American Security (AMSEC) TL-15 High Security Safe - 4.17 cu ft Interior, 2-Hour Fire Rating, Electronic Lock, CEV2518

American Security (AMSEC) CEV2518 - External Dimensions - 32"H × 25"W × 25.5"D - 1,292lbs

A safe with a UL TL-15 burglary rating, a commercial standard, and a two-hour fire rating at 1850°F. The body is 3.5 inches of steel and composite and the door is 6 inches thick, so a safe 32 inches tall weighs as much as 1,292 lbs.

American Security (AMSEC) build the CEV for jewelry, documents and the things that would be hardest to replace. It is a high-security safe sized for a house rather than a shop.

What it holds

Room for jewelry trays stacked on the shelf, the deeds and certificates flat beneath them, and a bag of gold coins that weighs more than it looks.

Specifications

Interior

25"H × 18"W × 16"D

Interior volume, calculated: 4.17 cu ft

Adjustable steel shelving

Exterior & siting

32"H × 25"W × 25.5"D

1,292 lbs

Anchoring: one 0.5" recessed anchor hole, centered in the floor of the safe

Security

Lock: ESL10 electronic lock

Locking bolts: chrome-plated solid steel, 1.5" diameter

Door assembly thickness: 6" composite door — outer and inner steel plates with a barrier of steel fibers and hard nuggets

Wall thickness: 3.5", steel with high-strength composite fill

Burglary rating: UL TL-15

Handle: three-spoke, with pull handle

Fire, water & media

Fire rating: 2 hours at 1850°F, independently tested

Media / data rating: Not a media safe.

Water rating: None claimed.

The rest

Warranty: Not stated by the manufacturer.

Manufacturer part number: CEV2518

Finish: textured black, chrome hardware

The TL-15 rating

TL-15 is Underwriters Laboratories' test for a safe door under expert attack: fifteen minutes of working time with hand tools, power tools, drills and grinders, by testers who know where safes are weak. The door and its front face have to hold. It is a commercial rating that insurers recognize, and it is uncommon on a safe built for a house.

Ask your insurer what a TL-15 safe means for your policy. It is one of the questions insurers ask about jewelry and other valuables kept at home.

The fire rating

Two hours at 1850°F is a long, hot test, longer and hotter than most home safes are rated for. The composite that slows a drill also holds back heat, which is why the same walls carry both ratings.

Delivery and Siting

At an impressive 1,292 lbs this safe travels by freight, its weight with packaging exceeds the ability of the freight company to lower it off the truck. So unless you have the means of unloading this safe from the truck yourself, it will arrive at an R&L Freight terminal nearest to where you live. Getting it from there to your home requires a safe-moving company with the equipment for the job to move it inside. We'll help you find one near you and price the job if you wish.

At 25 inches wide it clears a standard doorway, but at 1,292 lbs the route matters more than the opening. Doorsteps, thresholds and stairs all need planning by the movers.

A ground floor on a concrete slab is the natural home for a safe this heavy. On an upper floor, ask a contractor to check the floor before it goes in.

What this is not

It is not a media safe. The rating protects paper. Hard drives, USB sticks, discs and film need an interior kept below 125°F, and this safe makes no such claim.

It is not water rated. No claim is made. A house fire usually brings a great deal of water from the hoses, so keep papers in sealed bags inside if that matters to you.

It is not a six-sided TL-15x6 safe. The TL-15 rating covers the door and its front face, which is where the test is applied; a six-sided rating is a separate, heavier class.

It is not a gun safe. It has no rack, and it is built for jewelry and documents.

On the maker

American Security make safes in Fontana, California, from small home units through to the high-security safes their commercial customers buy. The CEV series brings that commercial rating into a home-sized cabinet. If you need a figure we haven't listed, ask us and we'll put the question to American Security.

Questions

Will it fit through my door?

At 25 inches wide it clears a standard doorway. Allow about 28 inches of depth with the handle. The weight is the harder problem; see Siting.

What does TL-15 mean?

It means the door withstood fifteen minutes of expert attack with tools in an Underwriters Laboratories test.

Is the fire rating independent?

Yes. American Security describe it as an independent rating, two hours at 1850°F.

Will it protect hard drives or USB sticks in a fire?

No. It's rated for paper. Digital media needs a safe rated to keep its interior below 125°F.

What is the warranty?

American Security's listing doesn't state it. Ask us and we'll find out for you.