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Why whole house surge protectors are not enough

TL;DR:

One measure of a surge protector is the clamping voltage. That is, at what voltage does the surge protector actually start to work. Whole house surge protectors are limited to no less than ~ 600 Volts (instantaneous) between a leg and neutral or ground. That’s up to 1,200V if symmetrical.

The best surge protecting strips and conditioners clamp below 200 Volts.

Please keep this in mind when deciding whether or not to use surge protectors at your PC, stereo, TV, etc. in addition to a whole house unit.

I wrote more about this here:

 

https://inatinear.blogspot.com/2021/09/time-for-new-surge-suppression.html

No manufacturer of whole house surge protection claims that their devices alone are enough for sensitive electronics when you check the fine print.

erik_squires

Showing 2 responses by audioman58

audioman58's avatar
audioman58
3,863 posts
 

I am looking for a  dedicated unit for my audio ,not quite sure maybe the                AQ Niagra 5000.

audioman58's avatar
audioman58
3,863 posts
 

I have a Siemens that monitors the voltage from the breaker it’s good for around $6 years and the LEDs if they turn red it’s time to change or stopped a electrical surge 

it was under $300. And saved my $3500 OLED tvs and computers 

to me it was$$ well spent from my Audio I have a custom one my  AudioEngineer friend built for me as well as my 4 wire AWG 10 dedicated line with a common ground as well as a insulated isolated ground and it’s own dedicated Copper buzz bar and ground . Even with a audio computer I get very quiet black back grounds .

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