Is Whole Home Surge Protection Worth It?

If you sit for a minute and think about all the things that you have plugged into the electrical system in your home, it can be quite mind-boggling, to say the least. Unfortunately, all it takes to damage those items is a power surge running through the electrical grid. A whole home surge protector is something worth considering to mitigate your risk of experiencing electrical problems.

What Is a Whole home Surge Protector?

A surge protector is an electrical device that’s specifically designed to absorb excess electricity and divert it to a grounding system. There are many different types of surge protectors out there. Most people are familiar with surge protector power strips. While these are great for protecting the items plugged into the power strip, they don’t do anything for the other electrical devices in your home.

This is where a whole house surge protector comes into play. This device will protect your entire electrical system and everything plugged into it. This includes your appliances, computers, televisions, and so forth. Instead of having to worry about purchasing appliances with built-in surge protection or having many different surge protector power strips throughout your home, you can rely on one whole home device.

The Benefits of a Whole Home Surge Protector

Before investing in anything new for your home, it’s imperative to understand the various benefits that it can provide you with. One of the biggest benefits of a whole house surge protector is that it helps to greatly reduce your risk of experiencing damage to your electrical equipment and appliances. There’s no denying the fact that appliances can be expensive, and having to replace just one of them can mess with your budget.

When you invest in a whole home surge protector, you can have peace of mind that it’s shielding your appliances and electronic devices, and you won’t have to deal with any financial implications of a power surge. Also, most homeowners’ insurance policies offer lower premiums for houses that have whole home surge protectors.

Apart from damage to your appliances, an overloaded circuit could result in an electrical fire. When you install a whole home surge protector, it greatly reduces your risk of experiencing an electrical fire due to a power surge. It can also help boost the resale value of your home if you plan on selling it in the future.

Are There Any Drawbacks to This Device?

As with purchasing any new item for your home, there are always going to be some drawbacks you need to be aware of. A whole home surge protector does come at a high up-front cost as compared to other surge protection devices. Your surge protector will need to undergo regular maintenance to ensure that it stays in good working condition, and this does require some ongoing costs.

Lastly, it’s important to note that while a whole house surge protector can greatly reduce your risk of experiencing electrical damage, it can’t completely eliminate it. Electrical storms can be unpredictable, and there are rare instances where power surges have been known to reach levels that no surge protector out there can shield electrical devices from.

Factors to Consider When Picking Out Your Device

If you’ve decided that a whole home surge protector is what you want for your home, there are many factors that you’ll need to take into consideration when selecting the ideal one for your needs. It’s best to consult a professional electrician to help you determine the right whole home surge protector to meet your dwelling’s specific needs.

Clamping Voltage

One of the very first things that you want to consider when purchasing a whole home surge protector for your home is its clamping voltage. This is the voltage where the surge protector will start to absorb excess power. The lower the threshold for your surge protector, the more protection it’s going to offer for more sensitive electronics. However, the higher its price tag will be.

Amperage Rating

Another necessary factor to consider is the amperage rating for the whole home surge protector. This rating is going to be the maximum number of amps that the surge protector can absorb before allowing excess power to run through your circuits. Most homeowners will want to get a surge protector with an amperage rating between 20,000 and 40,000. Pretty much all lightning strikes are below 40,000 amps, with most being around 20,000. The higher the amperage rating, the more expensive the whole home surge protector is going to be.

Integrated Lighting and Alert Features

Many new whole home surge protectors come with integrated indicator lights and alarms. These lights indicate whenever there’s a malfunction with your surge protector, and you can even receive an alert on your smartphone as soon as the issue is noted. Some surge protectors even come with technology that lets you know when the device has been activated due to an electrical power surge in your area.

How Long Do Whole home Surge Protectors Last?

Unfortunately, whole home surge protectors are not a one-and-done type of purchase for your home. Most will have a usable lifespan of anywhere between three and five years. However, the overall longevity of your whole home surge protector is going to be dependent on numerous factors. Some of these include the amount of maintenance it receives as well as how many power surges you experience.

Common Myths About Surge Protection Devices

Unfortunately, there are a lot of misconceptions out there about surge protection that can confuse homeowners. We’re going to address some of the most common so that you have a better understanding of how these devices work.

One of the most common myths is that a surge protector can completely eliminate your risk of experiencing damage to your electrical system and devices. While surge protectors can definitely reduce your risk of experiencing damage, they can’t completely eliminate it. Some rare instances of lightning strikes have occurred up to 100,000 amps. There simply isn’t a surge protector that can handle this amount of power.

Another common misconception is that surge-protecting power strips offer the same amount of protection as a whole home surge protector. While both work to help prevent power surges from damaging your electrical equipment, they have very different absorption rates. A whole house surge protector is going to be able to absorb more excess electricity than a simple power strip surge protector. Additionally, it’s important to keep in mind that power strip surge protectors protect only the devices plugged into them. A whole home surge protector will shield all the devices in your home alongside your electrical system components.

Reliable Whole Home Surge Protection Service

Black-Haak offers reliable whole home surge protection for the Fox Valley, WI area. We can also help with all your plumbing, air conditioning, heating, electrical, smart home automation, home protection service, heat pump, ductless mini-split, indoor air quality, and commercial service needs.

Book an appointment with our helpful team at Black-Haak today.