Surge Protection

The power outlet in your home is referred to as “120V AC electrical power.” Power companies maintain this voltage uniform on all outlets. Unfortunately, short-circuits, lightning, damaged poles and a plethora of other accidents can cause disruptions in this voltage—even up to hundreds and thousands of volts. This phenomenon is what is known as a power surge and it can be quite devastating. Albeit lasting a small fraction of a second, one surge is sufficient to damage all your appliances.  

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How Can A Power Surge Affect Appliances?

In most cases, your appliances are designed to run on 120 volts power supply. It can tolerate more or less but they can get damaged or upset by extreme power surges. For instance, when voltage goes below the normal range (known as a sag), you are looking at a computer crash, a confused digital clock, and wrong VCR settings.  

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On the opposite side of the spectrum, if the voltage goes above the normal range (known as a swell), it causes a disturbance that might interrupt the normal functioning of sensitive appliances and worse, lead to their complete damage. If you are lucky, you can have small disturbances (known as noise). Noise may not have adverse damaging effects but it is still a big nuisance.

Two Categories Of appliances

Unless you are still stuck in the past, your home most likely contains all types of appliances – electronics, computers, smartphones, thermostats, garage doors, refrigerators, and so on. From an electrical point of view, there are two categories of appliances to be considered when it comes to surge protection – those that have an in-built appliance surge protector and those that have to be fitted with one. 

The first category includes table-top radios, a microwave oven, a computer without a modem, and a cable-less VCR. The second category is where you need to focus on more and these include things like powered electronics, cable TV, satellite receiver, telephone, garage door opener, automatic sprinklers, fire alarms, and refrigerators.

The Best Line of Defense for Power Surges

Many people often opt for power strips in order to protect their appliances from the damaging effects of power surges. This is a great idea and you should consider it but if you want 100% protection, you need to have a whole-house power surge protector in your home. This is a robust and thorough solution where a snap-in protector is directly installed in your electrical panel. This engages before spikes in voltage throughout your entire property. 

A whole house surge protection project is not a DIY project. It is done by a​ certified electrical ​contractor who understands local utility provider’s regulations. After you purchase your refrigerator surge protector, call us to secure a whole home surge protector. This is perhaps the smartest investment you can ever make in your property’s electrical system.   

Our company is here to help you arm yourself before residential surges strike your home! Call us today and let one of our skilled, experienced, and qualified electricians give your electrical system the advanced protection it truly deserves.