Whole House Surge Protection

Whole house surge protection is required to protect electrical home appliances, from power surges that could damage their electronic components. It is becoming extremely necessary to install whole house surge protectors, owing to the increasing addition of electrical appliances to homes and the very high cost of replacement and repair. A power surge is a sudden and drastic increase in the electrical power that is being supplied. Power surges and stray electronic charges can damage the various delicate electronic components of an appliance, and are also capable of destroying the appliance altogether. If the power surges are of very high intensity, they could also cause a fire, that could destroy the entire house.

A common misconception that most homeowners have, is that their appliances are protected from power surges once they are plugged into a power surge protection strip, also known as the eight outlet power strip. However, that might not be the case as stray electric charges can enter the home, via telephone and cable lines as well. Many a times, the power surge protection strips function more as extension cords, than as surge protectors, as they offer power supply but offer no protection against surges.

Types of Power Surges
Power surges are of two types - lightning generated power surges and power surges generated by minor power fluctuations. The minor power fluctuations are generated due to the rapid turning off or on of high energy consuming appliances, or due to a tree branch falling over an electric or phone line. Both the types of power surges can cause a lot of damage to electrical home appliances.

Whole House Surge Protection
The best way to protect electronic home appliances, is to install a whole house surge protector. Whole house surge protection is preferred to the use of a power surge protection strip, as it protects the entire house and not just the appliances that have been plugged into the surge protection strip. Whole house surge protectors are devices that absorb voltage spike,s that rise above a certain level and those that can harm electronic devices. They are also known as whole house voltage surge suppressors. The energy absorbed from the voltage spikes is sent out in different directions, through underground wires.

Whole house power surge protectors are available in various designs. Some of them are remounted as circuit breaker box devices or are built into a circuit breakers, whole some are installed under an electric meter. Some whole house surge protector models also provide protection for phone, modem and television cable lines. The factors to be considered while choosing a whole house surge protector for your home are its performance specifications, like its maximum surge current, the reaction time, the clamping voltage and the total energy dissipated.

There are a number of companies that provide whole house surge protection services. The services provided include the checking and testing of the electrical grounding of your home by a qualified electrician, and the installation of the whole house power surge protection system. The whole house surge protection system usually provides protection at two levels. It protects the home appliances like air conditioners, refrigerators, dishwashers, etc. and it also provides plug-in devices for added protection to individually sensitive consumer electronic devices.

Installing a whole house surge protection system can save you a lot of money, that you would otherwise have to spend on the repair and replacement of your home appliances. It is also the best way to protect your home from power surge damages and to secure your peace of mind.