subject: Do Not Lose The Electricity Supply To Your Home This Year [print this page] Do Not Lose The Electricity Supply To Your Home This Year
Let's imagine for a moment, driving rain and a crack of thunder which jolts you out of your sleep. You notice the lights flicker, but they come back on so you think to yourself, "no problem" and you go back to your sleep. But the next morning you have overslept and your alarm clock is flashing "12:00." Unfortunately, you have been the victim of what is known as a voltage surge. Voltage surges are a nasty and costly example of the power interference that occurs in homes every day. Fortunately, there are actions you can take towards achieving surge protection for your home and electrical appliances. To kick things off, let me briefly talk about the two most common forms of power interference that can have an impact on you as a homeowner.
Voltage Dips:A voltage dip happens when motors in heavy-elctricity-usage aplliances and elctrical devices such as dishwashers, refrigerators and dryers are switched on, This greatly reduces the energy available for other devices. Flickering lights are a common symptom of a voltage dip. While a voltage dip isn't a huge problem, it can be a big inconvenience, especially if it's severe enough to cut power to your home which may trigger alarms, turn off computers, not to mention those alarm clocks.
Voltage Surge:The most serious form of power interference is the voltage surge. This momentary rise in voltage can start inside or outside a home, and can damage sensitive electronic equipment such as computers, home entertainment centers and other expensive electronic articles.
Surge Protection is the Solution:There are two types of surge protection which are available to homeowners today. The most common form of surge protection is the surge suppressor, usually seen in the form of a power strip, which can handle surges up to 6,000 volts. The surge arrestor, on the other hand, is installed in or near the main service panel of a home and offers surge protection against voltage surges up to 20,000 volts (lightning strikes for instance).
Surge Suppressors:Surge suppressors are designed to handle the smaller surges which can occur hundreds of times a day in a typical home's wiring, when devices with motors, such as hair dryers, refrigerators turn themselves off. This will suddenly cause the energy these devices were consuming is diverted elsewhere in the form of excess voltage. Surges also occur when the electric company switches power from one geographic area of the grid to another and when supply and demand in the region changes.
Although they may never be strong enough to destroy electronic components, these frequent small surges can slowly break down wiring insulation, causing electronic devices to operate improperly and wear out prematurely. Plugging your sensitive and expensive electronic devices into surge suppressors is an easy, cost effective way to help your equipment last longer and work better.
Hire a Professional:Whole house surge arrestors should only be installed at the home's electrical service panel by a professional, licensed electrical contractor. There are dozens of different makes, models, and styles of arrestors on the market to provide you with surge protection, all of which vary greatly in price and quality. The type and size of the service panel, how full the panel is, as well as the number of appliances and electronic devices that will need to be protected, all play a role in determining which surge arrestor should be installed. Talk to an expert about getting the right model for you
