Digital media has become the preferred way of storing data, financial records on our drives, photos, family videos, etc. If you are like most people, you have one or more forms of digital media in your home, some of which you would like to keep private. How do you protect them?
Every year, Australia records at least 17,000 residential fire incidents, most caused by electrical appliances. No one is entirely immune from fire accidents. Fortunately, you can invest in a fireproof document storage safe to protect your digital media. Can the safe you use to protect physical documents keep your digital media safe, or do you need to buy a different safe?
Fireproof Safes and Their Rating
A fireproof document storage safe is built using fire-resistant material like steel and contains fire-insulating fillers. They commonly have gypsum on the walls, creating a protective shell around the safe. These features help keep the valuables safe in a fire as the insulation slows down the rate at which heat penetrates the safe.
Safes with fire resistance ratings have a time range between half an hour to four hours, during which the safe maintains a relatively low internal temperature. Underwriters Laboratory does independent tests on safes to categorize the fireproof ratings. For example, the UL Class 350 with a 1-hour fire rating is a common standard for commercial safes. If the safe is exposed to external temperatures higher than 1700 degrees Fahrenheit, its internal temperature will not exceed 350 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour.
The next class is the Class 350, with a 2-hour rating. When the safe is exposed to temperatures higher than 1700 degrees Fahrenheit, its internal temperature will not exceed 350 degrees F for two hours. The internal temperature remains low enough to safely store items without heat damage. During the testing phase, UL stress tests the safe. They expose the safes to heat for a specified duration, and those that pass get a UL certification.
Note: Although a safe may be fireproof, it is only for the specified time. After that, if the safe is exposed to intense and prolonged fire, it could sustain damage. However, the time is usually enough to sort out the fire and save the safe.
Why Digital Media Needs to Be Stored in Fireproof Safes
Digital media, despite the convenience, presents a different type of vulnerability. First, they have a lower heat tolerance than paper, which can withstand as high as 450 degrees Fahrenheit before burning. Digital media, on the other hand, contain delicate circuits, e.g. the memory chips in flash drives. These circuits can easily malfunction or fail at much lower temperatures, exceeding 150 degrees Fahrenheit.
Second, most digital storage devices, e.g. external hard drives and SD cards, are made of plastic casings. Therefore, as temperatures rise in case of a fire, they easily melt or warp, further destroying the device and the data in it.
Third, intense heat can affect the electrical and magnetic patterns used to store information on hard drives. Optical media like DVDs, CDs, and SSDs can physically survive the fire, but the data might not. Here is a breakdown of the threats each digital media storage device presents when it comes to fire:
- Hard disks- the inside is coated with a magnetic recording layer, which can be quickly and permanently damaged by excessive heat
- Optical media- they quickly melt or warp in a fire, making them unreadable.
- Solid-state drives- the high temperatures will disrupt the electrical charges that store data in the flash memory chips.
A fireproof safe maintains cooler internal temperatures, which can help protect the delicate nature of your preferred digital media.
Secure Your Digital Media Today with Our Fireproof Safes
Each form of digital media has different storage needs, but all need to be safeguarded in a fireproof safe. The right safe can protect digital media for years, and you can pass it down through generations. Explore the fireproof safes available at Safes Australia; you will get various options to suit your needs. Our team of experts can help you choose, deliver and install your in your home anywhere across Australia.
