Browning Prosteel Safes, Setting the Standard for Fire Resistance

There are no industry standards for rating gun safe fire protection. This leads to confusing ratings that vary by manufacturer, and you are left to trust the manufacturers' claims. A Browning ProSteel safe backs up your trust with advanced fire protection features and a proven record of providing quality products for over 100 years. Browning ProSteel Safes are tested for fire resistance beyond much of the competition, only then a label is applied with an honest fire protection rating. Extensive testing, industry-leading engineering and decades of experience go into building Browning ProSteel Safes in order to provide excellent fire resistance.

What makes a safe fire-resistant?

The amount of insulation, placement of insulation, steel thickness, fire seal, and other design elements (rigid door,external hinges, fire seal, and formed door design, are all crucial factors.

When comparing fire ratings, remember, the overall thickness of the insulation is the most important element in fire protection, and more insulation means better protection. Be confident that Browning ProSteel Safes offer excellent fire protection to protect your valuables in case of fire. Different ratings are useful for comparing fire protection in each Browning ProSteel safe series.

Browning's Fire Testing Procedure

Browning's years of experience developing new safes helps them understand the fire protection a safe will offer based on its construction. But that's not enough. Since the Browning name is on the line, they test every design based on a stringent test specification - their own.
To begin, they take a finished safe and place it into their on-site test furnace. They position thermocouples between the safe and the furnace walls on all four sides of the safe to record ambient tempuratures of the furnace and the safe. On initial startup of the furnace, all burners are lit so the tempruature inside the furnace reaches a test tempurature of 1200° within the first five minutes of the test. The tempurature of the thermocouples is recorded every minute and the burners are adjusted as needed to maintain an average temperature of 1200°F for the duration of the test. Three thermocouples are also mounted inside the safe, two just above the top shelf and the third in the middle of the safe. During testing, the internal temperature of the safe is not to rise more than 275°F. When the tempurature inside the safe increases 275° F above ambient tempurature, the time is recorded and the test is completed. For example, if the ambient temperature at startup is 75°F, when a thermocouple inside the safe reads 350°F, the test is done. Only then is the fire rating calculated.
In contrast, some safe manufacturers will slowly ramp up to the test tempurature, leaving the majority of the test at much lower temeratures than the final rating shows. Others place the thermocouples at the bottom of the safe where there is less heat. This measures the coolest air first, resulting in a higher rating claim. Worse yet, some base their fire ratings on design alone without actually testing their designs. Rest assured that the fire protection in a Browning ProSteel safe is "The Best There Is."