American Security AMSEC VD8036BF Vault Door Review

American Security is the oldest, most reputable and highest quality safe company in the world. They’ve been around since 1946 and have always headquartered in California, USA. They make real safes, not the illusion of security but real, actual , high quality, secure, insurable safes. The American Security BF Vault Door series is undoubtedly one of the strongest vault doors available. In this review, I’ll help you understand what makes the American Security AMSEC VD8036BF Vault Door worth every penny.

Lock – American Security AMSEC VD8036BF Vault Door

UL Approved High Security Mechanical Lock – S&G

First and always most important for any safe is its lock and the American Security VD8036BF Vault Door comes standard with a Big Red Mechanical Lock, UL approved Type 2. This is one of the two mechanical locks I recommend with the other being made by S&G. This high quality lock is designed to last forever and uses the traditional 3 number combination with 1 million possible combinations.

UL Approved High Security Electronic Lock – ESL10XL

There is also a second lock option that is the ESL10XL electronic lock. This lock is UL approved type 1 high security and the absolute highest rating you can get. It has additional features from just the standard code like Time Delay that does not allow you to open the safe again for a specified period of time after each opening. This feature is mainly used in business applications and not really relevant for the average home owner.

UL Approved High Security Redundant Lock

Finally, you can add a Redundant Lock which features both electronic and mechanical access. It still retains the UL Approved Type 1 High Security rating and includes the mechanical fail-safe in the event the electronics malfunction or the batteries die. This occurrence is very rare with UL rated locks but if you need to be able to get into the vault door at a moments notice, this is the best option.

Security – American Security AMSEC VD8036BF Vault Door

Now here is what truly makes the American Security AMSEC VD8036BF Vault Door so special. Most Vault Doors are one layer of steel and gypsum fire board on the inside to create the fire rating. Even the highest security gun safes made by Liberty, Rhino, Stealth and even Fort Knox are all built to this style of construction.

American Security uses two layers of steel with a special proprietary mixture in the middle called drylight. Drylight is a concrete composite mixture that adds significant burglary protection and vastly improved fire protection. When it comes to the door, American Security adds a 1/2″ steel plate and 10 masssive 1-1/2″ thick steel locking bolts on a dual reinforced door frame.

Fire Rating – American Security AMSEC VD8036BF Vault Door

Not only does the Drylight Concrete Composite mixture add significant burglary protection but it also provides incredible fire protection. Vault Doors can not have an official fire rating as it is just a door and not insulated on all 6 sides without the concrete. However, considering it is the exact same contruction as the BFX Gun Safe, we can safely assume it will survive a fire for 120 minutes at 1200 degrees.

Considering American Security is based out of California, wild fires are all too common and there are tons of Vault Doors that have survived the hottest fires for the longest periods of time. They also use dual genuine Palusol Fire seals which are the high quality seals in the industry and expand to 7 times their size during a fire to keep smoke and heat out.

Style and Function

The American Security VD8036BF AMSEC Vault Door is the perfect combination of beauty and the beast. It’s an absolute animal when it comes to security and fire protection but also styled beautifully. American Security offers four different textured color options and three different hardware options.

This vault door can be built to either right hand swing or left hand swing as well as in-swing or out-swing.

Warranty

The American Security BF Vault Door series comes with a 1 year parts and labor warranty. American Security is a very easy company to work with. They are trustworthy when it comes to providing service on their products. They are the oldest safe company in the United States with a premier reputation for quality. All in all, this is a warranty you can trust.

The Bottom Line

Would I buy the American Security VD8036BF Vault Door for my firearms and valuables. Yes, 1000% I would due to its high quality UL rated lock options, 1/2″ thick steel plate door, Drylight concrete composite insulation and very affordable price.