Homes can be rebuilt. Appliances and furniture are easily replaced. But when disaster strikes — such as the 49 Fire that destroyed 63 homes Aug. 30 in Auburn — the things that really matter — photographs, personal papers, memorabilia — can be gone forever.

But there are ways to protect those valuables.

Many homeowners store important papers and expensive jewelry in a bank safe-deposit box. Others opt for a fire-resistant safe or cabinet. But not all safes are created equal.

Locksmith Aaron Claydon, owner of Awesome Lock and Key in Auburn, has witnessed first-hand the devastating results when these storage containers don’t meet fire-resistance standards.

Claydon responded to a couple of calls to open safes at homes destroyed in the 49 Fire. One of those visits was bad news for the customer.

“Basically, the homeowner had what he thought was a fire (resistant) safe,” Claydon said. “He had money and old coins in it. As it turned out, it had no rating at all. So he lost everything but the coins.”

But on the second call, Claydon was pleasantly surprised that a relatively inexpensive SentrySafe had held up under the heat.

“When we opened it up, it was just about to a melting point, but everything inside survived,” he said.

Staples on Highway 49 in Auburn carries SentrySafes ranging in size from a .25-cubic-foot carrying case to a 2.0-cubic-foot cabinet. Fire ratings range from 30 minutes to two hours at 1,700 degrees. Prices run from $40 to about $600.

“There’s a higher demand for small portable safes,” store manager Matt Limeberger said.

Claydon advises to look for safes that have a longer time-period fire rating.

Placement of the safe or cabinet can provide added protection.

“It’s always a good idea to put your items in a place that doesn’t get a lot of air, like a closet, rather than a bedroom,” he said, “More air equals more oxygen and more fire.”

For a higher end safe, he recommends Liberty, Hall or Guardall products.

“Price-wise for a good high-rated gun safe, depending on size, you’re probably looking at $1,000 or more,” he said.

For residents who store photos, important documents and music on the computer, the Auburn-based ioSafe offers disaster-proof hard drives that can withstand extreme fire and water damage.

The company’s latest product, the ioSafe Solo that came out in January, is geared to homeowners and small businesses, according to CEO Robb Moore.

“This is an external hard drive with a USB interface,” Moore said. “You simply plug it into USB port of a laptop or desktop. As soon as you plug it in, the computer recognizes it as an external drive. You can take your precious photos, videos, music and critical business data and drag them into the drive.”

Moore recommends keeping it attached to the computer.

“It’s not only an external hard drive,” he explained. “It’s protecting you against primary hard drive failure. And if you accidentally delete something, it’s a back-up drive.”

The drive is fireproof up to 1,500 degrees for 30 minutes and waterproof for full immersion in 10 feet of water for 10 days. Price starts at $149. It also comes with a data-recovery service guarantee.

Moore demonstrated the effectiveness of ioSafe products last fall at company headquarters in the Auburn Airport Industrial Park. Using an ioSafe drive and a regular hard drive, he lighted a gas oven and put them both into the fire, heating them to 1,400 degrees. When the flames subsided, he retrieved them and demonstrated that the data on the protected hard drive had survived unscathed.”

Although he didn’t suffer a loss in the blaze, the 49 Fire has had a strong impact on Moore.

“From my business at the Auburn Airport, I can look out and see the burned area,” he said. “My house is a quarter-mile from the fire. My heart goes out to all of the people affected by the fire.”

So he has come up with a way to assist fire victims.

“I want to offer that anyone who lost a house or business in the 49 Fire, we would be happy to send them a free ioSafe Solo if they request that with us,” he said. “If people can protect themselves before a disaster, this is an easy way to protect things that insurance can’t get back for you.”

In order to get the ioSafe Solo, fire victims should send an e-mail to sales@iosafe.com and explain the circumstances of the fire disaster, Moore said.

Gloria Young can be reached at gloriay@goldcountrymedia.com.