SentrySafe vs Honeywell: which fire safe brand has the stronger evidence?

How we compared them

We haven't handled, opened or tested any of these safes. This is a spec-and-listing comparison: every figure below comes from SentrySafe's and Honeywell's own product pages and owner's manuals, and every value in the tables links to its source. All five models are scored on the same fire-safe rubric published on how we rate, which gives fire rating evidence the most weight (35 percent), then burglary resistance (20 percent), water evidence and the lock (15 percent each), then capacity and support. Because they share one rubric, the scores on this page compare directly.

Who stands behind each name matters for warranty claims. SentrySafe's chest warranty is issued by Master Lock Company LLC, and its newer manuals are co-branded SentrySafe / Master Lock (SentrySafe chest manual). Honeywell-branded safes are made under license: the warranty in Honeywell's chest manual is issued by LH Licensed Products, Inc. (Honeywell chest manual). Our CPSC recall search on September 19, 2026 found no recall for either brand's safes or chests.

The two brands line up in natural pairs. The small 30-minute chests (SentrySafe CHW20221 and Honeywell 1103) are the grab-and-go boxes for passports and certificates. The steel-cased fire and water safes (SentrySafe SFW123GDC and Honeywell 2605) are the heavier boxes you keep in one place. We added the Master Lock STW123GTCML as an alternate because it answers the question the 2605 raises: what does a 2-hour rating look like when a named lab stands behind it?

The chests: SentrySafe CHW20221 vs Honeywell 1103

On fire, this pair is a tie. SentrySafe's page says the CHW20221 is "UL Classified to protect your valuables in a fire for 1/2 hour up to 1550°F" (SentrySafe). Honeywell's manual says "Independent testing by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) verifies the interior temperature remains below 350° F (177°C) for 30 minutes when outside temperature is up to 1550°F" for the 1103. Same lab, same time, same furnace temperature.

The split is on water. SentrySafe says Intertek (ETL) verified the CHW20221 against flood damage for up to 72 hours. Honeywell's product page claims "Certified 100-hour waterproof protection up to 1 meter", but names no certifying lab, and its own manual describes a different test: the interior "remains dry when completely submerged for up 24 hours" (Honeywell 1103 page). When a page and a manual give different numbers and neither names a lab, we score the claim as a maker claim, which is why the 1103 trails the CHW20221 on water evidence and on score.

Honeywell wins on hardware and paperwork. The 1103 closes with compression latches meant to press the lid onto its seal, comes with two keys, and carries a five-year limited warranty against SentrySafe's one year on chests. Both brands add a lifetime after-fire replacement program. The SentrySafe is a little lighter (20.4 lb against 27.4 lb) and a little larger inside (0.28 cu ft against 0.24 cu ft).

The steel safes: SentrySafe SFW123GDC vs Honeywell 2605

This is where the brands separate. The SFW123GDC's page says it is "UL Classified to protect your valuables in a fire for 1 hour in up to 1700°F", and the owner's manual adds the detail that makes that meaningful: at that exposure "the safe interior will remain below 350°F". The manual also lists a UL explosion-hazard test and an ETL-verified fire-impact test, in which the safe is heated, dropped 15 ft onto rubble and reheated (SentrySafe manual P44621).

The Honeywell 2605 claims twice the duration. Its page promises "2 Hour Verified fire protection in Temperatures up to 1850°F/1010°C" (Honeywell 2605 page). Its manual says "Independent testing verified the interior temperature remains below 350° F (177°C) for 2 hours when outside temperature is up to 1550°F (843°C)" (Honeywell 2605 manual). Those are two different test temperatures for the same model, and neither source names the lab. We can't tell you which figure is right, so we don't pick one. What we can say is that a 2-hour claim with no named lab and an unresolved temperature carries less weight than a 1-hour classification with UL's name on it.

The 2605 does bring things the SFW123GDC lacks: two override keys, a motion and tilt alarm, and a five-year limited warranty. It is also harder to buy. It didn't turn up in an Amazon.com search, so we link it to Honeywell's own store as a plain reference.

If the 2605's two hours are what drew you, look at the alternate in the third column. The Master Lock STW123GTCML sits on SentrySafe's site, and its page says it is "UL Classified to protect your valuables in a fire for 2 hours in up to 1850°F" (Master Lock STW123GTCML page). That's the same duration Honeywell claims, with the lab named. It is heavier at 128.2 lb, and like the SFW123GDC its key is a second lock rather than an override.

Fire ratings: who measured them

Every fire figure on this page describes a furnace test: how hot the furnace got, for how long, and whether the inside stayed cool enough. Under UL 72, "Class 350 rated devices are intended to protect paper records", and the class number is the interior limit in degrees Fahrenheit (UL 72). Both brands' manuals describe a 350°F interior limit, so all four fire ratings here are paper ratings. Our fire ratings explainer covers the classes and why the time figure matters more than the furnace temperature.

The evidence ladder, as it applies to these models:

• UL named, on the maker's page and in the manual: SentrySafe CHW20221, SFW123GDC and the Master Lock STW123GTCML.
• UL named in the manual: Honeywell 1103. The page says "UL Certified"; the manual says "Independent testing by Underwriters Laboratories (UL)". We count that as an independent fire rating.
• No lab named: Honeywell 2605. "Verified" and "independent testing" without a lab's name is a maker claim in our scoring.

None of this makes any of them "fireproof". A rating is time and temperature under test conditions, and a real house fire doesn't read the label. Our piece on whether "fireproof" safes really are walks through the limits.

Water claims

Water matters in a fire as much as in a flood, because a fire is usually put out with water. The two brands take different approaches:

• SentrySafe names Intertek (ETL) for its water ratings: 72 hours of flood protection on the CHW20221, and up to 8 in of water for up to 24 hours on the SFW123GDC.
• Honeywell names no lab for water on either model, and both products have a page-versus-manual mismatch. The 1103 page says 100 hours, the manual 24. The 2605 page promises protection "even when safe is submerged under eight inches", while the manual describes being "completely submerged for up to 8 hours with up to 50mm of water above the safe".

One SentrySafe catch deserves a flag. The SFW123GDC manual says the "Product is not water resistant once it is bolted down. The ETL verified water resistance claim applies to product prior to the application of a bolt-down kit." So you choose between the water rating and the anchoring. Master Lock says the STW123GTCML keeps both: its bolt-down hardware holds the safe in place "while maintaining fire and water protection". Honeywell's 2605 anchoring instructions don't address the water claim either way.

Locks and backup entry

The chests are simple: both use a privacy key lock. SentrySafe describes the CHW20221's lock as one that "keeps unwanted viewers or children away from the contents", which is an honest description of what it does. Neither chest lock is meant to stop a determined adult.

The steel safes differ in a way that matters on the day a battery dies. The SFW123GDC has a keypad and a key, but the manual calls the key "a secondary locking feature not an override key". Its batteries load from the outside keypad, so a flat battery is fixable from outside, but a keypad fault has no key-only way in. The 2605 puts its battery compartment inside the safe and supplies two override keys; Honeywell's manual says the key "allows immediate access in case you forget your user codes or the batteries need to be installed or replaced". It also locks the keypad for 15 minutes after three wrong codes.

If a lockout does happen with any of these, use the maker's backup entry exactly as the manual describes, then contact the maker's support line or a licensed locksmith. Our explainer on electronic vs mechanical safe locks covers the trade-offs in more detail.

What neither brand stops

Neither maker states a burglary rating for any model on this page. The chests have plastic or resin bodies and privacy locks, and at around 20 to 27 lb they can simply be carried off. The steel safes are heavier and include bolt-down hardware, but they are fire safes, not UL-listed burglary containers. If theft is part of the worry, anchor a steel model to the floor (and accept what that does to the SFW123GDC's water rating), or choose a safe that carries a UL residential security container (RSC) listing as well as a fire rating, such as the dealer-sold AMSEC BF1512. Our best fire safes ranking covers the fire-first options across brands.

Who should buy which

• You want a small, portable box for passports and certificates: the SentrySafe CHW20221, for the ETL-verified flood rating. Pick the Honeywell 1103 if a longer warranty and latched lid matter more than a lab-named water rating. For file boxes and 1-hour chests, see our best document safes list.
• You want a steel fire and water safe with ratings a lab stands behind: the SentrySafe SFW123GDC.
• You want two hours and plan to bolt it down: the Master Lock STW123GTCML, the only model here whose maker says fire and water protection survive anchoring.
• You want override keys and an alarm above all: the Honeywell 2605, knowing its fire and water ratings are maker claims with unresolved numbers.