SURGE PROTECTION
Keep Your Home’s Appliances and Electrical Equipment Safe in Spokane Valley
You have probably experienced a power surge and been unaware of it. They happen quickly and are sometimes easy to miss. That slight power outage that happened when you started the sweeper? The blink-and-you-missed it flash in the kitchen when the toaster was plugged in? Those are power surges. There are more dangerous surges that come from lightning strikes and other factors, but all surges pose a serious threat to your home. Regardless of the origin, that surge through your wiring can have a big impact on your home’s appliances and electrical equipment. Surge protection devices (SPDs) are the best option against power surges that can harm and sometimes destroy appliances and electrical gadgets.
What Is Whole Home Surge Protection?
Some homeowners are under the misconception that a simple power strip or protective panel is adequate protection from a dangerous surge. But the only reliable option for protecting your home is a whole-house surge protection device. A whole-house SPD is connected to a home’s electrical panel, but usually installed in a more accessible location in the residence. While department store power strips can be destroyed after a powerful surge, whole-house SPD systems are designed to shunt large surges and last for several years. Many modern homes now come standard with SPD systems for added safety, but mainly new builds that include expensive electrical systems.
Reasons for Installing a Whole-House SPD
There are several reasons to install a whole-house surge protection device:
- 80% of Surges Come from Inside the Home – Most power surges are transient (very short) and come directly from the generators and motors in common home appliances. Transient surges don’t cause major damage, but over time they can cumulatively degrade the performance and slowly decrease the lifespan of your computers, televisions, stereo equipment and major appliances plugged directly into an outlet.
- Electrical System Protection – While the main function of a surge protection device is to protect your home’s appliances and electronics, it is also shielding the entire electrical system. This is one of the main reasons many new builds make them standard. When a transient surge is generated from an appliance (on a dedicated circuit), it will deflect the surge back through the electrical panel where it is quickly shunted. This action protects all of the other electrical equipment in the home.
- Modern Technology – Society is driven by technology more than ever before. 68% of adults in the U.S. own a smart phone and half of the homes in the U.S. own an Apple product. Home computers, smart pads and other personal gadgets all contain essential information and need to be protected. Bank accounts, television viewing, texting and other vital connections could potentially be lost or negatively impacted through a surge. Modern appliances are also much more intelligent and include circuit boards, which can easily be compromised as well.
Layering Protection
If your home contains an elaborate electronic set-up such as a home theater or security system, you might consider layering your whole-house surge protection. Say a kitchen appliance in your home sends a surge through a shared circuit (one that’s not dedicated), then the other outlets could be compromised. A layered system is directly connected directly to the electrical panel – and at the point of use. A power conditioner with surge suppression is the best way to handle these shared circuits. A Current Electrical master electrician can take through the process and help you decide if layering is right for your home.