A quick question for yee, if your house gets hit by lightning but you have a surge protector, will the surge protector go bang or will it just absord the hit and carry on working.

It was something I was asked today and since lightning strikes are quicte rare I thought Id ask and see if anyone here has had experience with this sort of thing.

I mean does a surge protector take one for the team and sacrifice itself...

Cheers
Tongy

Takes one for the team if its a cheapy bought from B&Q or the like. You send it back to the manufacturer to get replaced normally, at least thats what my dad did with his surgemaster one.

Though you can buy nice expensive ones that simply trip like a circuit breaker.

some go pop, some keep working... for some it depends on how much of a surge they take

plus it doesnt have to hit your house... can be a house close by, some overhead cables etc...

Make sure you buy a surge protector with a warranty to cover your goods, so if it fails or for some reason doesnt trip and your Pc goes bang, the Surge supplier pay for new kit.

 

right lets clear sommit up

Surge protectors absorb surges, and slowly they "fill up" once that happens the light goes out and they act like any other extension lead.

Also most surge protectors will not be able to stop a full on lightning strike, its just a fact im afraid. Most people will never have a problem as getting hit is fairly rare.

I however ditched surge protectors and got a smart ups 1400 which runs my 2 rigs for 45mins+ if the power goes out, i dont think itll take a lightning strike either tbh but how bad does your luck need to be for that to happen?

My dads surge protector was toast because of lightning that we couldnt even see (could hear the thunder though). Granted im in a valley so only see about 3 miles around.

It protected the laptop, just emitted a loud BANG! when it went off and scared the crap out of my parents.

Generally when theres lightning around here we tend to disconnect or turn off everything plugged in.

Sent it back to surgemaster after it refused to turn on anymore (no red light) and got a new one sent in the post a few days later.

This was a while ago though so I guess surge protectors could have changed in that time. btw... yet to have any problems with it yet

If you have a device connected to the phone line then that will provide a current path for lightning as well as the mains, and wont be protected by a surge arrestor.

Quote from: CeathreamhnanIf you have a device connected to the phone line then that will provide a current path for lightning as well as the mains, and wont be protected by a surge arrestor.

Aye, thats why you sometimes see old skool 56ks with fuses on them

All modern UK telephony devices (phones, modems, etc) have fuses, even the ADSL modems that run from USB probably have fuses (unless they are considered protected by an onboard fuse on the motherboard).

1.) Because its UK law that telephones and telephony equipment must draw their power from the phone lines to provide communication in event of a power outage.

As they draw power... they are required to be protected by a fuse, to prevent electrocution in event of a short circuit, Some phones even have the Double insulation symbol on to negate the need for an earth.

2.) Fuses found in plugs and so on do not protect against lightning strikes, they just dont burn fast enough. Trip switches and circuit breakers are faster acting, but still these wont protect equipment from lightning strikes, but may stand a better chance of protecting you if your holding the thing at the time.

Surge protectors.. feck knows whats in them never really studied them when I was doing electrical engineering but they are somewhat different im sure.

As for what greg says, my dads one has a socket for phone and fax lines to be protected also.

Quote from: M3ta7h3ad1.) Because its UK law that telephones and telephony equipment must draw their power from the phone lines to provide communication in event of a power outage.

Are you telling me that my phones that dont work during a power cut are illegal then?

its not a legal requirement that phones have to draw their power from the phone lines.

Fact.

Trust me, i work in Telecoms

Quote from: Chaostimeits not a legal requirement that phones have to draw their power from the phone lines.

Fact.

Trust me, i work in Telecoms

Well its hardly likely is it?  Almost everyone I know has phones that keel over in a power cut.  They dont plug into the mains just for a laugh  

They always state in manuals that you should have a normal corded phone as well in the result of a power cut you can still make emergency calls.

Reminds me of when I worked at Time/Tiny and we started a bundle deal which included a surge protector.  Of course the selling line was protect yourself against surges and lightning strikes.  And of course when a customer called back after their computer had been fried.  "No, Sorry.  Surge protectors dont protect you against lightning."  Give us your money, like heck are you getting it back!

And its a year since they went down the crapper!  \o/  Its a shame the original owners bought the brand back and the warranty contracts.  They then charged people a full years Warranty via direct debit.  You can imagine what peoples reaction to that has been.  Thankfully I am not there now

your advised to have at least one old skool fone that doesnt need a mains supply so you can call 999 if the powers out

Common sense and a legal requirement are not the same.

I mean, if it was illegal to sell a phone that dosnt draw power from the phone lines, Telecom system that businesses use would be illegal.

Private phone systems dont draw their power from the phone line, they are all done by mains power, there isnt enough power on the phone line to power a whole system.