On Monday, October 19, 2015 at 7:39:23 PM UTC-4, wrote:
In this case, ground is ground. Earth ground. Utility ground. It
is the ONLY ground a whole house surge protector sees - and also,
if the house is properly wired, the only ground downstream surge
protectors will see. The neutral is also bonded to the earth
connection

Many 'experts' forget to first learn basic electrical concepts. Reality is not found in soundbytes. Unfortunately reality must be explained in long replies - and with numbers.

Wire is never a perfect conductor as you only assumed. Wire is always an electronic component. Telcos need 'whole house' protectors as much as 50 meters distant from $multi-million electronics. Wire impedance (increased wire length) increases protection. A homeowner needs a 'whole house' protector connected within feet of earth ground - because wire impedance must be low. Basic electrical knowledge also says why a hardwire to earth must have no sharp bends, no splices, and not inside metallic conduit.

Obviously a wall receptacle safety ground does not have low impedance. Obviously it is too long, has many sharp bends, multiple splices, and can be inside metallic conduit. Other educated by advertising would not know these basic and critical electrical concepts.

Your denials demonstrate no experience. You did not even know what impedance is. Low impedance is critical to have surge protection.

Numbers: a wall receptacle safety ground might have less than 0.2 ohms resistance. Also 120 ohms impedance. A tiny 100 amp surge would put that wall receptacle at something less than 12,000 volts (100 amps times 120 ohms). Where is protection? That 12,000 volts demonstrates why plug-in protectors have no earth ground - do not protect from destructive (or even a tiny 100 amp) surge.

Any tech can dicover this using a three light receptacle tester. Disconnect and reconnect a building's earth ground. Tester reports safety ground always good. Why? Because safety ground and earth ground are electrically different. Please learn this stuff before denying.

Unfortunately many are only educated by hearsay and advertising. It is called a surge protector. That means it does effective protection? Please stop using junk science reasoning. Above numbers demonstrate why a protector is only as effective as its connection to and quality of earth ground - not to wall receptacle safety ground. Protection is the only item that harmlessly absorbs hundreds of thousands of joules - earth ground.


On Monday, October 19, 2015 at 7:39:23 PM UTC-4, wrote:
IF you have a good high rated whole house protector and you get a
surge high enough to blow the protector, you are looking at in the
tens of thousands of amps, which even inmicroseconds, will trip most
breakers.

First, only scam protectors block surges. Clearly you have no idea how a 'whole house' protector works. An effective protector does not block as you only speculated; it connects a surge to what does protection. You clearly have no idea how and why 'whole house' protection works. And why it is so effective.

Second, routine is a microseconds surge through a breaker without tripping it. A 'whole house' protector is on its own circuit breaker. A protector effectively earths a 20,000 amp lightning strike ... and does not trip its circuit breaker. Breaker does not trip on transients that are too short.

Numbers: breakers require millisecond or longer transients to trip. Or learn manufacturer numbers from their trip curves. Square D charts show tripping on transients of 5 milliseconds or higher. Despite wild speculation, typically destructive surges do not trip circuit breakers.

Breakers and fuses do not 'avert' or 'mitigate' a surge current. Breakers do not protect hardware. Numbers make that obvious. Breakers trip long after damage ... to protect human life. Please learn manufacturer specifications and datasheets before just assuming.

Had you learned how 'whole house' protector works, then you knew that protector connects via a circuit breaker. A 20,000 amp surge does not damage the protector and does not trip its breaker. Despite only speculation, that breaker does not trip during a 20,000 amp direct lightning trike. Please learn how 'whole house' protector works before posting so many denials. Please learn why breakers do not and cannot trip during a surge. Please learn how these things work before posting.

A surge current must not be anywhere inside the structure. Otherwise that current is hunting for earth destructively via appliances - including furnace and AC compressor.

Rooftop units are struck when that is a best (destructive) connection to earth. Damage directly traceable to a human mistake - no properly earthed lightning rods. A human all but invited lightning inside a building possibly causing additional and unnecessary damage.

Protection is never provided by circuit breakers. Breakers trip AFTER damage has happened - to protect human life. Critical is what provides protection - a low impedance (ie less than 10 foot) connection to single point earth ground. Then hundreds of thousands of joules harmlessly dissipate outside. Then a surge is not inside hunting for earth destructive via any appliance or HVAC equipment. Protection is always about earth ground (not a wall receptacle safety ground). Even lightning rods must be earthed to protect rooftop equipment.