Most people have heard of power surges, but many of them are unaware of the damage they can really cause in a home. These spikes in electricity happen in the blink of an eye, but that’s all the time they need to damage electronic devices, appliances, and outlets inside your household. The good news is that as long as you prepare your home properly, there’s no reason that you need to be affected by these harmful power surges.
Unplug Everything in Your Home During a Storm
Whenever there’s a serious storm in your area, it’s a good idea to unplug as many of your electrical devices as possible. It’s important to remember that, every time you experience a power outage, it’s going to be accompanied by a power surge. However, if your devices aren’t plugged in, there’s no way for that surge to affect them.
Install a Surge Protector
There are multiple types of surge protectors you can install in your home, and each of them serves a different purpose. To protect your sensitive electronics such as computers, refrigerators, washers, dryers, and HVAC systems, consider investing in an appliance-grade surge protector. These surge protectors have a joule rating of over 2,000, which allows them to keep these important electronics and appliances safe from power surges.
You can also install a whole-house surge protector. These heavy-duty units are installed on your home’s electrical box, and they act as a barrier of protection between your electrical system and the power grid. When you have one of these powerful surge protectors working for your home, it will protect all of your outlets and electronics should there be a power surge. If you live in an area that has frequent storms or power outages, a whole-house surge protector would be a worthwhile investment.
Schedule Regular Inspections
It’s always wise to schedule occasional inspections by reliable electricians. If you live in an older house, there’s a real possibility that old and outdated wiring can become damaged or faulty over the years. When this happens, it can result in power surges. When you bring in an electrician, they’ll be able to examine your outlets and wiring setup to ensure that everything is safe and functional. Even if your home is relatively new, it’s still a good idea to schedule one of these inspections every year or two. The trained professional should be able to point out ways you can make some improvements and better prepare yourself for surges.
Go With Energy-Efficient Appliances
In addition to saving you money on your monthly bills, energy-efficient heating and air conditioning units also use up significantly less electricity than standard appliances. Because they don’t rely on as much electricity, they’re far less likely to be the cause of a power surge. If you have a bunch of older appliances that pull a lot of energy, the increased load as a whole can be the cause of power surges within the home that are not related to outages. There are high-efficiency options for other appliances as well, such as water heaters and refrigerators.
Distribute Your Appliances and Electronic Devices
If you can, you should always try to use many different outlets, extension cords, and power strips to supply electricity to all of your appliances and devices. When you have too many different things plugged into one power strip, surge protector, or set of outlets, it’s very easy for those sources of electricity to become overwhelmed. This makes them more vulnerable to power surges, but it also makes it more likely for several different devices or appliances to be damaged simultaneously should a surge occur. You most likely won’t be able to keep every single electronic device on its own power strip or surge protector, but doing your best to spread them out can make a real difference.
At Wingate Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, we have been offering quality household services to the greater Cincinnati, OH, area since 1968. Just like it says in our name, we are a proud provider of reliable heating, cooling, and plumbing services for our area. Additionally, we can handle your indoor air quality and commercial needs too. We pride ourselves on exceeding our customers’ expectations, and our goal is always to provide the highest quality HVAC products and services and excellent customer service.
Give us a call at Wingate Heating, Cooling & Plumbing to learn more or schedule an appointment.