How to Prevent Power Surges from Damaging Electronics

Power surges can cause significant damage to your electronics, and they're relatively common. A power surge is the most likely way for an expensive electronic device to die early. For all of us who have significant investments in home entertainment or computer equipment, learning how to prevent power surges from damaging electronics is essential.

• We can't stop lightning from striking our homes, but we can take steps to protect the delicate circuitry inside our high-dollar appliances that are sensitive to blackouts or brownouts.

Tips To Avoid Damaging Power Surges

• Call your utility company. Ask if they have any programs to install automatic voltage regulators at a charge. These devices monitor electricity levels at your home and kick in to prevent anything dangerous from happening. These are the equivalent of the surge protectors you may be using, but they work even better because they are designed for your house's specific needs.

• Get a power strip that is also a surge protector, or get additional surge protectors for whatever other power cables go into the devices you want to protect. Plug them all into this strip, with one wire leading out to wall outlets. That single wire will have an indicator light or button that shows whether it's working or not. Sometimes small lights tell you when there has been too much electricity flowing through the line, at which point it shuts off automatically before anything can burn out. Other models come with built-in circuit-breaker switches to do this manually.

• Read the manufacturer's instructions for what your surge protectors and power strips can and cannot do, and understand that these devices don't work forever. The metal oxide varistor (MOV) inside them will wear out over time, at which point they won't absorb any more surges. You'll know that has happened when the indicator light or button is always on, even when there's no electricity flowing through the device. Once MOVs have failed once in a unit, they generally won't ever prevent another damaging surge again. At this point, you should buy a new one to replace it or discard it altogether if it's an older model/make—minor white discoloration may be apparent on the MOV.

• Get rid of any surge protectors that show signs of physical damage such as bubbling, cracked casings, swelling/bulging casing, discoloration along with the power cord connection point (if there is one), etc. Do not fix a damaged or non-functional surge protector with electrical tape or anything that the manufacturer doesn't approve of. If you suspect damage, contact the manufacturer and do not use the device in question until you've received instructions from them about how to handle it (Do NOT mess around when your home's electronics come into play).

• Check with your neighbors and friends if they have old power strips or surge protectors lying around that don't work anymore. Many of these devices still have a little life left in them, and you can take the suitable components out of them for your unit. Look at the indicator lights, plugs, power cords, and metal oxide varistors (MOVs) to see how they work before you rip into any surge protector or power strip.

• Always unplug devices from their wall outlets when not in use. This includes telephones, microwaves, coffee makers/hot plates, computers/printers/scanners/faxes/modems with external speakers attached to them—anything that is plugged into a wall outlet, so it doesn't eat up electricity even though you aren't using it (this will cost your electric company quite a bit). If you plan on being away from your home for more than a week, unplug everything doubling as either entertainment (televisions, DVD players, game consoles) or communication (telephones/modems with voice lines, answering machines), even if you won't be gone that long.

Electrician’s Recommendations About Power Surges

Power surges increase voltage, usually caused when the power supply is greater than the demand. Laura Avila Barraza, an electrician in North Carolina, wants to ensure the public knows why it's crucial to prevent power surges."Some people think that because their electricity bill is so, they should just leave the appliances plugged in all the time," Laura Avila Barraza said. "But that's really not a good practice."

Laura Avila Barraza said unplugging appliances, which she calls "vampire power," is effortless. They can damage equipment connected to power outlets because of the excess energy flowing through them. That includes appliances, electronics, and lighting. Laura Avila Barraza recommends using surge protectors for items like computers and television sets to keep them from being damaged.