Burton SafesKey Safe, Metal

A very sturdy and secure keysafe. Easy to hang and simple to programme

This is the most heavy duty key safe I have ever come across. I was previously wary of key safes because there are videos on line showing how to easily crack the code for many of them, but I haven't managed to find a video for this one (and I carried out a very thorough search because I forgot the combination, but fortunately it came back to me!)

Very sturdy easy to fit. I only marked this down by one start because it a bit tricky to set the combination. The buttons used to do this are a bit small and hard to set.

A very solidly built product that works well. You do have to be careful to mark where the fixing holes need to be, and then drill them accurately as the holes in the back of the case do not have that much clearance. I put the wrong drill bit in the drill and drilled them to the final 5mm and deep enough to accommodate the bolts, rather than doing it in stages as instructed but it worked fine. The instructions could do with improving as they seem to suggest drilling the holes deeper than they need to be, and deeper than a standard drill will allow you to. You need a good socket set to do the bolts up though, as they are special bolts that cut directly into whatever you are mounting it on and if it's hard brick they need quite a bit of torque. Make sure you add some margin onto the holes you drill, and make sure there is not too much debris in them, as once the bolts are done up it will also be difficult to get them back out. The numbers for the buttons are just embossed on the black metal face plate, so are difficult to see in poor light. I painted them with a silver paint marker to make them easier to read. In practice I think you only need to slide the central slider to reset the mechanism, if somebody has tried entering the wrong numbers. The space inside is not that big so if the keys are on a fob you need to make sure the box is fully closed before you lock it.

The instructions to set up your code and test before you fix to the wall are very clear. You can choose a code using digits 0-9 and A/B. You can’t use the same digit twice in the code.The lock is encased in a rubber protective cover and this also acts as the template for marking the holes. The safe box came with concrete screws.The instructions are very clear on how to fix.Once you have drilled the four holes you offer the rubber cover up and place the open box on the back plate to secure the cover and box to the wall. You need a decent drill such as an SDS type with a 5mm bit. You also need 8mm socket head and enough of an extension to make it easy to turn outside the box. I used a screwdriver with a socket head and as you got 2/3 in it became very stiff to turn. It would be even harder if you don’t drill the holes accurately. The box was secure once fitted and has plenty of space inside. I purchased one on the off chance I leave without a key but if it is being used regularly then the only thing I can see failing is the rubber hook on the cover as you have to pull the eye over the hook to secure the cover over the safe box.

Having recently purchased and installed this for my elderly mother who needed to have access for her carers I decided to buy one for myself on the basis that I wouldn’t have to leave keys with neighbours when I go on holiday etc. I found it easy to install and easy to operate. A very sturdy key safe.

One of the safest and least commercial looking keysafes. Bought it for our house for housesitters, really sturdy and solidly made, I think the porch would fall down before the safe came off the wall. My only gripe would be it's really difficult to get the security bolts all the way in, I destroyed 2 drill heads completing it, but that also means it's hard to remove!

This is my second purchase of this item having bought the first on behalf of someone else who was elderly and wanted secure access available to neighbours. Similar to other reviews I found it IMPOSSIBLE to find a 75mm no 3 masonry drill after EXTENSIVE searching for same. As a consequence I went with No 6 x 60mm anchor bolts (heavy duty) which require no 12 masonry drill to minimum of 55mm depth. As it is important holes are accurately located I started off with no 5 drill, then no 6, no 7, no 8, no 10 and finally no 12 and wrapped bit with small piece of gaffer tape to ensure correct depth and checked alignment with holes in key safe as I went. The first safe I fitted worked out perfectly and was very secure. The only difficulty I had was trying to fit socket over head of bolt as it was very tight to edge/corner on inside of safe. I overcame this by tightening the bolts gradually on a rotational basis and result was absolutely perfect. Cue my second effort on my own key safe and I confidently set about repeating exactly what I had done first time around only a lot quicker and more efficiently. Got to tightening the bolts in gig time and the safe was rock solid BUT when I programmed my own code, tested it in the open position and then went to lock it for real it wouldn't lock. On closer inspection I noticed the locking front part of the safe appeared to be sitting out at the top and as a consequence the bolt was not going behind the inner retaining flange which is located on the top of the safe at the rear. At first I thought I had perhaps over tightened the bolts and buckled the backplate of the safe. I loosened of the bolts, removed the safe and checked the locking process with the safe off the wall and found it was fine and given the tank like construction realised it would be impossible to buckle the safe. I then re-affixed the safe to the wall and went to lock it again and again the same problem. On closer inspection of the rear plate of the safe I realised that the fixing holes were not as tight to the sides as the previous one and the top of the locking front plate which protrudes quite a bit was catching the edge of the two top bolts. I removed the two top bolts and tried locking the same again, voila - no problem. Am now getting 2 x no 6 machine screws to finish the job. Have to admit to being very frustrated by 1. Fitting instructions recommending a process that sounds rather complex and in any case cannot be complied with due to non-existence of required part (no 3 masonry drill capable of drilling 75mm hole) and 2. Lack of consistency in the engineering of the safe, i.e. a change to the exact location of the fixing holes on the back of the safe. I suspect this may have been done because the original holes were quite tight to the side/corner and albeit the anchor bolt head is the exact same depth as the supplied fixing screws but about a third broader it still fitted fine, per the method described above, in the original safe I fitted. Overall this is a very substantial and impressive piece of kit that is undermined by worthless fitting instructions, hence the rating. As someone with a background in the security industry I am surprised this achieved a 'police approved' rating with such poor fitting instructions, notwithstanding the impressive security of the safe (construction and security).