Can You Afford Not to Have Whole House Surge Protection
Within the last decade, the potential harm that a power surge could cause in an average home has grown dramatically. As technology becomes more powerful, it also comes in more fragile and expensive forms. Acquiring whole house surge protection can provide peace of mind to homeowners by offering a thorough defense against electrical spikes and surges.
Why Should Homeowners Install Whole House Surge Protection
Most homeowners encountered the need for surge protection with the advent of household computer, home theater systems, and expensive appliances. A single power strip that offered protection against electrical problems while providing the convenience of plugging all the components in one location filled the need at the time. Unfortunately, many homeowners still trust to individual surge protector strips to protect the increasing number of highly advanced electronic devices in their homes, or simply taking the chance of omitting protection altogether. Installing whole house surge protection has the advantage of not simply standing between your devices and disaster, but also protects telephone lines, satellite lines, cable lines, and electrical panels.
What is the Risk of Not Having Whole House Surge Protection
The most persuasive reason to choose whole house surge protection is that the alternative can lead to enormous expenses of time and money. A single lightning strike can burn out oven controls, fry a Sub-Zero refrigerator’s motherboard, ruin light fixture controls such as dimmers, and in short turn a top of the line kitchen into a disaster of ten thousand dollars or more in repair.
Expensive televisions, along with the devices that make up a state of the art entertainment experience, are vulnerable to surges that last even the barest fraction of a second. Answering machines, modems, faxes, and computers are also easy targets of lightning strikes and more mundane electrical fluctuations, severing the means of a household to communicate with the outside world.
Why Surge Protector Power Strips Are Not Enough
Many of these possessions, which are both heavily depended upon and fragile, can be protected by a quality surge protector, but not all. Those devices that are wired into the house’s electrical system are not so easily guarded.
Even those which are often left to the mercy of a surge protector power strip can be virtually defenseless, as some strips are scarcely more than extension cords with delusions of grandeur.
Two Types of Surges
Fluctuations in electricity have more potential causes than electrical storms, and come in two main types: a surge and a spike. Their difference lies in the duration of the fluctuation: a spike lasts less than three nanoseconds, whereas a surge is three nanoseconds or longer.
Both occur when the flow of electricity rises above the designated voltage, which is typically 120 volts in America. Lightning strikes can cause multiple surges until the entire grid is affected and goes down to dramatic effect, but downed lines, the cycling of energy-intensive devices, and sudden increases or decreases of power usage in local industrial buildings are more common sources of surges.
Guarding Against Surges Require a Two-Pronged Approach
For complete protection against power fluctuations, two individual levels of defense working together create the optimal setup. The first layer of protection is a whole house suppressor. Depending on the particular whole house surge protector, these can protect against surges of up to 40,000 amps. An individual circuit surge protector can then be used as a second layer of defense for the most vulnerable electronic devices.
How Do I Achieve Whole House Surge Protection
For complete surge protection throughout the house, another two-pronged approach is advisable. Establishing separate zones of surge protection allows for greater security in the most severe of surges or for the most vulnerable and necessary computers and devices. These zones are often broken into the exterior, the interior, and the main zones.
How do I Get Whole House Surge Protection in My Home
A licensed electrician can easily install whole house surge protection to ensure a homeowner’s peace of mind. This hardwired defense against fluctuations tends to cost several hundred dollars, including installation and the circuit breaker unit itself. Some areas offer surge protection at the meter; this tends to come with a monthly fee and protects major appliances and motor-driven items, such as air conditioning units.
A fluctuation in electricity that is severe enough to cause failures in everything from microwaves to televisions,and light controls to computer printers, need not be obviously apparent or have an immediate effect. Usually there is no warning to take action, or any clear reason for device problems. Installing whole house surge protection will protect against both subtle surges and dramatic lightning strikes, guarding homeowners and their possessions.