Whole house surge protectors

[Ray Newman]

Today, I talked to a friend today who had power surge last week. He lost a few appliances in the kitchen plus a TV and a computer.

He asked about a “whole house” surge protector. Told him I had no knowledge of such things.

But our conversation got me to thinking. Do they really work? Expensive? Difficult to install?

[Joseph Tarantino]

Today, I talked to a friend today who had power surge last week. He lost a few appliances in the kitchen plus a TV and a computer.

He asked about a “whole house” surge protector. Told him I had no knowledge of such things.

But our conversation got me to thinking. Do they really work?

yes

Expensive?

can be had for < $100 @ HD. got mine for $.01 when they were clearancing a certain model.

Difficult to install?

no. took me less than 30 minutes

hope this helps.

[Scott T Smith]

One of my kilns uses a pair of PLC's as part of the control system. We get a lot of lightning strikes in my area, and in three years I lost two of the PLC's at a cost of $500.00 each. After replacing the second one, I installed a "whole house" type surge arrestor on the main load center that supplied the kiln. No problems since then.

[Dan Duperron]

I haven't lost any appliances but have friends who have, so a few years ago I put one in. After doing some research I found there are several types. There is the simple, inexpensive kind that Ray mentions you can buy from the big box. Most people buy those, and there is no doubt in my mind they work.

The reason I didn't buy one of those is that from what I read they 'wear out'. Meaning that they are good for a number of strikes (obviously depending on the severity) and then silently fail. You won't know when they fail except that a surge gets through and fries something expensive. That prospect bothered me, so I went with the second type, which has replacable modules and indicators that tell you when a protection module has failed. Mine also has a surge counter, which is kind of neat - I can see how often it's been working. In two years it's recorded seven strikes and I haven't had to replace a module yet.

The kicker is that the Leviton unit I bought cost about $1000 vs. $100 for the other kind. It's mounted in the wall next to the breaker panel. Installation is easy, IF you are comfortable working inside your breaker panel and know what you are doing there. If not, please get help.

I like the peace of mind knowing the unit is working and has replacable parts, and I hope it will be attractive to a seller when I move some day. Your personal calculations may differ. Check out the Leviton site here http://www.leviton.com/OA_HTML/Secti...minisite=10251. Looks like they have some new options that are pretty cool and maybe lower cost, like units that install at the meter socket, and if nothing else you can see the full range of types of protection available. Anything is better than nothing.

[Eric DeSilva]

My impression--and I have not researched these extensively--was that whole home surge protectors are not a panacea. As an initial matter, nothing protects against a direct hit--even these whole house surge protectors will have energy limits. As I understand it, what you are protecting against is a surge on the power line caused by induced currents; i.e., a hit elsewhere that causes a spike on your mains. But, if I am correct, that won't protect from, say, a close strike where the surge is induced on the wires in your house. And it won't protect against a surge that enters your house through the phone lines or CATV lines. I was therefore left with the impression that if you have very expensive electronics you want to protect, put the surge protector as close to the device as possible or unplug it during electrical storms.

[Larry Browning]

You might want to check with your power company to see if they offer a whole house surge protection program. Mine used to, but dropped it. But they did not remove the device, they just stopped the replacement insurance they had been offering and stopped charging me the extra 7 or 8 dollars it was costing me.

[Wes Thom]

But our conversation got me to thinking. Do they really work? Expensive? Difficult to install?

Start with what was introduced in elementary school science.

Lightning seeks earth ground. A path for a 20,000 amp electric surge is via a wooden church steeple destructively to earth. Wood is not a good conductor. So 20,000 amps creates a high voltage. 20,000 amps times a high voltage is high energy. Church steeple damaged.

Franklin installed a lightning rod. Now 20,000 amps is via a wire to an earthing electrode. High current creates near zero voltage. 20,000 amps times a near zero voltage is near zero energy. Nothing damaged.

Lightning seeks earth ground. A lightning strike to utility wires far down the street is a direct strike, incoming to every household appliance, destructively to earth. Appliances are not a good conductor. So lightning creates a high voltage. Lightning current times a high voltage is high energy. Appliances damaged.

For over 100 years, facilities that cannot have damage installed superior earthing connected low impedance (ie 'less than 10 feet') via one 'whole house' protector. Then high current creates near zero voltage. 20,000 amps times a near zero voltage is near zero energy. No appliance is damaged.

Neither a lightning rod nor protector does protection. This is critically important. Rod and protector are effective when connected to what absorbs energy - earth ground. A 'whole house' protector (for about $1 per protected appliance) is effective when connected low impedance (ie 'less than 10 feet') to earth ground. Even wire length (as short as possible) is critical.

Many want to think in terms of what they see. So many do not see and therefore do not know what defines protection: a buried earthing electrode.

Protectors are simple science. The art is earthing. Best protection is a wire from the cable TV coax to earth. AC electric and telephone cannot connect directly to earth. So we install a 'whole house' protector to do what would otherwise be done better by a wire.

Protectors without earthing do not claim to protect from typically destructive surges. For the same reason a lightning rod without an earth ground does nothing useful.

A minimal 'whole house' protector is 50,000 amps. So that direct lightning strikes (typically 20,000 amps) are connected to earth without even damaging the protector. 50,000 amps defines protector life expectancy over many surges. Earth ground defines quality of protection during each surge.

[Steve Baumgartner]

My impression--and I have not researched these extensively--was that whole home surge protectors are not a panacea. As an initial matter, nothing protects against a direct hit--even these whole house surge protectors will have energy limits. As I understand it, what you are protecting against is a surge on the power line caused by induced currents; i.e., a hit elsewhere that causes a spike on your mains. But, if I am correct, that won't protect from, say, a close strike where the surge is induced on the wires in your house. And it won't protect against a surge that enters your house through the phone lines or CATV lines. I was therefore left with the impression that if you have very expensive electronics you want to protect, put the surge protector as close to the device as possible or unplug it during electrical storms.

I can attest to this issue. A few years ago lightening hit a pole near our house that had the cable company's equipment on it. Despite the fact that we had unplugged everything from the mains, a surge came in the cable and blew out our internet router and tv set-top box!

[Steve Milito]

Surge protection is not intended to protect your home from a direct lightning strike. It's the equivalent of trying to protect yourself from a direct invasion of the US Armed Forces with a handgun and body armor.

[Dan Hintz]

It's the equivalent of trying to protect yourself from a direct invasion of the US Armed Forces with a handgun and body armor.

That won't work?!

Anyone know what Amazon's return policy is... ?

[Rod Sheridan]

I believe he means that since the resistance is low, the voltage drop will be low.

Unless I need to send my diploma back, 20KA in any ground conductor I've seen will result in a lot more than zero volts.

It won't be millions however.

I'm more inclined to use branch circuit protection, any added impedance upstream of the arrestor is of benefit............Rod.

[Dan Hintz]

I believe he means that since the resistance is low, the voltage drop will be low.

Unless I need to send my diploma back, 20KA in any ground conductor I've seen will result in a lot more than zero volts.

It won't be millions however.

I'm more inclined to use branch circuit protection, any added impedance upstream of the arrestor is of benefit............Rod.

Yeah, I figured out what he was trying to say after Steve's poke. Of course, the voltage differential across the grounding conductor isn't the end to the problems. The plasma discharge from such a strike doesn't simply go quiet the moment it hits the tip of the lightning rod (it did just travel several miles through open air to reach you). While the grounding grid may spread the power throughout a large area, this assumes a perfect setup... the smallest amount of corrosion can make a new ionization point inside a building, etc. Ever seen lightning jump out of the floor to hit some other grounded item in the room (like it did my mom)?

Nutshell is surge protectors won't protect you from direct strikes (I think we all agree on this), but they are a definite help against indirect strikes, though not foolproof, either (I think we all agree on this point, too).

[David Helm]

I bought a whole house, used in conjunction with branch protectors. Reason I bought it is the neutral lead in the power company's pole mounted transformer dropped out causing a major surge and frying furnace control, dryer control and several electronic appliances. Good news is, the power company actually took responsibility and paid for everything.

[Wes Thom]

Nutshell is surge protectors won't protect you from direct strikes (I think we all agree on this), but they are a definite help against indirect strikes,

That explains why your town is without phone service for four days after every thunderstorm. That CO, connected to every building in town, suffers about 100 surges with each storm. It takes 4 days to replace that $multimillion computer. Or maybe direct strikes without damage is routine?

Of course. To say nothing can protect from direct strikes is a classic fable contradicted by over 100 years of well proven science. Many just know by even ignoring numbers. Electronics atop the Empire State Building suffer 23 direct strikes annually. Atop the WTC, that was 40 direct strikes without damage. Routine is direct strikes to cell phone towers without damage. Protection was pioneered even in munitions dumps that must suffer direct strikes without damage. In every case, well proven science was learned and implemented. And ignored by many who only hear urban myths. A majority never learned about 'whole house' protectors and why they are designed to make even direct lightning strikes irrelevant.

A direct lightning strike is typically 20,000 amps. So a minimal 'whole house' protector is 50,000 amps. Specifications define protection from direct lightning strikes - and lesser transients.

Two completely different devices share a common name. Since many suffer damage when using one device called a protector, then speculation proclaims another and well proven solution will not work? Nonsense. Protection from direct strikes has been routine for over 100 years.

Superior solutions come from companies with better integrity. Including ABB, Siemens, Polyphaser, General Electric, Syscom, Intermatic, Square D, Ditek, and Leviton. A Cutler-Hammer solution sells in Lowes and Home Depot. In every case, an effective protector always has a required and dedicated wire connection to earth.

To protect appliances, a branch circuit protector must somehow block and absorb that surge. Good luck. Nothing stops what three miles of sky could not. A surge is a current source. That means voltage increases, as necessary, to blow through anything that might stop, block, or absorb it. Protectors that would block or absorb a surge are for other transients that typically cause no damage.

The other and different device that even makes direct lightning strikes irrelevant, instead, connects current harmlessly to earth on a path that remains outside the building and does not pass destructively through any appliance. Protection is always about how that current gets to earth AND where hundreds of thousands of joules harmlessly dissipate. This other and superior solution also costs tens or 100 times less money per protected appliance. And comes with spec numbers that says why it earths direct lightning strikes ... and remains functional.

An earthed lightning rod is protection of the building. An earthed 'whole house' protector is protection of appliances. A 'whole house' solution is the other and well proven solution that even protects from direct lightning strikes.

[Dan Hintz]

That explains why your town is without phone service for four days after every thunderstorm. That CO, connected to every building in town, suffers about 100 surges with each storm. It takes 4 days to replace that $multimillion computer. Or maybe direct strikes without damage is routine?

Of course. To say nothing can protect from direct strikes is a classic fable contradicted by over 100 years of well proven science. Many just know by even ignoring numbers. Electronics atop the Empire State Building suffer 23 direct strikes annually. Atop the WTC, that was 40 direct strikes without damage. Routine is direct strikes to cell phone towers without damage. Protection was pioneered even in munitions dumps that must suffer direct strikes without damage. In every case, well proven science was learned and implemented. And ignored by many who only hear urban myths. A majority never learned about 'whole house' protectors and why they are designed to make even direct lightning strikes irrelevant.

A direct lightning strike is typically 20,000 amps. So a minimal 'whole house' protector is 50,000 amps. Specifications define protection from direct lightning strikes - and lesser transients.

Two completely different devices share a common name. Since many suffer damage when using one device called a protector, then speculation proclaims another and well proven solution will not work? Nonsense. Protection from direct strikes has been routine for over 100 years.

Superior solutions come from companies with better integrity. Including ABB, Siemens, Polyphaser, General Electric, Syscom, Intermatic, Square D, Ditek, and Leviton. A Cutler-Hammer solution sells in Lowes and Home Depot. In every case, an effective protector always has a required and dedicated wire connection to earth.

To protect appliances, a branch circuit protector must somehow block and absorb that surge. Good luck. Nothing stops what three miles of sky could not. A surge is a current source. That means voltage increases, as necessary, to blow through anything that might stop, block, or absorb it. Protectors that would block or absorb a surge are for other transients that typically cause no damage.

The other and different device that even makes direct lightning strikes irrelevant, instead, connects current harmlessly to earth on a path that remains outside the building and does not pass destructively through any appliance. Protection is always about how that current gets to earth AND where hundreds of thousands of joules harmlessly dissipate. This other and superior solution also costs tens or 100 times less money per protected appliance. And comes with spec numbers that says why it earths direct lightning strikes ... and remains functional.

An earthed lightning rod is protection of the building. An earthed 'whole house' protector is protection of appliances. A 'whole house' solution is the other and well proven solution that even protects from direct lightning strikes.

I'm confused... maybe I'm reading it wrong, but in the first half of your text you seem to be saying surge protectors will have no problem protecting direct strikes. The second half however, appears to be saying they won't... ?