Don't get the two hour fire safe. What they don't tell you is that all paper has a char point that is much lower than the burning point. If you really want to keep money secure then you want to get a two hour media safe and it has to say media safe on it not just show the pictures of diskettes or tapes on the inside.

Since media is damaged at around 140-150 degrees then that means that the internal temperature of the safe has to stay below the 140 mark for a two hour safe.

Expect to pay more money but then you can also store disks and any backup media you may have.

I knew a guy that bolted his media safe to the floor under a window and then made a pipe that would attach to the water and he would be able to hang the pipe through the window right over the safe and keep it drenched with water during a fire.

Dave.

I put my cash in the back yard under the Duck Food container.

Whats your address and are there any dogs there?

you're probably better off renting a safety deposit box at the bank

I'm not coming around your house Tony, errr BP.....

Thanks a lot for all of your suggestions, I might have to try the water jar inside the safe idea, ha ha ha.

The bank safety deposit box sounds like a nice idea, does anyone know what a rough rental price is for one of those ??

Tony404 has a good point there, however, for me I'm looking at putting money away for the long term, thus money I put away now won't be known to others 20-30 years from now :Graucho

Cheap and tax deductable if you desire.

as long as the hinges are on the inside most people will have trouble getting into your safe

im assuming it is a floor model and not a mobile safe

Why not just give it to charity?

this is a tough one. depends on how hot the fire burns and where you are keeping it.

if its on second floor and caves in, it could be covered in coals for a long time.

my uncle was a jeweler, he had one main safe that he had hidden in the wall on a cement block he had poured into the wall. the best any of the people that ever robbed him did was knock it off the cement block. no one ever cracked it or removed it. it was 400+ lbs lined with lead.

id get a heavy as fuck safe and maybe not keep it so close to the center of my house. those little firesafes you buy at office depot and shit are worthless. if its stictly cash keep it in a well hidden spot in a garage dont mention it to anyone and dont access it more then necessary.

if you want a deposit box at the bank realize you can only access it during business hours.... cash on hand is no longer cash ON hand :(

bank of america gives them for free with most platinum accounts. aside from that most run between 20-50 a month depending on the size.

I wrap it up in tin foil and store it in my freezer..

Many banks will give you a free safe deposit box if you're a big enough customer.

I've always kept money in the freezer after hearing about another famous (infamous?) webmaster doing it. I don't put a LOT in there, just what I would put elsewhere in the house. It makes sense - the fridge/freezer always seems to still be standing in most fires. :thumbsup

A bank safety deposit is the way to go. No worry of burning, ever.

Burglars will love you.

cause burglers always look in the freezer :)

It's really not much arround here