Monday, September 9, 2019

Jammed Safe – What to do?



There are thousands of safes here in Tyler, TX and in the Greater Dallas/Ft Worth Metropolitan area. Many homes, businesses and institutions have and use safes to secure their cash, jewelry, documents and other valuables from perils of all kinds. Every once in a while a safe may become jammed and not open when needed to. This is why Locksmith Tyler has decided to make this post; so you’ll know what to do in case your safe becomes jammed or hard to open.

Why won’t it open?

There are many reasons why a safe will become jammed. It may need servicing or the hinges and other parts may have become worn due to use or age. Electronic safes may have a short circuit, a low battery or there may be an absence of electricity or a power surge in the neighborhood. Also, digital safes have a built-in safety mechanism that will “shut down” the safe and prevent it from opening for several hours if the wrong combination is used. This is much like trying to access your bank online and entering the wrong password too many times. You will most likely be locked out of your account for up to a day or so.

Vintage safes and estate sales

Many safes are bought at auction or at estate sales. The previous owner may have died, had it repossessed or even gone to prison! Many if not most of these safes don’t have a known combination to open them. The new owner will need the professional services of a Tyler, TX locksmith in order to get his newly acquired safe open again. Technically these safes are not jammed but the end result is the same; no safe access.

So, what should you do?

You obviously need access to your safe or else you wouldn’t have discovered that it won’t open. You may be trying to add something to its contents, or you may have needed to get an item out of it. Maybe, it’s somewhat of an emergency and you need fast access to its contents as quickly as possible. You might need cash for a medical emergency or for a funeral expense. You may be trying to close a business deal and need access to money or documents right away.

The main thing to keep in mind is to not try and force your safe open. Doing so can damage your safe as well as the contents inside. The movies and television show “safe crackers” come in and easily and quickly open safes of all sizes and types by simply turning the dial a few times and listening. This is fiction; pure and simple. True safe opening is a skill and takes experience and training in order to do it right. You can’t just smash your way in or “James Bond” the situation in a couple of seconds!

Speaking of contents…

We briefly mentioned not damaging the contents of the safe. This brings up another point; you can put anything you like inside your residential or commercial safe. This can include cash, jewelry, documents, watches, art, flash drives, receipts, warranties, passports, licenses, stock certificates, appraisals, property deeds, coins, vintage photos, rare artifacts, guns, stamps and anything else deemed of value. Your safe is meant to keep these valuables protected from thieves and other unauthorized persons as well as the elements like wind, dust, rain, fire, moisture and flood.

Do NOT call a safe shop

You may be thinking that since you might have purchased your safe from a safe shop; that you can get it serviced there, too. There are pros and cons to this thinking. Going this route offers ease of use and convenience. You just call the shop and leave the rest to them. On the downside however is that almost all safe shops are merely retail outlets. If they offer set up, delivery or service for the safe you just bought, it will usually be outsourced to guess who; a locksmith!

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