Electrical Surges…Are you protected?

 

What is it and what causes it?

Nearly 80 percent of electrical surges are caused by motorized appliances switching on and off. An average home in the United States can experience 2000 of these “surges” on an annual basis. These electrical surges are an increase of current or power on your electrical system. An unprotected system then transports the high current within the wiring in your home directly to your electronics. The high current generates heat within your electrical equipment that can cause failure. These surges typically are invisible and damage your sensitive equipment over a period of time. Eventually the surges can cause your equipment to stop working.

Protecting your electronics from outside forces such as utility surges or lighting strikes is just one aspect of protecting your home. As stated above a large percentage of dangerous surges come from within the home. Appliances such as washers and dryers, furnaces, air conditioners, garage door openers and electric tools are among a larger list of items that can be hazardous to your sensitive electronics.

What you can do:

The best approach to safeguarding your home from electrical surges is to use a cascading system which is a two stage approach. Two stage surge suppression should be provided for all cables entering your home. This includes power, coax and phone lines. Your first point of defense is to put a whole house “surge protection device” (also known as “SPD”) on your main panel and on incoming cable and phone lines. These devices will lower the surge to a level that your secondary surge devices can handle. Next are the secondary surge protection devices. These SPDs are needed at the point of use. These secondary SPDs can come in the form of surge strips or surge receptacles.

What we can do:

We can provide a good, better and best solution depending on the type of electronics you have in your home and/or business. Don’t become a victim of a catastrophic surge event and wait until it is too late. Remember most damage occurs over time. Our estimates are free so give us a call today to schedule an appointment