Whole House Surge Arrester

I've updated my whole house surge protection page.

https://speakermakersjourney.blogspot.com/2022/04/whole-house-surge-suppression-for-geeks.html

To clarify what @ejr1953 is saying, WHSPs wear out. That's the joules rating. They can wear out from one big surge or a bunch of little one's over time that add up.

Unlike biological entities, WHSPs don't heal.  Once the MOV takes a surge, even a small one, it has begun to degrade.  The Leviton units with replaceable MOV modules are pretty cool in that they are meant to be replaced by your average homeowner, but are they even available in the US?

With a new house build our electrician installed in our Eaton panel whole house  surge protectors which occupied two slots and would last as long as they were not "invoked".  Once they trap a surge, they need to be replaced.

In our former home, I had a Leviton 52000 series whole house surge protector, which was much more expensive and much more sophisticated, with two replaceable "modules", when one would trap a surge, it would need to be replaced.  If my memory serves me, I think we paid something like $1200 for the Leviton unit about 20 years ago, plus labor.

I want to point out something that is often overlooked.

Whole-house surge protectors do protect everything from surges outside and inside, BUT, they have typically have high let-through voltages of 600V. They may list 150V MOV’s but the listed let through is what’s important.

You get great protection for major appliances, fire alarms, home automation, etc. but not really very good protection for delicate equipment with semiconductors that can die with an extra 20 V across their terminals.

Read the recommendations and instructions carefully and read the equipment warranties with this in mind.

@whart , I also installed an Eaton SPD. I installed the Eaton CHSPT2ULTRA.

CHSPT2ULTRA | Eaton CHSPT2 surge protection device

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Whole House Surge Protector - The Home Depot

Note the reviews.

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Note: I don’t believe Amazon.com is an Eaton authorized dealer. Warranty may/would be void.

EATON CHSPT2ULTRA Ultimate Surge Protection 3rd ...

Note the reviews.

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Eaton Video:

Surge Protection - Power Quality - Experience centers showcase

I have an Eaton, which was well reviewed at the time I bought it. It has two LEDs-which purport to show running state (I don’t know if they accurately reflect that). I have enough occasions to have an electrician here to do other stuff that it isn’t a huge outlay, considering the hi-fi system. I also have a surge panel in the big iso-transformer (10kVa) which feeds the main hi-fi system panel, rather than point of use, and had all connections, breakers, etc. gone over when the system was installed several years ago.

I don’t remember what the warranty is on the fancy $500+ plus whole house surge.

Given the limitations that @jea48  posted above, even if it is a longer warranty, the exclusions may leave you in the same place.

We get the fringes of some crazy storms here in Austin- usually stuff that wipes out towns with flooding, tornados, hail, etc. and wrath of God bolts from the sky. And we are in a fairly protected area, nowhere near the epicenter of these storms. I’ll pull power if it is a really bad one, but so far, have had little reason to do that.

SPD WARRANTY COVERAGE:
During the time period (the “Warranty Term”) stated below and subject to all Conditions and Limitations stated below, Siemens Industry warrants to the original purchaser who purchases a new Siemens Surge Protective Device ( " SPD") directly from Siemens Industry or its authorized distributor that the SPD is free of any significant defect in design, materials and workmanship and further warrants the SPD against damage by an electrical surge as defined by IEEE C62.41 (except and excluding any sustained over-voltage and any direct lightning strike ) . Should the SPD be determined to be defective or damaged by electrical surge during the applicable Warranty Term, Siemens Industry will either repair the SPD or replace it with a product of like kind and quality for the benefit of the original purchaser, at the election of Siemens Industry.

( except and excluding any sustained over-voltage and any direct lightning strike ).

CONNECTED EQUIPMENT COVERAGE:
THE CONNECTED EQUIPMENT COVERAGE UNDER THIS WARRANTY IS SECONDARY TO ANY OTHER APPLICABLE POLICY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE, MANUFACTURERS WARRANTIES, SERVICE CONTRACTS AND EXTENDED WARRANTY PLANS. COVERAGE SHALL APPLY TO ONLY THAT PORTION OF THE COSTS FOR REPAIR OR REPLACEMENT THAT EXCEEDS THE LIMITS OF COVERAGE UNDER THE ABOVE MENTIONED POLICIES AND DOES NOT COVER DEDUCTIBLES REQUIRED BY OTHER POLICIES.

The warranty language is pretty much the same for all SPDs (Surge Protection Device)s.

What you want to research and read is the customer reviews...

Warranty

@facten - excellent point. Thanks.

Amortizing the $350-400 cost over 5 years is $6-7 per month, versus the much more sizable investment cost made in one’s system and other electrical apparatus. Was a pretty straightforward cost/risk decision for me making the initial WHSA investment and knowing that there was a chance of having to replicate that lower end cost.

Gentlemen - thanks for your responses.  Although I am not prone to lightning surges where I live, there is a possibility of other types of surges (faults etc). 

Once the warranty expires, the SA will likely still work, but there is no guarantee. To me, that defeats the purpose of getting the SA in the first place. 

@erik_squires - thanks for the info on the Siemens SA's - does look like they have a 10 yr warranty, but I couldn't find info on $ coverages - I will do further research.  I don't think that my electric utility offers surge protection - I'll have to inquire.  

PS - A number of makers make in panel surge protectors which are, generally, easy to install. They take the space of 2 breakers, but it is recommended that they be installed as close to the power source (usually at the top, but could be the bottom) as possible. You may need to move other breakers out of the way.

One other thing, several regional power providers offer whole house protection as a rental. ~$10 a month or less, and may include cable surge protection as well.  I've seen it called Surge Guard by some power providers.  My own has no such program.

AFAIK, all of the Siemens residential surge protectors are 10 years.  While the BoltShield units require a Seimens panels, the FirstSurge units can be fitted to any panel.

It's quite possible the surge protector lasts longer than 10 years, but you are right about the equipment replacement warranty not lasting any longer than that.

Personally, and I'm not talking about Siemens, I've found the stories about the fine print, and difficulty in getting equipment replaced under warranty too much for me. I install it myself and let the chips fall where they may.

Of course, the correct thing to do is to always get a licensed electrician to do all your work. Do as I say, not as I do here. 😂

I don't understand why, if the arrester never tripped, must it be replaced every 5 years. Simply because one wishes to maintain the warranty?

I took a look at your system page, really nice gear. If lightning is a problem during storms in your area I'd recommend installing a WHSA;  the WHSA cost you noted is nothing compared to the cost of your system let alone the rest of your electronics, appliances, etc. I have them in 2 panels and had to have 2 of the installed WHSAs replaced because of the intensity of the lightning strikes near me. They did their job each time absorbing the strength of the strikes and preventing any damage to the panel, my equipment, etc. So yes you may need to spend a few hundred dollars more than once, then again you may need to spend a whole lot more without a WHSA. Just my 2 cents based upon my personal experience