Benefits of Surge Protectors
By now everyone probably knows what a surge protector is, but they might not know exactly what they are for or why you should have one. Essentially a surge protector is a piece of equipment that is meant to keep your electrical items safe from a power outage. Usually, an outage can be caused by things such as a lighting storm, a tripped circuit, or even a short circuit, but they can also be caused by other instances as well. Some of the most common benefits of these surge protectors are that they reduce equipment downtime; they can help keep your equipment safe, they reduce maintenance costs and in some cases they can even reduce your electricity bills. The standard voltage for these is around 120 volts, but if you have an instance where it goes above that, the surge protector will help prevent any damage to your home or the equipment you have plugged into the surge protector. Below you will read about the best brands of surge protectors, types of surge protectors, connection types and more.
Best Brands
As with anything else when it comes to tech or - electrical services in NJ there are always brands that stand out as being number one. Here are a few to take a look at that have a lot of credibility and good reputation behind their names, as well as quality products:
- Kensington: Kensington is the inventor and worldwide leader in laptop security locks, the acknowledged leader of Trackball innovation and offers the broadest range of premium branded iPad, Tablet, iPhone, and Smartphone productivity solutions. Such is the extent of the trust afforded to our brand from our excellence in laptop security that our name has become synonymous with cabled computer locks and the Kensington's built-in Security Slot.
- GE: General Electric (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in New York. As of 2015, the company operates through the following segments: Appliances, Power and Water, Oil and Gas, Energy Management, Aviation, Healthcare, Transportation and Capital which cater to the needs of Home Appliances, Financial services, Medical device, Life Sciences, Pharmaceutical, Automotive, Software Development and Engineering industries.
- Belkin: When most people think of a top brand of electronics, this is another one that comes to mind right away. Belkin International, Inc. is an American manufacturer of consumer electronics that specializes in connectivity devices. Headquartered in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California, it sells various consumer and commercial product lines, including routers, iPod and iPhone accessories, mobile computing accessories, surge protectors, network switches, hubs, (USB and computer network) cables, KVM switches, racks and enclosures, and other peripherals.
Types of Surge Protectors
Believe it or not, there are other types of protectors than the ones that just plug into the wall and have a bunch of sockets (adapters) on them. All of the types of protectors are: Whole House, Surge Protector Strip, Battery Backup, and Wall Mount. below you will see a detailed description of all four.
Whole House
Whole house or point of entry surge protectors is models which are installed to your main electrical panel. Most of the time you would want an electrician to come in and install the surge protector. This type of protection will protect an entire house from outdoor surges. But, because this type of equipment cannot intercept all charges. If you are doing this on your own, make sure that you adhere to any and all safety precautions.
Strips
These are probably the ones you are most familiar with because they are the most used and most common option available. This is a point of use protector and it allows you to plug in multiple devices at once. The device then plugs into an electrical socket or outlet. The way this device works is by essentially diverting unwanted electrical energy that comes from outdoors through the wires, and sends them away from your electrical devices like video game consoles, television sets, mobile phones, etc. One thing to remember though is that not ALL power strips offer surge protection. There are just regular power strips. In order to find a surge protector you will specifically need to buy a power strip surge protector! Another term to look for is surge suppressors. Strips work really well for people that tend to plug a lot of electrical devices in, but they also do quite well with indoor lights for Christmas trees. Plus, because they have several plugs, you can plug other things in for holidays i.e.; Christmas lights that train you always put under the tree on Christmas, nativity sets, etc. Or for Halloween - your decorations that light up, lights and smoke machine.
Battery Back Up
This is yet another point of use device also known as a UPS or uninterruptible power supply. This works in that it gives power to the connected devices in case of a power failure. Most of the time these also are protectors against surges, but again, you need to make sure that it says its either a suppressor or a surge protector on the packaging to be sure of this. You would plug the battery into the wall outlet and it charges the battery over a period of time. Everything plugged into those battery mobile phones, flashlights, whatever else will use the power from the battery when the electricity goes out. It’s a very simple and yet ingenious device.
Wall Mounts
These work a lot like the strips above, but instead of just plugging one wire from the protector into the wall, you would plug it directly into the wall using the prongs on the device. These are very basic and they come in both surge protectants and not, so again, make sure that you are using one that will protect against surges rather than not.
Connection Types
Not only will surge protectors keep things like power cords safe, but other things as well. Essentially, as long as it has the connection for the type of wire, you can "plug" it in and it will protect that device. This includes Ethernet jacks for Wife and Cable television, telephone cords for your telephones (landline), coaxial cables for cable TV and yes, even USB cords for mobile phones, MP3 players, external hard drives and more.
Hopefully after reading this, you are a little more educated on how these work as well as some of the options available to you. But, if not, you can also look on some home improvement websites for a lot more products and information.
Best Brands
As with anything else when it comes to tech or - electrical services in NJ there are always brands that stand out as being number one. Here are a few to take a look at that have a lot of credibility and good reputation behind their names, as well as quality products:
- Kensington: Kensington is the inventor and worldwide leader in laptop security locks, the acknowledged leader of Trackball innovation and offers the broadest range of premium branded iPad, Tablet, iPhone, and Smartphone productivity solutions. Such is the extent of the trust afforded to our brand from our excellence in laptop security that our name has become synonymous with cabled computer locks and the Kensington's built-in Security Slot.
- GE: General Electric (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in New York. As of 2015, the company operates through the following segments: Appliances, Power and Water, Oil and Gas, Energy Management, Aviation, Healthcare, Transportation and Capital which cater to the needs of Home Appliances, Financial services, Medical device, Life Sciences, Pharmaceutical, Automotive, Software Development and Engineering industries.
- Belkin: When most people think of a top brand of electronics, this is another one that comes to mind right away. Belkin International, Inc. is an American manufacturer of consumer electronics that specializes in connectivity devices. Headquartered in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California, it sells various consumer and commercial product lines, including routers, iPod and iPhone accessories, mobile computing accessories, surge protectors, network switches, hubs, (USB and computer network) cables, KVM switches, racks and enclosures, and other peripherals.
Types of Surge Protectors
Believe it or not, there are other types of protectors than the ones that just plug into the wall and have a bunch of sockets (adapters) on them. All of the types of protectors are: Whole House, Surge Protector Strip, Battery Backup, and Wall Mount. below you will see a detailed description of all four.
Whole House
Whole house or point of entry surge protectors is models which are installed to your main electrical panel. Most of the time you would want an electrician to come in and install the surge protector. This type of protection will protect an entire house from outdoor surges. But, because this type of equipment cannot intercept all charges. If you are doing this on your own, make sure that you adhere to any and all safety precautions.
Strips
These are probably the ones you are most familiar with because they are the most used and most common option available. This is a point of use protector and it allows you to plug in multiple devices at once. The device then plugs into an electrical socket or outlet. The way this device works is by essentially diverting unwanted electrical energy that comes from outdoors through the wires, and sends them away from your electrical devices like video game consoles, television sets, mobile phones, etc. One thing to remember though is that not ALL power strips offer surge protection. There are just regular power strips. In order to find a surge protector you will specifically need to buy a power strip surge protector! Another term to look for is surge suppressors. Strips work really well for people that tend to plug a lot of electrical devices in, but they also do quite well with indoor lights for Christmas trees. Plus, because they have several plugs, you can plug other things in for holidays i.e.; Christmas lights that train you always put under the tree on Christmas, nativity sets, etc. Or for Halloween - your decorations that light up, lights and smoke machine.
Battery Back Up
This is yet another point of use device also known as a UPS or uninterruptible power supply. This works in that it gives power to the connected devices in case of a power failure. Most of the time these also are protectors against surges, but again, you need to make sure that it says its either a suppressor or a surge protector on the packaging to be sure of this. You would plug the battery into the wall outlet and it charges the battery over a period of time. Everything plugged into those battery mobile phones, flashlights, whatever else will use the power from the battery when the electricity goes out. It’s a very simple and yet ingenious device.
Wall Mounts
These work a lot like the strips above, but instead of just plugging one wire from the protector into the wall, you would plug it directly into the wall using the prongs on the device. These are very basic and they come in both surge protectants and not, so again, make sure that you are using one that will protect against surges rather than not.
Connection Types
Not only will surge protectors keep things like power cords safe, but other things as well. Essentially, as long as it has the connection for the type of wire, you can "plug" it in and it will protect that device. This includes Ethernet jacks for Wife and Cable television, telephone cords for your telephones (landline), coaxial cables for cable TV and yes, even USB cords for mobile phones, MP3 players, external hard drives and more.
Hopefully after reading this, you are a little more educated on how these work as well as some of the options available to you. But, if not, you can also look on some home improvement websites for a lot more products and information.