If you've got sophisticated electronics and appliances—and who doesn't these days?—you can’t afford not to safeguard them with whole-house surge protectors.

Unexpected voltage spikes, surges and other electrical disturbances can ruin or severely damage computers, VCRs, televisions, fax machines, scanners and copiers, disrupt satellite signals, degrade the performance of audio/video components, and wreak havoc with telecommunications systems. Because no single device can protect an entire home or office against all electrical surges, the best way to prevent damage is by implementing a systematic, tiered surge protection plan that monitors every possible incoming signal path and protects against internally generated power fluctuations, providing protection at the service entrance and at the point of use.

Protection at the point of entry
The first line of defense is protection at the point of entry where electricity, surges and voltage spikes from lightning hits can enter the electrical system. This requires an electrician-installed secondary surge arrestor or transient voltage surge suppressor installed at the service entrance to limit surge voltage by diverting and conducting large surge currents safely to ground. If an AC surge arrestor does its job right, it shields motor-driven appliances like refrigerators, dishwashers, electric washers, and dryers from damage. Additional specialized service entrance protectors can be added to protect cable TV and telephone lines, and minimize damage to TVs and modems. Homeowners also can arrange for installation of branch circuit feeder devices or trips in circuit breaker panels to prevent surges from damaging equipment on specific circuit branches. more

Protection at the point of use
The second line of defense is the point of use. Here, homeowners can reinforce point-of-entry protection by installing plug-in surge protectors (strips) into grounded wall receptacles where sensitive electronic equipment is located. These plug-in protectors, which generally have much lower limiting voltages than entry protectors, defend against externally and internally generated surges that travel through power, phone, data, and coaxial lines. Plug-in power strips should minimally include AC power protection and appropriate signal line protection and should protect against both catastrophic and small surges. These devices should be installed wherever expensive or sensitive electronic equipment like computers, VCRs, fax machines, PCs with modems, satellite systems, stereo systems, copiers and scanners are located. All types of equipment with signal lines, such as phones, cable TV, and satellites should be equipped with multi-port protectors, which protect signal and AC lines.

No surge-protection device is foolproof; if your house takes a direct hit from lightning, only luck and good karma will keep anything plugged into a power source from being obliterated. But weighed against the damage even everyday power fluctuations can cause, whole-house surge protection is an investment well worth the cost.

Call Sentry Electric today to learn more about the advantages of having a whole house surge protector professionally installed in your home.