Just as our electrical demands have grown in our homes over the last 40-50 years, so has our demand/
dependency on electronics. As that dependency grows, so must our knowledge on how to maintain and
protect them. Electronics can be very sensitive and are easily damaged. We suggest protecting your
electronics and appliances from electrical surges by installing a whole house surge protector.

But what is a power surge?

From the web site How Stuff Works, Tom Harris explains what an electronic surge is and the damage it
can cause. He writes, “In normal household and office wiring in the United States, the standard voltage
is 120 volts. If the voltage rises above 120 volts, there is a problem, and a surge protector helps to
prevent that problem from destroying your computer. If the surge or spike is high enough, it can inflict
some heavy damage on a machine… Even if increased voltage doesn’t immediately break your machine,
it may put extra strain on the components, wearing them down over time”.

If power surges are an inherent part of our electrical system, why didn’t we need surge protectors in our
homes 50 years ago? Electrical surges can be a lot more common today due to our power grids being
spread thin and less reliable. One of the realities of the age that we live in is that we simply rely on more
electronic devices for every day life. Our components have also become more sophisticated,
complicated, and delicate, which raises the potential of electronics burning out due to power surges.

Every house is full of devices that use an electronic board to operate. Between computers and TVs, to
furnaces and microwaves; we recommend every home is protected with a whole house surge protector.

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