Terryl
06-06-2011, 09:32 PM
Lightning is something nice to watch but very bad for your home electronics.
Lightning storms in some areas are few and far between but that does not make your equipment any safer from the freak storm that may roll through.
Reading through some of the posts on site we see a few of our members have experienced this natural phenomenon and have lost some good (and expesive) equipment to it, in this post we will explore ways to lessen the possibilities of loosing some very valuable equipment to lightning.
The first way is the best way and that is to totally disconnect any equipment from any outside antenna(s) and AC power wall sockets, this may be implacable and seem silly but it the only way to keep the lightning from getting to it.
Other ways are to use surge protectors, now some may say that they will protect your equipment but a $5 to $25 device protecting that $3000 TV, not on my best list, there are $200 to $500 devices out there that would do a better job, the Monster Home Theater Reference Power Center HTS 1600 is one way, this also comes with equipment insurance, there are many others out there all you have to do is look on the web.
Another good way and one that will allow you to watch that end of the show or finish that recording is called a UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supply) the UPS system with run and protect your equipment during the storm and possible black out due to the storm, there are many UPS systems out there and if your worried about lightning get one that covers your equipment with attached equipment insurance.
Protecting your stuff with good surge and UPS systems that offer insurance is the best way to keep your home owners insurance intact as some insurance companies will drop you after a large claim. (Different subject for else ware)
Some of you home buyers that may be getting your first home but it’s not a brand new one and if it’s in an area prone to thunder and lightning storms may see long rods on the high points of the roof, these are called lightning rods (if your don’t know that already) these rods actually attract the lighting to them and conduct it safely away from the house to the ground, this system if installed should be inspected by a professional when your buying the house, they are there to protect the house and your loved ones and should be in good working order.
A word of warning, be absolutely sure that someone has NOT used the lightning rod ground system to ground any outdoor antenna system, the lightning ground system must be on its own, lightning goes anywhere it wants too, it will take any path to ground but it will send out many many little feelers looking for that path, you or someone else could be in that path, and these little feelers can carry many millions of volts
Lightning storms in some areas are few and far between but that does not make your equipment any safer from the freak storm that may roll through.
Reading through some of the posts on site we see a few of our members have experienced this natural phenomenon and have lost some good (and expesive) equipment to it, in this post we will explore ways to lessen the possibilities of loosing some very valuable equipment to lightning.
The first way is the best way and that is to totally disconnect any equipment from any outside antenna(s) and AC power wall sockets, this may be implacable and seem silly but it the only way to keep the lightning from getting to it.
Other ways are to use surge protectors, now some may say that they will protect your equipment but a $5 to $25 device protecting that $3000 TV, not on my best list, there are $200 to $500 devices out there that would do a better job, the Monster Home Theater Reference Power Center HTS 1600 is one way, this also comes with equipment insurance, there are many others out there all you have to do is look on the web.
Another good way and one that will allow you to watch that end of the show or finish that recording is called a UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supply) the UPS system with run and protect your equipment during the storm and possible black out due to the storm, there are many UPS systems out there and if your worried about lightning get one that covers your equipment with attached equipment insurance.
Protecting your stuff with good surge and UPS systems that offer insurance is the best way to keep your home owners insurance intact as some insurance companies will drop you after a large claim. (Different subject for else ware)
Some of you home buyers that may be getting your first home but it’s not a brand new one and if it’s in an area prone to thunder and lightning storms may see long rods on the high points of the roof, these are called lightning rods (if your don’t know that already) these rods actually attract the lighting to them and conduct it safely away from the house to the ground, this system if installed should be inspected by a professional when your buying the house, they are there to protect the house and your loved ones and should be in good working order.
A word of warning, be absolutely sure that someone has NOT used the lightning rod ground system to ground any outdoor antenna system, the lightning ground system must be on its own, lightning goes anywhere it wants too, it will take any path to ground but it will send out many many little feelers looking for that path, you or someone else could be in that path, and these little feelers can carry many millions of volts