When picking the best place to mount a key safe, you need to consider ease of access, security and weather protection. The ideal location is one that’s easy to access, safe from the elements and hidden from potential burglars and intruders.
What’s a Key Safe?
Leaving spare or shared keys under a mat is not a very good idea for home security. A fake rock is only slightly better, but burglars will probably figure it out.
A key safe provides a safer way to store keys you don’t want to carry with you but which you still need to access to open the door. For instance spare keys to the front door or keys that you share with roommates or family members.
A key safe is a metal storage box that you mount outside your house for easy access to the keys. Most key safes are secured using a combination lock or an electronic number pad. These days you can also get smart key safes that can be operated remotely via an app.
While highly convenient, a key safe introduces a vulnerability in your home security. All a burglar needs to do is break into it and they don’t have to struggle to pick or break your door lock. They can even copy the key and come back as often as they want if you don’t change the lock.
That’s why it matters a great deal the quality of the key safe you get and where you mount it.
What To Consider When Mounting a Key Safe
Security
The obvious place to mount a key safe is right next to the front door. While this may be convenient for access, it’s probably not the most secure place. That’s because the front door is usually easily visible as you approach the house and sometimes even from the street.
So a potential burglar will know exactly where to target when looking for keys. Instead, find a location on the wall or the floor that’s out of sight and not obvious to other people. This is especially the case if you’ve bought a cheaper key safe with a low to moderate level of security.
Once you find the ideal location, make sure you install the safe securely. Even the strongest key safe is useless if burglars can take it off the wall.
Use the right kind of screws and make sure there are no large gaps between the back of the safe and the wall. Burglars can take advantage of large gaps to pry the safe off the wall.
Ease of Access
Don’t be obsessed with security concerns that you mount the key safe in an inconvenient out of reach location that is difficult to access. That defeats the entire purpose of getting a key safe.
Now, if you are getting a key safe to store spare keys in case you misplace the ones you have, you can afford to mount it somewhere a bit far out of reach since you don’t need to access the safe often.
But if you are storing shared keys, accessibility is super important. While you should mount the key safe out of the sight of potential intruders, make sure everyone who needs the keys can easily reach and open it.
Weather
Finally, look for a location where the key safe is well protected from the elements. Manufacturers know keys safes are mounted outside, so most have some level of weather protection.
But even if you have a waterproof safe, protecting it from the elements as best as you can prolongs its life and keeps it strong and secure. This also protects the lock mechanism from jamming, which could prevent you from accessing the keys.
Find a location that provides full or partial protection from the weather.
Best Places to Mount a Key Safe
Now that we know what to consider when mounting a key safe — security, access, weather — here are some ideas on where to mount yours.
- Somewhere out of sight on the side or rear of your home. If you can find a spot hidden by some bushes, even better.
- Somewhere at the front of your home, but not easily visible to someone approaching the house. For instance, behind some bushes.
- We’ve also seen some people mount their key safe on the fence of their home. The downside is that most fences don’t provide any kind of weather protection. If you opt for this option, get a high quality safe that’s well protected from the elements and corrosion.
- Mount the safe near an outdoor security camera, ideally one with a motion sensor. That way, you can catch anyone trying to access the safe.
- Another brilliant idea is to install the safe behind a locked door like in the garage or an outdoor shed. Then, use a keyless lock such as a combination lock or an electronic lock for the door. This ensures you can open the door and access the key safe at any time while adding an extra layer of security.
- If you trust your neighbour, ask if you can install the key safe in their home. Burglars won’t break into a key safe they can’t find. On the downside, you’ll have to hope your neighbour will be home in case you need the spare keys.
The Quality of the Safe Matters
The security of a key safe is not just in where you mount it; the quality of the safe matters too. In fact, getting a high quality and strong key safe is more important than finding an obscure location to mount it. With a robust safe, you can even mount it in full view and it will keep your keys safe.
Get a thick metal safe that has security certifications (e.g. police preferred) to guarantee that it’s been tested to withstand various kinds of attacks.
An Alternative to A Key Safe
If you can’t find a good place to mount a key safe or you have security concerns about using one, the best alternative to a key safe is going keyless.
With a keyless lock, you don’t have to carry keys with you, there is no risk you will lock yourself out of the house and you can give others controlled access to your home.
You have several options but the two best ones are an electronic lock or a smart lock. Electronic door locks come with a number pad, fingerprint or card access. Some locks provide multiple types of access, so you can have a number pad as well as a fingerprint reader.
A smart lock is one that can be operated remotely via an app. So you can unlock or lock the door from wherever you are and let other people into your home.
Here’s a helpful video if you are thinking about getting a smart lock for your home.
Of course, a keyless lock also has its security vulnerabilities. It’s up to you to decide which option between storing keys in a key safe and installing a keyless lock is most secure and convenient.
