Fail Safe Mode - Most other surge suppressors continue to let power through even after their circuits have been damaged, leaving your equipment exposed to future surges.I don't know if he's right, but I don't want to mess with my internet and phone connection. I know that it's a high-end surge suppressor, but my experience has taught me that it doesn't matter how good it is." So, I did that. Unplug those cables and bypass it completely. Those things cause problems and sometimes they are the only culprit of a problem on some of my service calls. He was like, "That's a part of your problem right there. However, I USED to use those other features, but I had to have Comcast come out for something unrelated to this once and he noticed my setup and was like, "It's not really my place, but can I tell you something about your setup there?" He pointed at my beloved HT10DBS with all of my cables going in and out of those ports. I could have gone with the ISOBAR8ULTRA and had a better unit with no unnecessary features. I don't use anything else except for the 3-prong outlets. Just don't be dumb like me and spend extra money on features that don't really provide any benefit anyway, such as the HT10DBS:Īll I use are the outlets. The clamping voltage is important too, and so is the AC suppression response time (joule rating is nothing if the unit isn't fast enough), the UL1449 let through rating, and you can even say that the material of the housing is important (plastic or metal? I'd choose metal). By doing this, you can see if you ever pull more than 1440W, which would show you if you need any more than that. In other words, the path is: Computer and all peripherals and whatever else > power strip or cheap surge protector > another power strip or surge protector for more outlets, if needed > Kill A Watt Meter > Wall Outlet. The other power strip is powering the main power strip, and the other power strip (the one that the main power strip is plugged into) is into the Kill A Watt meter. An easy way to do this is by using a couple different power strips: plug a smuch as you can into one power strip, and then plug the leftovers into the other. Use this to measure how much power EVERYTHING is pulling that you will have plugged into the surge suppressor. The one I was talking about earlier is the ISOBAR8ULTRA: You're paying partly for the special design of it.
I don't want to cook a $500+ UPS either.Ĭlick to expand.That's a rackmount unit. For systems that need a UPS, I usually go with APC Smart-UPS as they have active regulation for over AND under voltage situations, and will disconnect the load electronically instead of absorbing it with MOVs in the event of a strong surge.įor what it's worth, my Smart-UPS are plugged into their OWN surge suppressor, LOL. Tripp-Lite ISOBAR Ultra is a top quality surge suppressor, and is my usual go-to choice when I don't need a UPS in place. The purpose of a GOOD surge protector is to sacrifice itself instead of your equipment. IF the surge is big enough, the MOV fails and creates an open circuit. MOV's are basically resistors that increase in resistance dramatically as voltage increases to the point where they will dissipate all the excess surge as heat.
All surge suppressors without active circuitry work by employing Metal Oxide Varistors. More joules = more absorption before MOV's fail to open circuit condition. Its not all about the joule rating, but it's mostly about the joule rating.