How I Saved My Best Friend's Home With A Surge Protector

Let me tell you how I came to learn about the importance of a surge protector. I once came home from running some errands one Saturday to find my house filled with smoke. I instantly reached for my cell phone and dialed 911 to alert the fire department. My wife took the grand kids to the neighbors and while waiting for the fire truck to show up I decided to go through the house and see what I could see. It wasn't a lot of smoke so I didn't figure there was a great big fire in the house. Long story short, I found my computer area smoking and when I pulled the desk from the wall the plug was melted and the outlet was ablaze.

Well by that time the fire department had arrived, I showed them the fire and they put it out without much concern. One of the guys started telling me all kinds of horror stories about how many homes they come across that don't know how to properly use surge protectors for computers. Typically it starts, as in my case, with someone running their computer equipment through a basic power cord that wasn't rated for the power level a computer requires.

Now I felt pretty stupid about not having a PC surge protector hooked up for my desktop and it was a costly replacement. But what disturbed me more than my own mistake was when I discovered my best friend, an electrician, to be among one of those people the fireman was talking about. Had he not installed a surge protector when I saw it, he might not have a home today.

Now I know that most people just aren't aware of how power surges emerge. You might already know that one source comes from things like electrical storms sending extra power through you home lines. This can run right into your electronic equipment and burn out electrical components. Maybe not right away but definitely over time. And that's the kicker. Power surges happen all the time.

But what's really scary is how a power surge is created within your home. If you've got any large energy sucking appliances in your home, like an air conditioner or a washer or dryer, these things require a large amount of energy to start them. When they suck power from an outlet it creates a surge in that appliance. If you don't have something like a Monster surge protector between that outlet and that air conditioner, the wiring can over heat and the next thing you know, you've got an electrical fire.

Let's stop there a minute and talk about this. A home surge protector isn't expensive. You can pick up a quality one for about twenty-five bucks. All you have to do is make sure the UL rating is enough to support the appliance in question. You can find some that will support an entire desktop computer station. These normally have about 6 outlets on them and plug right into the wall, just like a normal power strip.

But the difference is a power surge protector is built to take high levels of energy. Inside it is a semi-conductor that when it encounters a surge reroutes the energy to a grounding wire where the heat from the surge dissipates into the air, rendering any potential damage harmless.

Well that's where my best friend comes in. Alex had his computer running through a simple power strip and I just happen to be there one day when I saw it. I told him he should replace it and made him reach down and feel the power cord. Sure enough it was very warm. He went out that afternoon and bought a Belkin surge protector and saved himself from a possible fire. What are friends for?