Surge Protection in Bradenton

When it comes to a power surge, it might only last for a few millionths of a second, but the damage it can do is downright terrifying. That's because it carries, in that very short period, tens of thousands of volts of electricity. That's more than enough to fry your electrical devices—including your electrical appliances, expensive electronics, and other household equipment.

The most feared cause of power surges is lightning-induced surges. That's because they're the most powerful: a 200,000-amp shock that can crash through power lines and burn your electrical wiring (which is likely standard 20-amp wiring) as though it's a filament in a lightbulb. What makes lightning strikes so terrifying is that they just have to be less than a mile from your home to cause harm. But, luckily, the majority of surge-related damage isn't caused by a lightning strike.

Often, power surges are caused by the following: downed power lines, cycling on and off of heavy energy-use devices (like refrigerators and air conditioners), or a change in electricity use by a nearby factory. Although these causes are far less dramatic than a lightning strike, they can still cause quite a bit of damage to your electronic devices.

Although the damage from these comparably smaller surges is often instantaneous, you might not notice that there's a problem immediately. For example, you might have a surge and then, a year later, notice that your microwave has stopped working.

When it comes to guarding against the damage that a power surge can cause, you have to take a two-step approach: install a whole house surge protector and employ individual circuit surge protectors for particularly vulnerable electronic devices and home appliances.

Think of a surge protector as a pressure relief valve. During normal operation, electricity flows through them; but if there's a surge of higher-than-normal voltage, they immediately divert the electricity to the ground wire. Once the electricity level returns to normal, then the electrical flow goes back to normal. Of course, that might not always be the case; sometimes the surge is so powerful that it melts the power surge protector fuse entirely.

Although you might think that a whole house surge protector installation in Bradenton, FL can halt an external surge altogether, that isn't the case. Typically, about 15% of the excess voltage from a surge can "leak" through. This is where you need those individual (or "plug-in") surge protectors. Think of these plug-in protectors as creating a buffer between your household appliances and the surge current coming through your outlets. There are numerous options available on the market, with a wide range of prices.

Circuit Protectors

There are three different types of surge protectors available on the market for whole house surge protector installation in Bradenton, FL. These are a multi-outlet power strip; a surge station (which might contain hookups for phone and cable jacks as well as power cords); and what's known as an uninterruptible power supply or a UPS. A UPS works by "cleansing" the electrical current of both typical and abnormal power fluctuations, while also providing a short-term battery backup in case your power either flickers or goes out entirely.

Typically, you're looking at anywhere between $20 to $70 for a good-quality power strip. For a quality UPS model, you're looking at $100 to $350.