Which Burns First, Paper or Computer Media?

The easier question to address is which one is destroyed first...paper chars around 400 degrees F, while computer media can begin to deteriorate and/or melt around 125 degrees F. This means that removable computer media such as magnetic tapes like DLT, LTO, as well as CD's or DVD's can loose information at far lower temperatures.

Paper actually burns at 451 degrees F (remember the book Fahrenheit 451?) thus the fire rating standard is UL Class 350 for 1 hour or 2 hr.

The rule of thumb is, don't store data/media disks in a fire file cabinet!!!

Safes

What is the best fire safe available?
This question has several answers and depending on the application, security need, storage requirements and fire ratings there are several makes of safes that could be considered the best...for your unique needs.

Most businesses have a "best business practice" requirement to store both paper records and removable backup media such as tapes, DVD's, CD's, or portable and external hard drives. These types of records should be stored in a fireproof cabinet or safe. Depending on the space available there are many configurations to meet your exact needs.

It's important to remember that paper records need UL 350 fire rated files or safes to properly protect from fire while removable media will require the UL 125 fire rating on the safe or cabinet.

If you requirement is simply for security then you can choose from burglary rated safes, TL-30 or TL-15 rated safes (higher security) or the highest security level of GSA Approved Class 5 or Class 6.

Many homes utilize a hidden wall safe or in-floor safe as a deter ant to theft or burglary.

Yes, there are many choices and consideration when it comes time to buy a safe. Contact our expert staff any time Toll Free 866-867-0306 or visit us online at www.klsecurity.com or www.safefile.com

Photograph Negative and Film Storage

For film archives, mounted slides and even glass plate negatives proper storage is required for longevity. When it comes to fire protection it's important to remember that a fireproof safe for this type of media must have a UL 125 fire rating.

A fireproof safe with the UL 125 rating will ensure that the temperature inside the safe does not exceed 125 degrees F. By maintaining this temperature rating the negatives will maintain their integrity during a fire disaster.

Imagine if you left your film in your car during the summer with the windows rolled up...even these temperatures are enough to cause damage and warping to these sensitive materials.

For more information about safes, filing cabinets and fireproof hard drives visit www.klsecurity.com.

FireKing MediaVAULT Review

Looking for an easy way to get fire protection for the storage of portable hard drives, USB drive or thumb drives? The FireKing MediaVAULT is a stand alone fireproof box that can safely protect your disk drives from fire for up to one hour and is offered at a mere $345.00

Do you use tape backup? Another great application of this small fire safe is that it can hold up to 12 DLT, LTO or Ultrium backup tapes or a combination of disk backup drives and tapes. This is great for those businesses that use a disk to disk to tape backup strategy.

Weighing in at a mere 74 lbs. this unit can be stored under a desk or inside a file cabinet drawer for added security. One of the drawback of this item is that it comes with a simple key lock and is not built for security.

We use the Fire King Media Vault in our office for external hard drives, backup CD's and DVD storage. It's just the right size for the SOHO and SMB and when put inside our GSA Approved container we get the best security for our data.

If you are in the market for a fire safe that is easy on the pocketbook then look no further.

File Cabinets

Office organization and storage of business documents is easy with KL Security Enterprises. We offer a complete line of fireproof filing cabinets from both FireKing and Schwab Corp. to meet all of your needs.

Vertical or Lateral?
Depending on what you are storing and how much space you have can easily determine whether you need a vertical cabinet or lateral file cabinet. Vertical cabinets have a much smaller footprint and come in several depths (31", 25", 22", 20") whereas the lateral storage cabinets are far wider at 44", 43", 36" or 30" wide. For those of you in the health care field we also offer end tab filing cabinets.

What is the best filing cabinet?
This depends on your document storage needs. Many companies only offer fire rated files, while others specialize in map and plan cabinets or over sized plan files for architectural drawings. Recently we came across the space saving Ulrich plan files which are great for large format documents and prints.

Every business is unique and most likely you should speak with a document storage expert before making your purchase.

Rugged Hard Drives NAS

If you are looking for a ruggedized NAS or external hard drive then look no further than ioSafe hardware. These fireproof and waterproof backup devices can withstand a fire at 1700 Degrees F for 1-hour as well as fire hoses, sprinkler systems and floods (saltwater or freshwater) up to 30 feet for water for a month.

One of the best features that truly differentiates these backup devices from any other product on the market is their ability to provide airflow cooling during normal operation, yet still protect your data with complete recovery from fire or water disasters.
To learn more about the importance of proper cooling and airflow from please visit the HDD Temperature website or do a Google search about the importance of airflow and cooling for hard drives as it relates to reliability.

No matter if you have a small or medium business, an enterprise company or have several branch / remote offices, there is an ioSafe hardware device for you.

Backup Hard Drive

One of the worst feelings at the office is when a computer crashes and your business experiences a data loss. Not only is there a loss of productivity and the cost of replacing computer hardware but the loss of important data (current projects, client information, sales data, etc) is far more costly.

Purchasing a backup hard drive is one of the easiest ways to avoid data loss. Even if a hard drive or primary server drive crashes you will at least be able to retrieve the data from your backup copy. No matter if you choose to buy a USB external device, RAID or network attached device the important part to remember is that you have a backup copy!

There are hundreds of brands to choose from including portable external drives or an additional internal disk drive inside your desktop PC or Mac workstation. Do your research! You may find that a bus-powered external is best for your particular needs. Most of these drives work across multiple platforms including Windows, Mac and Linux so they are adaptable to your business environment.

BACKUP YOUR DATA!!! Don't wait until it's too late!!!