On Mar 21, 12:41 pm, wrote:
As far as lightning protection, they'll do part of that, up to the
energy rating. Which is why you need the tiered approach.
In professional papers, tiering is not about protectors. Tiering is
about the only system component that dissipates the energy. Every
protection layer is defined by that component ALWAYS required in each
protection layer - the single point earth ground. The only item that
dissipates that energy. Every protection ‘tier’ is defined only by
the earth ground. Any protector without earthing does not ‘tiering’.
A residential 'whole house' protector is discussed. But that entire
protection “layer” is defined by what the protector connects to -
earth ground. Homeowners should also inspect their 'primary' surge
protection system. That is the other protection “layer”:
http://www.tvtower.com/fpl.html
Protectors that do not even claim protection in their numeric specs
(ie that Belkin) will not discuss earthing. They hope you ‘assume’ a
protector magically makes energy disappear. The NIST (US government
research agency) citation provided by Bud is quite blunt about what an
effective protector must do:
You cannot really suppress a surge altogether, nor "arrest" it. What these
protective devices do is neither suppress nor arrest a surge, but simply
divert it to ground, where it can do no harm.
What happens if the protector does not make that short (ie 'less than
10 foot') connection to earth? That energy must dissipate
somewhere? Bud’s IEEE citation – page 42 Figure 8 – shows where that
energy dissipates: 8000 volts destructively via nearby appliances.
Either that energy is earthed. Or that energy will hunt for earth
ground inside the building destructively via appliances. Both IEEE
and NIST make that point.
I am being kind. I have only called them ineffective. NIST is
blunter about what a protector without earthing does:
A very important point to keep in mind is that your surge protector will work
by diverting the surges to ground. The best surge protection in the world
can be useless if grounding is not done properly.
See those pictures of the Belkin posted elsewhere? It even
threatened human life. And the NIST also describes plug-in protectors
are useless:
... can be useless if grounding is not done properly.
Only more responsible companies sell effective protectors. With an
always required, dedicated wire to make a short connection to earth.
Responsible companies including General Electric, Leviton, Intermatic,
Siemens, Square D, and even the Cutler-Hammer solution that sells in
Lowes and Home Depot for less than $50. In every case, an effective
protector has a wire to dissipate energy harmlessly into earth. Plug-
in protectors do not – are not part of a ‘tiered’ solution. Without
earthing (ie plug-in protectors), "The best surge protection in the
world can be useless if grounding is not done properly." Could they
be any blunter? Protection is always about where energy dissipates.
Each protection layer is defined by what provides protection – the
single point earth ground.
Secondary protection is earthing at the service entrance. Primary
protection is earthing by the utility. Each protection layer is about
where energy dissipates – not by some high profit box that somehow
makes energy magically disappear.