How to Open a Safe Without a Key
Ads by Google
Burglary is one of the most widely-known and widely-enacted crimes in the world. In the US alone, the FBI reported that there are burglar strikes that happen every 25 seconds. In total, there are over 3,300 burglary cases in the country per day. That’s the reason why a lot of homeowners invest in home security features such as safes.
Unfortunately, there are different ways to get your safe’s contents. When this happens, some would usually try to break their safes to retrieve its contents. Luckily for safe owners, there are different ways to open a safe without a key or a working number pad.
Things to consider when you’re locked out of your safe
- Walk down the memory lane
This might sound counterintuitive to some. You have forgotten your passcode combination or misplaced your key. So why are you executing to remember it now? Most cases of safe recovery are done by remembering the passcode itself after walking down the memory lane. Before you start banging your safe to oblivion, consider retrieving the key from your memory.
- Determine if the safe is override-able
There are times when a safe is installed with a key override. A key override switch is installed in the system, but can only be accessed when a keyless or digital safe cannot be opened. Visit your safe website to know if your safe has an override switch key mechanism.
- Find a locksmith
What if you kept something fragile and important inside your safe, and you’re afraid that it will break if you use pressure or force in the box? The wisest thing to do is to find a locksmith. There’s no sense of saving money doing the retrieving yourself if you cannot risk damaging what’s inside your safe.
- Try DIY unlocking remedies.
If the contents of your safe are not fragile, you can risk applying force, and you can try numerous unlocking methods.
Here are some of the things you can do to unlock your safe without spending a dime.
How to open safes without physical keys?
- The stick-reset button
Take note that this method might not work on the majority of safes with physical keys. However, for cheap digital safes, this trick works wonders. If your safe is a digital one and you forgot your passcode, look at the back of your unit and see if there’s a hole. Get a very thin stick and gently press it down the reset hole. If successful, you will hear a beep, and your safe door will be opened.
- The Magnet Trick
Did you know that if you have a strong enough magnet, you can open any safe that you brought from big retail companies? A strong magnet is all it takes to open some of the most commonly available safes. If you have one of these safes and locked yourself out, put a very strong magnet in a sock, and stick it near the handle. Wiggle the magnet until the door opens itself.
- Recharge The Battery For The Pad
What if you have an electronic keypad, and it doesn’t work anymore? Now you can’t access it because you it doesn’t allow you to input your passcode even if you remember it. Most safe boxes use rechargeable or replaceable batteries to operate the keypad. Search for the battery case and replace the faulty battery with a new and fully working one. Make sure that the batteries are with the same type and voltage.
- The “Shake And Wiggle” Method
By using a lockpick, you can safely open your locked safe, as long as it has a key cartridge. You can use almost any thin metal to lockpick safely. You can use two hairpins to unlock standard key cartridges. Bend one of the hairpins into a 90-degree angle and remove the rubber end. Bend the other half of the pin for easier handling. This pin will serve as the main pick.
Get the other hairpin and bend it just enough to rotate the lock later. This pin will be the lever and will be inserted into the keyhole first. Position the lever below and insert the pick above it. Try to press the pin high using the pick while applying tension to the lever. When all the pins are raised, you would hear a “click.” This is a sign that the lever should be able to turn the key cylinder, unlocking the safe.
- Drop-Bounce Method
Older safes tend to have lesser security measures than their modern counterparts. But cheap modern safes are also prone to easy exploits, especially digital safes. If you forgot your passcode, all you have to do is to drop the safe to a soft surface, such as a bed or a couch. Please don’t drop it too high, or you’ll damage what’s inside. This impact will make the lock to dislodge itself, opening the door without even having to key in the passcode. Take note: only drop your safe in a wide, soft surface to avoid unintentional damage.
Things you should not do when locked out of your safe
All of the methods stated above are not destructive and will only affect some areas of the safe.
- Messing With Wirings – for electronic safes only. If the whole wiring system gets busted, it would be harder for you to retrieve your device.
- Using Drills Or Other Powertools – In most cases, the exterior of a safe is impact-proof and durable, but not all cases. If you tried to drill or whack your safe with a power tool, you might damage your item. In worst cases, you or people around you might get hurt.
- Jamming Big Things At The Keyhole – Lockpicking uses two thin metal wires (hairpin, etc.) to unlock the safe without damaging components safely. However, if you jam a bigger object to the keyhole, it might damage other components, or the object can be jammed inside the keyhole.