Question:
i was looking through the Newark catalog and I noticed these whole
house surge suppressor/line conditioners that mount next to the
circuit panel. SL Waber makes a surge arrestor, Sentrex makes a surge
suppressor and Sola makes a power conditioner.
Since I am going to be building a new house I thought it might be
worthwhile to check into them. Especially after having my old house
hit by lightning and having lots of elec. equip. (fridge, stove,
toaster, tape deck, receiver, etc.) damaged.
So, my questions are:
- Do they cover surges, etc. on the whole house or just certain lines?
- Do they work? If so, are they worth the money or should I just
stick with individual suppressors like my Isobars?
- What is the difference between suppressors and power cond. and what
do I need for a house?
Answer:
Our local utility company is offering whole house surge suppressors that
plug in between the meter pan and the electric meter. I believe they
rent them out for a reasonable monthly rate. If it blows up trying to
save the stuff in your home they replace it for free. They warn that the
whole house suppressors will not prevent equipment within the house from
creating spikes in your home.. such as air conditioners, oil furnaces,
etc. They suggest seperate surge suppressors for computers and other
sensitive electronics.
A supressor will help limit surges and are fairly cost effective for
large loads (read: whole house). Connect such a device into the incoming
feed (100 or 200A). A power conditioner is a reactive device (Sola
transformer) and is sized to a particular load. The larger the load the
more expensive and larger the unit. This device should be used only for
specific outlets and not connected to lamps, heaters, ranges, etc. I
recommend you connect one or two outlets in the rooms where the computer
and TVs are to this device through its own breaker. You can then use
individual surge protectors on the computer and TV outlets but there is
really no need for them and depending on the type of conditioner used they
could be detrimental.
