Safes have become extremely popular over the past few years. In the recent past, most safes were used almost exclusively by major corporations. Now, they have been scaled down considerably and are accessible to many homeowners. Safes give people an added security boost and they are greatly appreciated by many. Of course responsible owners should look into everything that goes into buying a  safe.

As with any security device, there is always the risk that the owner might get locked out of their device. If the safe breaks of if you forgot your safe combination, you will need assistance. This sounds absurd and even funny to many owners. That is until it happens to them. Not to worry, though, because this is for this exact reason that the safe locksmith at United Locksmith exists.

Homeowners that have gone through a safe lockout understand just how scary it can be when faced with the possibility that you might not be able to get back into your safe, or that the precious contents of your safe might be damaged in an attempt to get them out. Do not fear, because our safe locksmith will help rectify your problem as quickly as possible.

There are two main types of safes that are commonly used by homeowners. These are the combination lock safe and the electronic lock safe. Our safe locksmith has been well trained to gain access to both types of safes.

Safes that make use of the combination lock system work by using wheel packs. Wheel packs work together to grant entry to the safe. In its most basic form, the wheel pack works in conjunction with the combination dial, spindle, wheels and a drive cam.

The numbers on the dial of a combination lock usually point to the number of wheels that are housed in the wheel pack. The combination dial of the safe is connected to a spindle that turns the drive cam. Within the lock, the drive cam is connected to a driver pin and this pin is meant to connect with the wheel fly.

The rotation of the dial moves the driver pin and allows it to hit a notch on the wheel fly that begins to set the lock in motion. The lock is moved by the process of “picking up the wheels”. This refers to the way the turn of dial allows each wheel to be picked up.

This motion occurs because the wheels have wheel flies on each side. The notches on each of these wheels let them pick each other up and spin in the right motion. This motion can only be activated once the dial is turned in the right direction.

Once the proper combination has been used, and all the wheels are properly aligned, they give way to a gap that allows the fence (the fence is in place to prevent the bolts from moving to open the safe) to fall through. This allows the bolts to be moved to give access to the safe.

Electronic lock safes employ similar methods (in terms of using bolts) and give the homeowner access to the safe once the proper code is entered. These types of safes work on the simple principle of giving the bolts the freedom to retract once the right code has been entered. Once the right code has been entered, an electronic signal is sent from the keypad to the bolts within the lock.

Bypassing Safe Locks

It has become a much-coveted skill to know how to unlock a safe, and this is due in part to the fact that so many homeowners are now making use of safes to secure their belongings. It is also a much-coveted skill because it’s cool. Safe locksmiths are cool people.

There are several different methods that a safe locksmith can use to help get you back into your safe, and we’ll run through all of them so that you have an idea of what will happen to your safe and to the contents of your safe once you contact a safe locksmith to help you with the situation. When your safe won’t open there are a many potential ways to get back in.

Manipulating The Safe

The process of manipulating a lock might take longer than any other method that can be used to bypass the security of a safe, but it is the go-to method for many a safe locksmith. Safe locksmiths prefer to use this method to unlock safes because it negates the possibility of your safe (and its contents) being damaged.

Manipulating a safe relies on the safe locksmith listening to the safe as they attempt to manipulate it into opening. Safe locksmiths are known to make use of stethoscopes and other sound amplification devices to help them move the dial along with its corresponding wheels into proper alignment. They listen intently and attempt to catch the sound that is made once the driver pin hits the notch on the wheel fly.

This signifies that the unlocking process is on the right track. This is the preferred method of many safe locksmiths because it does not damage your safe but it manipulates it into opening. It takes time, patience, and want, so our safe locksmith will make sure that homeowners are aware of this.

Drilling The Safe

Drilling is another common method that a safe locksmith can employ to open a safe. This method is a lot faster than manipulating the safe but it does cause some minor cosmetic damage. A small hole is drilled into the lock and an instrument is inserted into the drilled hole to help the safe locksmith see how to open the safe.

This practice has become much harder in recent times due to the added security measures that many safes now have. These measures make it harder to bypass the lock. If homeowners know of any of these added security features, it is imperative that they let the safe locksmith know beforehand. If there are stringent additional security methods in place, then the safe locksmith will probably not opt to drill the safe.

Scoping The Safe

Scoping a safe is very similar to drilling, the only difference between these two access methods is the inclusion of a borescope. A borescope is an instrument that is used to inspect the internal makeup of a structure by inserting it into a small hole.

This option is most commonly used in place of drilling once the safe locksmith is made aware of the fact that there may be additional security measures in place. This method allows them to scope out the security measures and work to bypass them so that they are not triggered because this could potentially damage the safe or damage the contents of the safe.

Cutting and Prying The Safe

These methods are only employed by our safe locksmith as a last resort. There is no point in using any of these methods unless the ones described above have no success at all in opening the lock. The reason behind this is the fact that these methods damage the safe beyond repair (in most cases) and it is not advised that they are used as the first option to open a safe.

Our safe locksmith is well versed in using the above methods to help you gain entry to your safe. If you happen to hire another locksmith that bypasses everything discussed above and goes straight to attempting to cut and pry open the safe, make sure that you stop them right away.

Cutting a safe open is a self-explanatory term. It involves forcibly cutting the bolts that keep the safe shut, and this can be done with a high-power saw or with a torch. The safe locksmith will begin to cut into the safe, and attempt to gain access to your belongings. This method is a speedy one but its downsides outweigh the benefits.

The same goes for prying the safe open. To pry a safe open the safe locksmith will attempt to pry the door of the safe and its bolts right out of the safe. This method involves a lot of time and energy to be expended while still damaging the lock, which is why it is a last resort method that is used in the event that the above solutions don’t work.

Help Your Safe Locksmith Out

The art to unlocking safes is not an easy one to master, and our safe locksmiths have dedicated time and patience to make sure they get it right so that they can properly serve you in your time of need.

However, it is important that homeowners provide the safe locksmith with some important information beforehand so that they can properly work to meeting your needs in the best possible time and in the best possible way. Here are some things you should make sure to tell your safe locksmith before they begin work:

• Give the locksmith an idea of what might be in the safe, this will help guide them when they are attempting to open the safe.
• Make sure to notify the safe locksmith of the brand, style, and model of the safe because this will make the process of opening the safe much more expedient.
• If there are any additional security measures in place make sure that you let the safe locksmith know before they start work on the safe.