The hotel safe is one of the must-haves in a hotel room, as we already shared in this blog. A good hotel room gives the home-away-from-home, safety plays a major role in this. A well-functioning safe is an important factor, not only in the hotel room but also behind the reception, for example. In this blog we highlight what to think of when purchasing a new hotel safe.

Size

One of the perhaps obvious choices you face when selecting new hotel safes is size. Based on the type of hotel guest, we recommend different sizes; a business guest will need a laptop-sized safe, whereas a leisure guest often needs a safe that fits just a tablet, camera and passport.

In many cases, the size of the hotel safe also depends on where it is placed in the hotel room. The hotel safe is often in the (wardrobe) cupboard, in this case it is important to check whether a safe fits and whether it can be operated properly. For example, the control panel at the front of many lockers protrudes slightly, extra centimeters that are not always included in the stated dimensions. Logically, external dimensions always deviate from internal dimensions due to materials and protection + technology on the inside of the safe.

The smallest safe in our range is the HS011315, the external dimensions of this model are 230(w) x 170(d) x 170(h) mm. This size safe fits, for example, a telephone, keys, jewelery and a passport. The largest safe is the HS011316 with 420(w) x 320(d) x 180(h) mm. It can easily fit a widescreen laptop and other personal belongings.

Even bigger than the largest hotel safe is the reception safe. This type of safe is used back of house for larger valuables and, for example, storing cash. These safes are equipped with shelves for extra storage convenience. A variant of this is the so-called deposit safe, this type of safe can be assembled in all kinds of ways and is specifically suitable for depositing money at the end of a shift. We are happy to tell you more about this!

Installation

A safe can be placed separately in a wardrobe or elsewhere in the hotel room. However, some hotel safes can also be built-in or attached to the wall or floor. This provides extra protection for the goods and prevents misuse of the safe, this option can also save space. Naturally, during installation or wall mounting, the applicable safety regulations must be taken into account and approved mounting materials must be used at all times.

Opening

The most common safe opening is a door with a turning mechanism, but we also sell safes that open with a drawer and we even offer top-open safes. The word drawer safe says it all; you open this model with a code and then pull the unlocked drawer from the safe towards you. The storage space of a drawer safe is optimal because there is no need to take into account the rotating hinge when opening. A top-open safe is a safe whose front panel rises when unlocked by means of a compact hydraulic system. The door will then be at an angle of approximately 65 degrees.

Depending on where the safe is placed, the above safes can be practical solutions.

For example, you can easily take personal belongings from a top-open safe without first moving other items, something that is more common with a regular safe with a rotating mechanism. In addition, a top-open safe is very practical when placed in a drawer.

Control system

At the moment a LED or LCD panel is the most common type of safe control, our budget model HS011317 is an exception. This locker is opened by means of a security cylinder lock, the disadvantage of which is that the key can easily be lost when used by guests.

When using a safe with LCD/LED panel, the hotel guest can enter a personal numerical code to open the safe again after closing, often 4 to 6 digits.

Another option for operating a hotel safe is a model with card reader. This type of safe is equipped with a reader that opens or closes the safe using a magnetic card. An example of this is model HS011303, this model can also be opened using a code.

Masterkey or mastercode

The above section about operating the safe brings us directly to one of the most controversial topics surrounding hotel safes; using a master key or master code. Both offer the hotel management the possibility to open the safe if the guest has forgotten the self-chosen numerical code or if the safe remains closed unintentionally for whatever reason.

Masterkey

A master key is separate key that is supplied with many different safes and is only to be used by hotel management and must be kept properly. This key is specifically linked to the series in which the hotel safes came out of production and can open the locker on the back of the safe or behind the control panel. Reordering a master key, for example when it gets lost, is only possible in exceptional cases.

Mastercode

A master code must be implemented by the hotel management when installing the hotel safe. If this does not happen, the safe is equipped with a standard master code which may be known to parties with bad intentions. In this case, the master code is not an extra security but a threat. If the master code has been installed correctly, the hotel management can open a safe at any time by entering the relevant numerical code. An exception to this is when the batteries of the safe are dead, entering the master code is pointless in this case because the system will not work because it has no power supply.

Tip: always check the status of the batteries, but also; keep the master key safe at all times. Despite working with a master code, the master key may still be necessary when, for example, the master code gives an error or the batteries of the safe are dead.

The last option for opening a hotel safe by the hotel management is to use a remote control. A remote control can be purchased separately for certain models and is a small electronic device used to manage and control one or more safes. The device restores and opens the vaults and can read up to 200 past operations.

The possibilities within our range are endless, we would like to tell you more about the different types of hotel safes for your accommodation. Please contact us via email info@hotel-supply.com or telephone +31(0)85 0210 900.