On Jan 31, 2:23*pm, bud-- wrote:
mm wrote:
On Mon, 31 Jan 2011 08:37:32 -0800 (PST), GS
wrote:
On Jan 31, 9:45 am, GS wrote:
On Jan 30, 11:03 am, mm wrote:
Is it possible to repair a whole house surge suppressor?
At 100 to 200 dollars, I don't want to keep buying new ones.
I was going to install a whole house surge suppressor. *When one of
them does its function, I think the MOV burns out, or some part does..
I haven't seen anything on the web about replacement modules for even
those units that might have them.
Will I be able to find, buy, and solder in replacement MOVs after the
first one burns out? (the green led goes out and the red led goes on)
I can't find any info about plug-in replacement parts, so if I can
repair any unit myself, I won't have to shop so thoroughly.
Items for sale, if interested:
I can install it myself. *I'm considering, in ascending price order:http://www.amazon.com/Intermatic-IG1...ction-Device/d.......
and less likely (plus two are required, one for each leg)http://www.amazon.com/Square-D-SDSA1.../dp/B002GUZ1NI
Its easy to find expensive ones. I guess if you can figure out how to
take it apart
you can fix it. I bought one a few months ago for $35. Here is anotherhttp://www.drillspot.com/products/122270/Square_D_SDSA1175_Surge_Arre...
Drillspot sells Grainger stuff.
Thanks. *Now it's 56 dollars. * I see that Amazon has this 36 also
including shipping.
greg
So I showed you the same model you showed first. But, you do NOT need
TWO.
Oh, thank you. *I got confused by the drawing, at
http://surgelogic.com/wp-content/upl...75_IB_8291-001...
which shows two for 3-phase (but only one for single-phase), and since
it has only 3 wires, one to the neutral, but none to the ground like
some others have. *
It is intended for installation in a service panel. In the US, the
service panel (containing the service disconnect) has the neutral and
ground bonded together
I have yet to see suppressor not intended to be connected to breakers
in a service
panel.
I also don't like to call these surge, but SPIKE yes.
Surges to me a re very slow increases in voltage over the
safe limit.
You can usually make local neutrals by connecting ground
to a neutral, or make it using an isolation transformer, which
makes ground to neutral noise non existent at that point.
greg
In a subpanel (with separate neutral and ground bars) there would be
separate wires for the neutral and ground.
Do you think I should to connect a surge suppressor to unused circuit
breakers? *Some instructions say to do that for increased sensitivity
but others say nothing about it. * *Because the circuits I wanted to
use are often off or almost totally off, just the baseline portable tv
current or a cordless phone charger running.
It shouldn't matter.
(You are suppressing surges on the service busbars, not branch circuit.
Not obvious if you were saying something different.)
It also says "Twist wires one half turn or more for
every 12 in. (305 mm) of length." *That means when all three wires are
running together, right? *In conduit or something? *Once they
separate, even if the wires are stranded, there's no point to twisting
them, is there?
A surge is a very short-time event. Therefore it has relatively high
frequency components. The inductance of the wire is more important than
the resistance. Wire length is more important than it would seem. You
want a short connecting wires from the suppressor to the panel
connections. That is why the instructions say "keep the wire length as
short as possible. If the wires are in close proximity the wire
inductance is reduced. That is why *the wires are slightly twisted.
There seems like a lot of confusion on protectors and the
manufacturers seem
to have various schemes going on. Some of the very small portable
devices by
Tripplite have ratings that indicate higher amps than the regular
whole house protectors. I installed the 'secondary" protector in my
breaker box
A useful rating for a MOV is its joule rating. *UL does not have a
defined way of specifying joules. As a result some manufacturers are
using misleading or deceptive joule ratings on their products, which
puts honest manufacturers at a disadvantage. As a result, some
manufacturers no longer provide a joule rating. The amp rating is
equivalent, but defined. A high amp rating (like a high joule rating)
indicates a suppressor will have a long life. *A plug-in suppressor with
high ratings could have an amp rating higher than a service panel
suppressor. (There is no possibility of a very high current on a branch
circuit; high current ratings just reflects a high joule rating.)
MOVs intrinsically try to limit the voltage across their terminals. In a
service panel the H-N voltages are limited (also H-H). That can result
in a high current to earth. Most of the energy in the incoming surge is
dumped to the earth. A small part of the energy is dissipated in the MOVs..
At a plug-in suppressor, the MOVs also limits the voltage H-G, N-G and
H-N. Because of the impedance of the ground wire, not much energy gets
dumped to the earth. But because of the impedance of the H and N, there
is similarly a very limited current that can flow. Energy dissipated in
the MOVs is surprisingly small (and there is another reason for this).
But the "ground potential" at the suppressor can be far different from
the service panel. All interconnected equipment needs to be connected to
the same suppressor and all external wires (power, phone, cable, ...)
need to go through the suppressor. The voltage on all wires is clamped
to the ground at the suppressor.
--
bud--