Power surges can be extremely damaging to the electrical devices in your home. Not only can it damage your electrical devices, but it can also damage your appliances as well. Fortunately, homeowners can have protections put in place that can save their devices and appliances from this damage. When it comes to surge protectors, it is important that you understand them so that you have the right protection. Burley Electrical Services is here to talk about surge protectors and what the average home needs to protect it from power surges.
How Does a Surge Protector Work?
A surge protector is in place to absorb the spike in power and protect your home from damage. However, you need to have the right joule rating for it to effectively offer the protection that you need. You also need to have the right clamping voltage. Let’s look a little closer at these two factors.
– Clamping Voltage: You need to look at the clamping voltage of any surge protector that you’re using. This will measure the amount of voltage is needed for the surge protector to kick in and work. The lower the voltage, the better the protection will be. If you have a surge protector that has a high clamping voltage, it won’t matter how many joules your protector has, it won’t do the job you need it to.
– Joules: The joule rating is the amount of energy dissipation your surge protector has the ability to absorb. When it comes to the joules, you want to have a higher number. If you have a surge protector with 1,000 joules, you will get longer protection than a surge protector with 500 joules.
How Many Joules Should My Home Surge Protection Have?
When you’re choosing the right protection, you want to pay attention to how many joules it has. Deciding the number of joules you need will depend greatly on the devices that you’re trying to protect.
– 500 to 1,000 Joules: A surge protector with 500-1,000 joules should only be used when you’re trying to protect small devices and appliances. This would include a blender and other things like that.
– 1,000 to 2,000 Joules: If you have small electronics and office equipment that you need to protect, you will want a surge protector with 1,000-2,000 joules. This could be used for printers, cell phones and laptops.
– 2,000 to 3,000 Joules: Expensive electronic equipment like equipment found in a home theatre would need a surge protector with the highest number of joules to be protected in the event of a power surge.
Residential & Commercial Electrical Services & More in Pompano Beach, Imperial Point, Plantation, Deerfield Beach, Boca Raton, Davie, Lighthouse Point, Parkland & Fort Lauderdale, Florida
If you are concerned you don’t have the protection you need in the case of a power surge, you can turn to Burley Electrical Services to help answer your questions. We offer whole house surge protectors that will give your home all the protection it needs. Call us today!
