Buy Whole-Home Surge Protectors
A whole-home surge protector can protect your home against unwanted spikes juicing through your appliances.
Before installing a general power surge, you may want to look for a licensed electrician to help you out. You are playing, after all, with electrical currents.
The protector will most likely be connected to your home’s service panel, functioning as a gateway for the electrical current. If the electricity level goes too high, the protector will automatically shut the power off and send it back into the ground wires.
A good tip would be to buy surge protectors with thermal fuses. This way, you will know when there’s an increase in the power voltage.
Buy Suppressors For Specific Devices
You may have the best surge protector to keep your house electrically safe – but sometimes, you may need more than that.
Sometimes, there might be slips – so you’ll need to get extra protection for the ones you are particularly concerned about. Here are a few options that you may want to consider:
These will either create a stable electricity supply or will protect your devices in case the power goes off.
Be Careful About Your Choice Of Surge Protection
Before picking your surge protection, you should know exactly how much it can handle. According to surge protector reviews, a good piece should be able to handle 600 joules.
Make sure that you also have a clamping voltage that is not more than 400 volts – and it can be even lower. That’s the spike point where the device will turn off your electricity in case of a surge.
Make Way For Electricity
When you want to protect your home against power surges, you need to make sure that your electricity has some place to go to. Ideally, when setting up your wiring, you may want to create a path that will send the electricity far from your house.
Plug Smart
You may think that this does not matter – but it does very much. When plugging delicate electronic devices, make sure they don’t share their power-strip or plug-in with things such as laser printers or air-conditioners.
A large electronic device can create its own mini-power surges that pass unnoticed most of the time. However, a sensitive device may catch on to that mini-surge – and will react much differently.
The Surge Protector
A surge protector – also known as a surge diverter or a surge suppressor – is an appliance that will protect your electrical appliances from things such as random spikes in voltage.
This type of device can have various forms: it may be installed to your power panel in order to stop the current from the source – or it may have been installed in something as simple as a power bar.
Installation is easy, and most of the time, you do not even need an electrician; however, for more complicated models that require meddling with the wiring, you may want to call in an expert.
How Do Surge Protectors Work?
Surge protectors will practically act like an armor that will prevent any voltage spikes from piercing too hard. Practically speaking, surge protectors will limit the voltage going through an outlet – therefore preventing your appliances from overloading.
Think of it as if you are putting your gadgets on a diet. You give them just enough energy to function properly, but prevent them from “eating” too much. Over time, this can pile up and result in a mild case of “death.”
Surge protectors will work either by blocking the excess voltage or grounding it someplace where it can’t hurt your electronics. The place is generally decided by the way you do your wiring.
Understanding Surge Protection Rating
When you are browsing for the best surge protector for your TV – or another electronic device – you’ll see a great number of shady indications and ratings and you won’t necessarily know what they mean. For all the confused customers, here is what they mean:
Joules
The rating for joules will tell you exactly how much energy your surge protector can take before kicking in. This will mostly be determined by the type of appliance for which you are using the protector.
Generally speaking, the higher the joule number, the better the protection you receive. Small appliances will not need voltages that go higher than 1,000 joules (clocks, lamps or so on).
The “middle appliances” such as printers or power tools will suffice with anything between 1,000 and 2,000 joules. The heavier ones, on the other hand (TVs, fridges, etc.) will need a rating that is at least 2,000.
Clamping Voltage
The clamping voltage is the point at which the surge protectors will automatically shut down in an attempt to protect your gear. Unlike the joules rating, you may want to look for a lower number.
Response Time
A power surge will not happen automatically – but it does happen pretty fast, within nanoseconds. The response time will tell you exactly how many nanoseconds it will take until your power surge will spring into action.
Ideally, you may want to look for something that kicks in faster than one nanosecond. The faster it is, the better.
Types Of Power Surge Protectors
When it comes to surge protectors, you don’t really think that there is a great difference between them. However, each surge protector functions and protects differently.
First of all, you need to keep in mind that there are two main categories of surge protectors: primary and secondary categories.
The primary surge protectors are the ones that you install directly to the power lines. They are rather large, and they are usually the most powerful kind of surge protectors.
The second category of surge protectors was made to be more portable. These are fairly small and can be plugged into an electrical outlet.
Since they are more compact, they are not as powerful as primary surge protectors. However, they are very compact and extremely easy to use.
These power surge protectors will also expand into several other different types. Here are the three that you usually come across:
Power Strips
A power strip is part of the second category of power surge protectors since you can plug it into your electrical outlet.
The advantage of the best surge protector power strip is that it also comes with its own outlets. This way, you can plug in your more sensitive devices without worrying that they might be damaged by a power surge.
A power strip will detect anomalies and cut off the power if they feel that a power surge is happening. The reaction is instant, which makes it the best surge protector for your computer or any other sensitive equipment.
Whole House
These types of surge protectors are part of the first category, the “primary” protectors. Most of these can be easily installed since all you have to do is attach them to the main electrical panel of your home.
These can be configured many ways: you can get them to protect one circuit, or you may get them to protect every circuit in your home.
Whole-house surge protectors will guard against all types of surges – big or small. The specifics, however, will depend on the model that you choose – so, make sure that you read the specifications.
A surefire way to get a good whole-house surge protector is to read the label as if you’d be reading the bible. Make sure that it can handle a fair amount of joules, but that it also has a quick clamping voltage.
Uninterrupted Power Supply Surge Protectors
An uninterrupted power supply surge protector is also a type of secondary protector against surges.
This type may be found in various forms – including that of a power strip. They can have multiple outlets – or they can have just one.
The difference between these surge protectors is that, unlike standard power strips, these surges also contain a battery. At first, it may not look like much – but it’s actually very important.
Think about it this way: whenever a power surge happens, the protector will kick in and cut off the power sent to your appliance. For small appliances such as clocks and others, these shut-downs might not be such a problem. However, for larger appliances such as air conditioners, an electrical surge may cause the food contents inside to go bad.
However, other devices (such as computers or TVs) don’t like it when they are suddenly cut off. You need to either shut them off from their system or press the button – otherwise, you might end up with a wonderful blue screen.
The battery within this power surge protector will ensure that the appliance can keep going after the power has been cut off.
The battery life will, once more, depend on the brand and model that you buy. The best surge protector for a PC may last as long as a few hours – making it very useful in case of a power failure.
On the other hand, a lower-budget battery-powered surge suppressor may only last for a short time before running out. It will, however, give you enough time to put your affairs in order and safely shut down your PC.
Surge Protectors And Connected Equipment Warranties
If you’re looking up surge protectors right now, the chances are that at some point you were unlucky enough to have your stuff damaged by a power surge.
Once this happens, you are bound to become a bit paranoid; we’re speaking about a lot of money here.
Let’s imagine this situation: you bought a power surge protector, and you confidently installed it to your power panel or outlet. However, the next time a lightning storm hit, you still ended up with half your equipment fried.
Now, if this doesn’t make you cry out of frustration, we don’t know what will. It would have been one thing if you didn’t have a surge suppressor; however, if it happened after you went ahead and bought one, that’s when it gets most unnerving.
Certain companies offer warranties for your connected equipment in case this ever happens – of course, up to a certain amount of money. Some may offer $100,000 and some may go up to $300,000.
The chances are that you may never need it – but it’s better to be safe than sorry. After all, even the best surge protector is only a measure of precaution. You don’t know if you’ll need it – but you don’t want to risk it.
Conclusion
Buying the best power strip surge protector – or any kind of surge protector, for that matter – is not that easy to do. You have various factors to keep in mind: type, joule power, warranties – all of these factors matter greatly.
Ideally, you should get a primary power surge for your home – but it wouldn’t hurt to get a second one to attach to your outlet. The more protected it is, the fewer chances you have of spilling tears over your damaged devices.
If you want to buy the best home theater surge protector – or any other kind – but are still uncertain which one to pick, you may want to read our buying guide.
We will tell you the main features to look for, and we will also offer you some suggestions on popular products. Shopping online does not have to be difficult – as long as you do your research.