Modern safes are durable and hardy. Still, your safe's mechanical components can develop issues that affect internal workings. So, (like other home appliances), you should service your safe regularly to keep it in the best shape. This way, your valuables will be secure, and no wrong hands will meddle with your safe.

Discover a few indicators that your safe needs repair.

Sticking Locks

Your safe lock can stick or fail to turn over time. As a result, you'll use more effort to put, pull out, or turn your key in the lock. In most cases, a lock sticks when you poorly maintain it, and grime gums up the lock's internal workings. Poor lubrication is also a culprit for sticky locks. 

In addition, a misaligned lock mechanism can make it hard to turn your safe's dial. Whether you have a conventional key lock or a combination lock, a lock that sticks is a sign of internal lock issues. So, you should contact a certified locksmith to create a new key, reset your combination, or install a new lock for your safe. 

Stiff Hinges

After you unlock your safe's door, the door should move freely without any issues. However, if the hinges become faulty (and you need to use force to move the door), that should concern you. If left alone, thieves can manipulate the hinges to gain entry into your safe. 

A hinge issue doesn't resolve itself but only gets worse. Failure to repair the hinges quickly, a point may come when the safe door won't move at all.  So, if your hinges begin to move less fluidly, you need to bring in a technician to repair or replace the door hinges immediately. 

Broken Keys

A key can snap in a lock if you fail to lubricate it or when you try to open a jammed lock. A key can also break if you turn it before you insert it fully into the lock. An incorrect key is also likely to break in your lock. Additionally, if you hold the key as you push your door open, the chances are that the key will bend and break. 

If the key breaks in your lock, you should contact a locksmith right away for help. A DIY attempt to remove the snapped key might mess up your lock's internal components. Worse still, you might push the broken piece further into your lock and complicate the extraction process, which drives up repair costs significantly. In extreme cases, you'd have to replace the entire lock mechanism.

A defective safe can't protect your valuables effectively. So, if you notice any of these signs, you should call a locksmith right away. Also, schedule regular safe maintenance to help you identify issues earlier and keep your safe functional.