Most people picture lightning when they think of power surges. Lightning is part of it, especially during monsoon season in Southern Utah, but most surges are smaller and more frequent.
Where surges come from
- Lightning strikes on or near power lines
- Utility switching and power being restored after an outage
- Large motors cycling inside your own home: air conditioners, well pumps, compressors
- Damaged or loose service connections
Small surges do not destroy equipment in one hit. They wear down electronics over time until a control board fails for no obvious reason.
What is at risk
Nearly every appliance now has a circuit board: furnaces, refrigerators, washers, dishwashers, garage door openers, LED lighting, EV chargers, heat pumps and solar inverters. Replacing a single board can cost more than protecting the whole house.
How whole house surge protection works
A surge protective device is wired at the main panel. When voltage rises above a safe level it diverts the excess to ground in billionths of a second. It protects every circuit, including hardwired equipment that a power strip can never cover. See whole house surge protection.
What it does not do
No device stops a direct lightning strike to the house. And a surge protector depends on good grounding, which is why we test it during installation. Sensitive electronics still deserve a quality plug-in protector as a second layer.
Good times to add one
- When installing an EV charger or solar and batteries
- During an electrical panel upgrade
- After a generator installation
- After losing electronics to a storm
KITMUND installs surge protection in about two hours for most homes, anywhere from St. George and Hurricane to Tooele and Brigham City. Call (888) 633-7804.