Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
|
Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
Reply |
|
LinkBack | Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge.
Would like to prevent this so Googled using AC Power Surge Protection and found "The Best Surge Protector by Brent Butterworth. http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/ Read link "Surge Protectors ??? (Brickwall, Zero Surge, Furman, SurgeX," http://www.avsforum.com/forum/40-ole...urgex-etc.html Then did a Forum search and found some very long discussions such as: Surge Protectors https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/mkLpyahIKNk/3GvjxW9LrrsJ Surge protector fuse blown https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/iUffPhXZsNA/Ay8058Ba46QJ I do not have a technical background so would be interested in others comments concerning all this. Would like to use your advice to build a cost effective audio protection system. Thanks Ken |
#2
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 27/05/2015 9:12 AM, KenO wrote:
A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. **How do you know it was a "power surge"? Where did this alleged "power surge" originate? Would like to prevent this so Googled using AC Power Surge Protection and found "The Best Surge Protector by Brent Butterworth. http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/ Read link "Surge Protectors ??? (Brickwall, Zero Surge, Furman, SurgeX," http://www.avsforum.com/forum/40-ole...urgex-etc.html Then did a Forum search and found some very long discussions such as: Surge Protectors https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/mkLpyahIKNk/3GvjxW9LrrsJ Surge protector fuse blown https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/iUffPhXZsNA/Ay8058Ba46QJ I do not have a technical background so would be interested in others comments concerning all this. Would like to use your advice to build a cost effective audio protection system. **The best way to protect an audio system from "power surges" is to disconnect the TV antenna during lightning storms, since that is, far and away, the most common source of "power surges". Mains bourne "power surges" are incredibly rare events and almost nothing available off the shelf can deal with the energies involved. -- Trevor Wilson www.rageaudio.com.au --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. http://www.avast.com |
#3
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
KenO wrote:
A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. ** AC power voltage surges damaging audio gear are so rare that I cannot accept it as true without convincing evidence. The DC power supply inside each piece of audio gear usually contains a transformer, rectifier and filter electros - a combination that eliminates AC voltage spikes/surges better than anything you can possibly buy or build. OTOH, the term "power surge" is regularly used to explain away sudden failures in almost any electronic device - when the real cause is simply a bad component. ..... Phil |
#4
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 27/05/2015 02:35, Trevor Wilson wrote:
On 27/05/2015 9:12 AM, KenO wrote: A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. **How do you know it was a "power surge"? Where did this alleged "power surge" originate? Would like to prevent this so Googled using AC Power Surge Protection and found "The Best Surge Protector by Brent Butterworth. http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/ Read link "Surge Protectors ??? (Brickwall, Zero Surge, Furman, SurgeX," http://www.avsforum.com/forum/40-ole...urgex-etc.html Then did a Forum search and found some very long discussions such as: Surge Protectors https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/mkLpyahIKNk/3GvjxW9LrrsJ Surge protector fuse blown https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/iUffPhXZsNA/Ay8058Ba46QJ I do not have a technical background so would be interested in others comments concerning all this. Would like to use your advice to build a cost effective audio protection system. **The best way to protect an audio system from "power surges" is to disconnect the TV antenna during lightning storms, since that is, far and away, the most common source of "power surges". Mains bourne "power surges" are incredibly rare events and almost nothing available off the shelf can deal with the energies involved. Well you survived long enough to provide this homicidal info. You disconnect TV aerials BEFORE lightening storms. |
#5
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On Wednesday, May 27, 2015 at 3:28:50 AM UTC-4, N_Cook wrote:
**The best way to protect an audio system from "power surges" is to disconnect the TV antenna during lightning storms, since that is, far and away, the most common source of "power surges". Mains bourne "power surges" are incredibly rare events and almost nothing available off the shelf can deal with the energies involved. Well you survived long enough to provide this homicidal info. You disconnect TV aerials BEFORE lightening storms. Yeah, I always wait until between flashes to climb the mast and disconnect the antenna. |
#6
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Phil Allison prodded the keyboard with:
KenO wrote: A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. ** AC power voltage surges damaging audio gear are so rare that I cannot accept it as true without convincing evidence. The DC power supply inside each piece of audio gear usually contains a transformer, rectifier and filter electros - a combination that eliminates AC voltage spikes/surges better than anything you can possibly buy or build. OTOH, the term "power surge" is regularly used to explain away sudden failures in almost any electronic device - when the real cause is simply a bad component. .... Phil +1 -- Best Regards: Baron. |
#7
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
"Baron" wrote in message ... Phil Allison prodded the keyboard with: KenO wrote: A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. ** AC power voltage surges damaging audio gear are so rare that I cannot accept it as true without convincing evidence. The DC power supply inside each piece of audio gear usually contains a transformer, rectifier and filter electros - a combination that eliminates AC voltage spikes/surges better than anything you can possibly buy or build. OTOH, the term "power surge" is regularly used to explain away sudden failures in almost any electronic device - when the real cause is simply a bad component. .... Phil +1 -- Best Regards: Baron. Many years ago I was working for a PA Hire company. One day we had a real "power surge". All the lights started getting really bright, then normal again, then back to really bright etc. It was quite a weird experience. I seem to recall we hit the emergency Power Off button in the warehouse after measuring the mains outlets being well above 300v. Most of the office equipment got fried - photocopier, printer etc. but no humans or any of the audio gear were hurt. We called in the electricity supply company, who (they said) discovered a bad Mains Intake Neutral connection. They paid compensation for all the fried gear, and we all saw the funny side. Gareth. |
#8
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 27/05/2015 5:28 PM, N_Cook wrote:
On 27/05/2015 02:35, Trevor Wilson wrote: On 27/05/2015 9:12 AM, KenO wrote: A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. **How do you know it was a "power surge"? Where did this alleged "power surge" originate? Would like to prevent this so Googled using AC Power Surge Protection and found "The Best Surge Protector by Brent Butterworth. http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/ Read link "Surge Protectors ??? (Brickwall, Zero Surge, Furman, SurgeX," http://www.avsforum.com/forum/40-ole...urgex-etc.html Then did a Forum search and found some very long discussions such as: Surge Protectors https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/mkLpyahIKNk/3GvjxW9LrrsJ Surge protector fuse blown https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/iUffPhXZsNA/Ay8058Ba46QJ I do not have a technical background so would be interested in others comments concerning all this. Would like to use your advice to build a cost effective audio protection system. **The best way to protect an audio system from "power surges" is to disconnect the TV antenna during lightning storms, since that is, far and away, the most common source of "power surges". Mains bourne "power surges" are incredibly rare events and almost nothing available off the shelf can deal with the energies involved. Well you survived long enough to provide this homicidal info. You disconnect TV aerials BEFORE lightening storms. **OUCH! You are, of course, correct. -- Trevor Wilson www.rageaudio.com.au --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. http://www.avast.com |
#9
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
I'll point you he http://www.gryphon-inc.com/White_Papers.html
I've had extreme success with Powervar/ONEAC products. Like 25 years on a very critical computer system. The only failures were mechanical like fans and floppy drives. The hard drive was on 15 years before the system was upgraded. It did cost about $1K USD in the 80's for about 1000 W. Later, two other systems got the same technology. Usually, the warranty and the sales receipt helps a lot. Less critical systems got the tripp-lite isobar which oneac doesn;t like either. I did see an ISOBAR fry and Trip-lite replaced the connected equipment. I had an APC surge suppressor (given to me) and it's is supposed to be replaced because it causes fires. I think it's been close to 3 months now and no replacement APC. Furthermore, that APC did not protect itself. Oh maybe it did? It prevent itself from frying by blowing a thermal fuse and passing the surge to the equipment and lighting a LED. |
#10
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On Wednesday, May 27, 2015 at 5:16:28 PM UTC-4, Ron D. wrote:
I'll point you he http://www.gryphon-inc.com/White_Papers.html I've had extreme success with Powervar/ONEAC products. Like 25 years on a very critical computer system. The only failures were mechanical like fans and floppy drives. The hard drive was on 15 years before the system was upgraded. It did cost about $1K USD in the 80's for about 1000 W. Later, two other systems got the same technology. Usually, the warranty and the sales receipt helps a lot. Less critical systems got the tripp-lite isobar which oneac doesn;t like either. I did see an ISOBAR fry and Trip-lite replaced the connected equipment. I had an APC surge suppressor (given to me) and it's is supposed to be replaced because it causes fires. I think it's been close to 3 months now and no replacement APC. Furthermore, that APC did not protect itself. Oh maybe it did? It prevent itself from frying by blowing a thermal fuse and passing the surge to the equipment and lighting a LED. A whole house suppressor would not be a bad idea either. |
#11
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 28/05/2015 12:21 PM, Ron D. wrote:
On Wednesday, May 27, 2015 at 5:16:28 PM UTC-4, Ron D. wrote: I'll point you he http://www.gryphon-inc.com/White_Papers.html I've had extreme success with Powervar/ONEAC products. Like 25 years on a very critical computer system. The only failures were mechanical like fans and floppy drives. The hard drive was on 15 years before the system was upgraded. It did cost about $1K USD in the 80's for about 1000 W. Later, two other systems got the same technology. Usually, the warranty and the sales receipt helps a lot. Less critical systems got the tripp-lite isobar which oneac doesn;t like either. I did see an ISOBAR fry and Trip-lite replaced the connected equipment. I had an APC surge suppressor (given to me) and it's is supposed to be replaced because it causes fires. I think it's been close to 3 months now and no replacement APC. Furthermore, that APC did not protect itself. Oh maybe it did? It prevent itself from frying by blowing a thermal fuse and passing the surge to the equipment and lighting a LED. A whole house suppressor would not be a bad idea either. **For what purpose? An event that is so incredibly rare that the average person won't see one in several life-times. The whole 'surge suppressor' industry is a con. It is the only significant profit area left for retailers of domestic electronic equipment. Profit margins run to several hundred percent. That said: A whole house suppressor is a reasonably economical solution to an almost non-existent problem. It must be fitted by a qualified electrical contractor. FWIW: The only time I have ever heard of a significant surge on a power line, was at my previous home, before I moved in. A 5kV railway bearer fell across the 240VAC mains supply. This was in the early 1970s. It wiped out the electronic and electrical equipment for several blocks. I doubt that anything that can be purchased retail can protect against such a rare event. -- Trevor Wilson www.rageaudio.com.au --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. http://www.avast.com |
#12
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Trevor Wilson wrote:
On 28/05/2015 12:21 PM, Ron D. wrote: On Wednesday, May 27, 2015 at 5:16:28 PM UTC-4, Ron D. wrote: I'll point you he http://www.gryphon-inc.com/White_Papers.html I've had extreme success with Powervar/ONEAC products. Like 25 years on a very critical computer system. The only failures were mechanical like fans and floppy drives. The hard drive was on 15 years before the system was upgraded. It did cost about $1K USD in the 80's for about 1000 W. Later, two other systems got the same technology. Usually, the warranty and the sales receipt helps a lot. Less critical systems got the tripp-lite isobar which oneac doesn;t like either. I did see an ISOBAR fry and Trip-lite replaced the connected equipment. I had an APC surge suppressor (given to me) and it's is supposed to be replaced because it causes fires. I think it's been close to 3 months now and no replacement APC. Furthermore, that APC did not protect itself. Oh maybe it did? It prevent itself from frying by blowing a thermal fuse and passing the surge to the equipment and lighting a LED. A whole house suppressor would not be a bad idea either. **For what purpose? An event that is so incredibly rare that the average person won't see one in several life-times. Some time after installing a whole house suppressor, we had an instance where power was going off and on during a storm. A loud crack downstairs, found suppressor blown. I replaced that one but have not found any other local supressor faulted that I know of. The model has a lower trip point voltage to other models I've seen. When I moved in this house the power company said a surge device was installed and if I wanted to pay monthly charge. I sad no, but never knew of anybody removing it from the meter, which would require power interruption. These things will not help a direct lightning hit. Greg The whole 'surge suppressor' industry is a con. It is the only significant profit area left for retailers of domestic electronic equipment. Profit margins run to several hundred percent. That said: A whole house suppressor is a reasonably economical solution to an almost non-existent problem. It must be fitted by a qualified electrical contractor. FWIW: The only time I have ever heard of a significant surge on a power line, was at my previous home, before I moved in. A 5kV railway bearer fell across the 240VAC mains supply. This was in the early 1970s. It wiped out the electronic and electrical equipment for several blocks. I doubt that anything that can be purchased retail can protect against such a rare event. |
#13
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On Thu, 28 May 2015 15:22:28 +1000, Trevor Wilson wrote:
On 28/05/2015 12:21 PM, Ron D. wrote: On Wednesday, May 27, 2015 at 5:16:28 PM UTC-4, Ron D. wrote: I'll point you he http://www.gryphon-inc.com/White_Papers.html I've had extreme success with Powervar/ONEAC products. Like 25 years on a very critical computer system. The only failures were mechanical like fans and floppy drives. The hard drive was on 15 years before the system was upgraded. It did cost about $1K USD in the 80's for about 1000 W. Later, two other systems got the same technology. Usually, the warranty and the sales receipt helps a lot. Less critical systems got the tripp-lite isobar which oneac doesn;t like either. I did see an ISOBAR fry and Trip-lite replaced the connected equipment. I had an APC surge suppressor (given to me) and it's is supposed to be replaced because it causes fires. I think it's been close to 3 months now and no replacement APC. Furthermore, that APC did not protect itself. Oh maybe it did? It prevent itself from frying by blowing a thermal fuse and passing the surge to the equipment and lighting a LED. A whole house suppressor would not be a bad idea either. **For what purpose? An event that is so incredibly rare that the average person won't see one in several life-times. The whole 'surge suppressor' industry is a con. It is the only significant profit area left for retailers of domestic electronic equipment. Profit margins run to several hundred percent. That said: A whole house suppressor is a reasonably economical solution to an almost non-existent problem. It must be fitted by a qualified electrical contractor. FWIW: The only time I have ever heard of a significant surge on a power line, was at my previous home, before I moved in. A 5kV railway bearer fell across the 240VAC mains supply. This was in the early 1970s. It wiped out the electronic and electrical equipment for several blocks. I doubt that anything that can be purchased retail can protect against such a rare event. Not in Florida. I was checking a Sunbeam frying pan to see if it worked plugging it in in the garage when kbang. Tossed across the garage I went to see what was damaged, besides me. Several outlets in the house had carbon scarring around them, the splitter to the color T.V. was mostly vaporized with just a small piece of circuit board with the ghostly outlines of parts no longer of the Earth. The color T.V. worked only as black and white for some weeks when the color decided to return. Outside a bruise or three and a short case of the stunned shakes I was unhurt. Not unusual around these parts to lose equipment due to surges coming in through the line, YMMV |
#14
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On Thursday, May 28, 2015 at 1:24:00 AM UTC-4, Trevor Wilson wrote:
A whole house suppressor would not be a bad idea either. **For what purpose? An event that is so incredibly rare that the average person won't see one in several life-times. Every summer we see TVs come in with blown bridge rectifiers and vaporized pc traces. As long as it's confined to the primary side of the power supply it's no big deal. Any fine damaged traces on the secondary means we go no further. My own TV (1991 RCA CTC169) got whacked when I was watching it. Blew everything from the SMPS primary back including circuit traces, and was left with two other issues (odd system control vol/mute function and loss of AV switching). |
#15
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On Thursday, May 28, 2015 at 7:31:46 AM UTC-4, John-Del wrote:
On Thursday, May 28, 2015 at 1:24:00 AM UTC-4, Trevor Wilson wrote: A whole house suppressor would not be a bad idea either. **For what purpose? An event that is so incredibly rare that the average person won't see one in several life-times. Every summer we see TVs come in with blown bridge rectifiers and vaporized pc traces. As long as it's confined to the primary side of the power supply it's no big deal. Any fine damaged traces on the secondary means we go no further. My own TV (1991 RCA CTC169) got whacked when I was watching it. Blew everything from the SMPS primary back including circuit traces, and was left with two other issues (odd system control vol/mute function and loss of AV switching). Is there any difference in the robustness of the old tube TV versus the flat screen, when it comes to lightning etc.? |
#16
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On Thursday, May 28, 2015 at 8:40:10 AM UTC-4, Tim R wrote:
Is there any difference in the robustness of the old tube TV versus the flat screen, when it comes to lightning etc.? Only with regard to HDMI ports, which are *very* susceptible to lightning damage. Since the newest generation now does HDMI switching in the main IC which is BGA, damage through the HDMI ports means a new main board. I recommend my customers to use the component inputs when using cable, sat, or IP TV. I haven't seen any damage yet via bluray player. |
#17
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Phil Allison wrote:
KenO wrote: A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. ** AC power voltage surges damaging audio gear are so rare that I cannot accept it as true without convincing evidence. The DC power supply inside each piece of audio gear usually contains a transformer, rectifier and filter electros - a combination that eliminates AC voltage spikes/surges better than anything you can possibly buy or build. That may be true if the stereo or whatever is not attached to other devices. Once you connect things together, damage from power surges starts to happen. It's quite common with computer network gear. Interconnected ports fail, while the main switch chassis or network attached printer or computer continue to work. Service entrance surge surpressors protect against this sort of issue. OTOH, the term "power surge" is regularly used to explain away sudden failures in almost any electronic device - when the real cause is simply a bad component. power surges and the damage they cause are very real problems. FWIW somebod mentioned powervar and Oneac devices, it wasn't clear what these devices were, but if they were isolation/filter units, they work great. Stuff from tripplite is pure junk, had many of their devices catch on fire, without surges. It was always caused by poor crimps and junky power switches or bad assembly. APC power strips are better, never had one self destruct yet. |
#18
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 5/26/2015 5:12 PM, KenO wrote:
Excellent information on surges and surge protection is at: http://www.lightningsafety.com/nlsi_lhm/IEEE_Guide.pdf - "How to protect your house and its contents from lightning: IEEE guide for surge protection of equipment connected to AC power and communication circuits" published by the IEEE in 2005 (the IEEE is a major organization of electrical and electronic engineers). And also: http://pml.nist.gov/spd-anthology/fi...es_happen!.pdf - "NIST recommended practice guide: Surges Happen!: how to protect the appliances in your home" published by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology in 2001 Both guides are from reliable sources. The IEEE surge guide is more technical. A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. Would like to prevent this so Googled using AC Power Surge Protection and found "The Best Surge Protector by Brent Butterworth. http://thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-surge-protector/ I wouldn't rely on the testing that was done. There are standard tests for surge protectors - 600V is not one of them (6,000V is). And I have no idea if their test is representative of a surge. There is related information on UL testing in the IEEE surge guide under "2.2.3 Surge Limiting Voltage" Read link "Surge Protectors ??? (Brickwall, Zero Surge, Furman, SurgeX," http://www.avsforum.com/forum/40-ole...urgex-etc.html The vast majority of surge protectors use MOVs as the voltage limiting element (over 90% according to the IEEE surge guide). These protectors do not use MOVs. I have not seen them evaluated by a reliable independent agency, and I would not use them. They, of course, claim to be better than the MOV based ones. Some of their arguments are downright stupid. Then did a Forum search and found some very long discussions such as: Surge Protectors https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/mkLpyahIKNk/3GvjxW9LrrsJ Westom is an internet nut that googles for "surge" to spread his ideas about protection. He has joined an astonishing number of forums to spread his ideas. Some of them are good, some not-so-good, and some are complete nonsense. Everything he says about plug-in protectors is complete nonsense. How can you tell? Westom says plug in protectors don't work. Both the IEEE and NIST guides say they are effective. I am "bud". I got tired of westom's crap after seeing it on several Usenet groups I watch over a short period. I have nothing to do with the surge protection industry other than I am using a couple protectors. A lot of what I wrote here comes from the IEEE and NIST surge guides Surge protector fuse blown https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/sci.electronics.repair/AC$20Power$20Surge$20Protection%7Csort:relevance/sci.electronics.repair/iUffPhXZsNA/Ay8058Ba46QJ w_tom is a name that westom used to use. More nonsense. I have not read either of these threads. I do not have a technical background so would be interested in others comments concerning all this. Would like to use your advice to build a cost effective audio protection system. Thanks Ken If using a plug-in protector all interconnected equipment needs to be connected to the same protector. External connections, like coax also must go through the protector. As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. To do that all wires must go through the protector. The NIST surge guide suggests most equipment damage is from high voltage between power and signal (phone, cable,...) wires. Computer and video equipment is likely more at risk than audio. And it depends on where you are. Some parts of the US have significant surge exposure. The major cause of damaging surges is lightning. Normal and abnormal utility operations can also cause damaging surges. The author of the NIST surge guide looked at the surge current that might come in on power wiring (US). The source was a 100,000A lightning strike to a utility pole adjacent to a house with typical urban overhead power distribution. Only 5% of strikes are more powerful and this is, for practical purposes, the worst case. The surge current was 10,000A per wire. Service panel protectors with much higher ratings are readily available. High ratings mean long life. A service panel protector is likely to protect anything connected only to power wiring (most audio systems?) The author of the NIST surge guide also investigated how much energy might be absorbed in a MOV in a plug-in protector. Branch circuits were 10m and longer, and the surge on incoming power wires was up to 10,000A (wort case, as above). The maximum energy at the MOV was a surprisingly small 35 joules. In 13 of 15 cases it was 1 joule or less. There are a couple simple reasons the energy is so low (one of which may be particular to US wiring). Any UL listed protector in the US will have ratings higher than that, and much higher ratings are readily available (as in your first link). Again high ratings mean long life. (Neither service panel or plug-in protectors protect by absorbing a surge. They do absorb some energy in the process of protecting. And protection from a direct strike to a building requires lightning rods.) In the US, since 1998 UL has required thermal disconnects for overheating MOVs. (With world markets they are probably included by all competent manufacturers everywhere.) APC had an engineering error resulting in a recall. The IEEE surge guide describes how the protected equipment can be connected across the MOVs, or be connected across the incoming power wires. If connected across the MOVs, the protected equipment will be disconnected on failure. (That is one reason why manufacturers can have protected equipment warranties.) I think the IEEE surge guide says UL requires protectors to state if they do not disconnect the protected load with the MOVs.) It would be nice if you could compare protectors based on joule rating. The IEEE surge guide explains that (US) there is not a standard way of measuring this, so some manufacturers have misleading ratings. Some other (reliable) manufacturers responded by not including joule ratings. |
#19
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Cydrome Leader wrote:
KenO wrote: A friend recently had her audio system damaged from an AC Power Surge. ** AC power voltage surges damaging audio gear are so rare that I cannot accept it as true without convincing evidence. The DC power supply inside each piece of audio gear usually contains a transformer, rectifier and filter electros - a combination that eliminates AC voltage spikes/surges better than anything you can possibly buy or build. That may be true if the stereo or whatever is not attached to other devices. Once you connect things together, damage from power surges starts to happen. ** My comments were intended to exclude the effects of a lightning strikes hitting the ground. AC supply voltage spikes are normally caused by inductive loads going on and off. OTOH, the term "power surge" is regularly used to explain away sudden failures in almost any electronic device - when the real cause is simply a bad component. power surges and the damage they cause are very real problems. ** If by 'power surge' you actually you mean lightning strike. .... Phil |
#20
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
bud-- wrote:
As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. .... Phil |
#21
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
"Phil Allison" wrote in message ... bud-- wrote: As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. .... Phil Slightly OT but ..... In the UK you can buy "surge protected" multi outlet extensions like this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sivitec-Swit...rge+protection Problem is, these can't be tested with a typical PAT Tester, as they fail the test every time, being as there is circuitry between live and ground. Gareth. |
#22
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Gareth Magennis wrote:
"Phil Allison" wrote in message ... bud-- wrote: As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. In the UK you can buy "surge protected" multi outlet extensions like this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sivitec-Swit...rge+protection Problem is, these can't be tested with a typical PAT Tester, as they fail the test every time, being as there is circuitry between live and ground. ** Really? You read this somewhere on the net, right? I bet they CAN be tested, passing all the tests is the issue. FYI: A customer, who runs a hire business, brought in his "Megger 4DV" PAT tester recently for a check over - so I got to see exactly what it did and how. Some tests involved normal AC power being applied to the device, others used high voltage DC and another low voltage AC at high current to check earth conductor resistance. AC leakage current and insulation resistance are the main things checked - the pass /fail threshold was user adjustable to suit the type of appliance under test. Class 1 and class 2 ( double insulated ) appliances follow different rules. The operator is also expected to carry out a thorough visual inspection too, so needs to be familiar with electrical appliance safety. If a new product failed one of the tests, that would be VERY alarming and should be reported to the supplier immediately. .... Phil |
#23
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
"Phil Allison" wrote in message ... Gareth Magennis wrote: "Phil Allison" wrote in message ... bud-- wrote: As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. In the UK you can buy "surge protected" multi outlet extensions like this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sivitec-Swit...rge+protection Problem is, these can't be tested with a typical PAT Tester, as they fail the test every time, being as there is circuitry between live and ground. ** Really? You read this somewhere on the net, right? No, I have a PAT Tester and PAT Test all the sound and lighting equipment for a music festival. I was told by an electrician that you have to test these as Class 2, and put a sticker on them to say so. Gareth. |
#24
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 5/29/2015 9:06 PM, Phil Allison wrote:
bud-- wrote: As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. ... Phil I think the US-UL permitted leakage for "appliances" is 0.5mA (which of course is at 120V). Standard practice in the US for plug-in protectors is MOVs from H-N, H-G, N-G. And if signal wires go through the protector, they are limited to ground also. One of the reasons the energy at a MOV in a protector is so low (US) is that at about 6kV there is arc-over between service panel busbars and the enclosure. This appears to be an intentional feature. (The voltage across the established arc is hundreds of volts. Since the enclosure is connected to the earthing system that dumps most of the surge energy to earth. And a required N-G bond at the service limits the N surge voltage.) A significant (and likely major) cause of surge damage to equipment is high voltage between power and signal wires. If MOVs are only connected H-N and there is a large surge the voltage drop on H & N will likely increase the voltage between power and signal wires (6kV at the service would result in about 2kV from the H & N to the 'ground' reference at the service panel). It then would be inadvisable to use plug-in protectors on equipment that has both power and signal wires. The normal failure mode for MOVs is after sufficient energy hits they start to conduct at lower voltages, eventually conduct at 'normal' voltages, and go into thermal runaway. Thermal disconnects then operate(at least in the US). I would think a H-N MOV with 1mA leakage @230V would be near thermal runaway. I don't know how surge protection is done down-under. It works here. Some features here may be from the relatively high exposure to thunderstorms in parts of the country. They are uncommon or nonexistent in many parts of the globe. |
#25
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Gareth Magennis wrote:
"Phil Allison" ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. In the UK you can buy "surge protected" multi outlet extensions like this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sivitec-Swit...rge+protection Problem is, these can't be tested with a typical PAT Tester, as they fail the test every time, being as there is circuitry between live and ground. ** Really? You read this somewhere on the net, right? No, I have a PAT Tester and PAT Test all the sound and lighting equipment for a music festival. I was told by an electrician that you have to test these as Class 2, and put a sticker on them to say so. ** That is completely insane crap. He must have been using illegal drugs to say such a thing and you are nuts to believe it. .... Phil |
#26
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
bud-- wrote:
Phil Allison wrote: ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. Standard practice in the US for plug-in protectors is MOVs from H-N, H-G, N-G. ** I really doubt using three MOVs like that is *normal* practice - certainly one never sees it in entertainment electronics or test gear, whether made in the USA or elsewhere. The normal failure mode for MOVs is after sufficient energy hits they start to conduct at lower voltages, eventually conduct at 'normal' voltages, and go into thermal runaway. ** The fact that MOVs deteriorate means it is hazardous to have them wired from active to safety ground. Same argument goes for regular metallised film capacitors which also deteriorate when exposed to AC supply voltages - then explode. I would think a H-N MOV with 1mA leakage @230V would be near thermal runaway. ** Takes at least 10mA to get a typical MOV device hot. ..... Phil |
#27
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 30/05/2015 16:59, Gareth Magennis wrote:
"Phil Allison" wrote in message ... bud-- wrote: As explained in the IEEE surge guide (starting page 30) plug-in protectors work primarily by limiting the voltage from each wire to the ground at the protector. ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. ... Phil Slightly OT but ..... In the UK you can buy "surge protected" multi outlet extensions like this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sivitec-Swit...rge+protection Problem is, these can't be tested with a typical PAT Tester, as they fail the test every time, being as there is circuitry between live and ground. Gareth. At least some testers measure the insulation resistance (between live/neutral and earth) at either 500VDC or 250VDC. The 250V setting is labelled "MOV". This document explains the testing process: http://uk.megger.com/getmedia/a5f14a...AN_en_V01.pdf/ The note from Megger on testing these surge protectors above also seems to imply that connecting MOVs between live and earth is a common arrangement, however they show a gas discharge tube between the Earth wire and the MOVs. It would be interesting to know if this is common and if so, why and what are its ratings. Other pages seem to suggest that at least in some cases/countries, MOVs are connected directly from live to earth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_s..._and_filtering http://www.racktronics.com.au/gallery.php http://badcaps.net/forum/showthread.php?p=10176 I'm not sure whether this is a good thing, unless you know for sure that your earth connections are all present and correct, and your RCD/ELCB is present and working. Whilst I would agree with Phil that a used MOV is likely to be so leaky as to result in unacceptable current flowing from live to earth, I'm not sure that many of the appliance standards would catch this, unless the sequence of tests (during product approval not PAT) would first damage and later test the leakage of the MOV. Chris |
#28
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
bud-- wrote:
On 5/31/2015 1:14 AM, Phil Allison wrote: bud-- wrote: Phil Allison wrote: ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. Standard practice in the US for plug-in protectors is MOVs from H-N, H-G, N-G. ** I really doubt using three MOVs like that is *normal* practice - certainly one never sees it in entertainment electronics or test gear, whether made in the USA or elsewhere. Entertainment electronics may have some surge protection but is not intended to protect against major surges. ** Nor are an plug-in surge protectors. You are bull****ting wildly. As can be seen from the IEEE surge guide, 3 MOVs is absolutely standard practice in the US. ** Really - you must send me a copy. Yawnnnnn.... Because of the additional risks added by having only H-N protection in plug-in protectors ** There is no risk that derives from the device itself - until you add MOVs to ground. You really need to pay attenion to the context. (as in my last post) I suspect 3 MOVs is common practice elsewhere, ** What you "suspect" is on no value, at all, to anyone. H-N only protectors can increase risk, not reduce it. ** Insane crap. Gareth does not know what is connected H-G. ** Gareth is an even bigger bull****ter than you. All the packaging protectors come in that I have seen indicate what the protection is (H-N, H-G, N-G). I suspect it would elsewhere. I am not interested in looking. ** ROTFL. The normal failure mode for MOVs is after sufficient energy hits they start to conduct at lower voltages, eventually conduct at 'normal' voltages, and go into thermal runaway. ** The fact that MOVs deteriorate means it is hazardous to have them wired from active to safety ground. Same argument goes for regular metallised film capacitors which also deteriorate when exposed to AC supply voltages - then explode. In the US the likely maximum surge energy at a MOV in a plug-in protector is a tiny 35J, and that includes for the largest probable power line surge (as in my 1st post). The simplest UL listed protector here will have a joule rating far above that. ** Another one of you wild suspicions ? You could also say it is hazardous to have leakage and fault currents on the safety ground. ** It is. You totally fail to see what the safety issue is. You have no understanding of why no ordinary or class X film caps of any value can be wired from line to safety ground, ONLY special class Y types are permitted in restricted values. True in the USA, the EU and elsewhere. ... Phil |
#29
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 5/31/2015 1:14 AM, Phil Allison wrote:
bud-- wrote: Phil Allison wrote: ** Connecting MOVs to ground like that in a *plug-in device* is prohibited on safety grounds under EU and similar regulations as followed in most 230/240 V places - like Australia where I am. MOVs either have or can develop after some use leakage currents well in excess of the maximum permitted, which is only a milliamp or so for most categories of appliances. The only components that may be so connected are agency approved " Y caps " with values like 4.7nF - while MOVs and " X caps" always go across the line. Standard practice in the US for plug-in protectors is MOVs from H-N, H-G, N-G. ** I really doubt using three MOVs like that is *normal* practice - certainly one never sees it in entertainment electronics or test gear, whether made in the USA or elsewhere. Entertainment electronics may have some surge protection but is not intended to protect against major surges. As can be seen from the IEEE surge guide, 3 MOVs is absolutely standard practice in the US. Because of the additional risks added by having only H-N protection in plug-in protectors (as in my last post) I suspect 3 MOVs is common practice elsewhere, H-N only protectors can increase risk, not reduce it. Gareth does not know what is connected H-G. You do not necessarily know what the specific requirements are for plug-in protectors elsewhere. All the packaging protectors come in that I have seen indicate what the protection is (H-N, H-G, N-G). I suspect it would elsewhere. I am not interested in looking. The normal failure mode for MOVs is after sufficient energy hits they start to conduct at lower voltages, eventually conduct at 'normal' voltages, and go into thermal runaway. ** The fact that MOVs deteriorate means it is hazardous to have them wired from active to safety ground. Same argument goes for regular metallised film capacitors which also deteriorate when exposed to AC supply voltages - then explode. In the US the likely maximum surge energy at a MOV in a plug-in protector is a tiny 35J, and that includes for the largest probable power line surge (as in my 1st post). The simplest UL listed protector here will have a joule rating far above that. The joule rating of a MOV is the single event energy that will put the MOV at defined end of life (but still functional). Looking at MOV ratings curves, if the MOV gets single hits that are far below that, the cumulative rating is far above (like over 10x) the single event rating. Failure is real unlikely. Coupled with high ratings, that is why some companies can have protected equipment warranties. The author of the NIST surge guide has written "in fact, the major cause of [surge protector] failures is a temporary overvoltage, rather than an unusually large surge." An example of temporary overvoltage would be a high voltage distribution wire coming down on the 115/230V secondary conductors. You could also say it is hazardous to have leakage and fault currents on the safety ground. |
#30
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
Chris Jones wrote:
At least some testers measure the insulation resistance (between live/neutral and earth) at either 500VDC or 250VDC. The 250V setting is labelled "MOV". This document explains the testing process: http://uk.megger.com/getmedia/a5f14a...AN_en_V01.pdf/ ** That note is dated *2014* and admits that PAT testers without a 250VDC setting cannot distinguish devices with MOVs to ground from faulty devices. This is not an acceptable situation. IIRC, the "Megger 4DV" that I saw had no such setting. The note from Megger on testing these surge protectors above also seems to imply that connecting MOVs between live and earth is a common arrangement, ** So common that they noticed it only last year !!! Yawnnnnnnnnnnnnn..... Other pages seem to suggest that at least in some cases/countries, MOVs are connected directly from live to earth. ** Sure - in the USA, but only in some surge protectors. Whilst I would agree with Phil that a used MOV is likely to be so leaky as to result in unacceptable current flowing from live to earth, I'm not sure that many of the appliance standards would catch this, ** No need to "catch" it, the fitting of MOVs to ground inside a plug-in appliance is simply prohibited. The standard 500V DC leakage test would indicate the existence of a MOV wired to ground - if eyeballs were not able to. .... Phil |
#31
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 5/31/2015 7:53 AM, Chris Jones wrote:
however they show a gas discharge tube between the Earth wire and the MOVs. It would be interesting to know if this is common and if so, why and what are its ratings. As a guess, the GDT prevents leakage Phil is worried about, and the MOV prevents "follow-on" discharge through the GDT right after the surge is over and normal power is present. Whilst I would agree with Phil that a used MOV is likely to be so leaky as to result in unacceptable current flowing from live to earth, As I responded to Phil, this is actually quite unlikely (at least in the US). I'm not sure that many of the appliance standards would catch this, unless the sequence of tests (during product approval not PAT) would first damage and later test the leakage of the MOV. US-UL tests include a series of test surges, after which the device has to be functional (in particular, it is not 'leaking'). Later tests may cause the device to fail, but it must fail safely. |
#32
Posted to sci.electronics.repair
|
|||
|
|||
AC Power Surge Protection?
On 5/31/2015 8:11 AM, Phil Allison wrote:
bud-- wrote: As can be seen from the IEEE surge guide, 3 MOVs is absolutely standard practice in the US. ** Really - you must send me a copy. Yawnnnnn.... Link to the IEEE surge guide was in my first post. Excellent information from a completely reliable source. If you read it you might learn something. H-N only protectors can increase risk, not reduce it. ** Insane crap. The problem I described, with 3 MOV protectors, is well know and in a published research paper by the author of the NIST surge guide (guide is also linked in my 1st post). Problems with using only a H-N MOV are considerably greater. The fix in the paper was to run not just power wires, but also signal wires through the protector with the voltage limited from all wires to the ground at the protector (as also described starting page 30 in the IEEE surge guide, which is linked-to in my 1st post). In the US the likely maximum surge energy at a MOV in a plug-in protector is a tiny 35J, and that includes for the largest probable power line surge (as in my 1st post). The simplest UL listed protector here will have a joule rating far above that. ** Another one of you wild suspicions ? Published research by the author of the NIST surge guide , who was the US-NIST surge expert. My information comes from the IEEE, the NIST, and published research. Sometimes you post really interesting information. Sometimes not. This is one of the latter. |
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
DIY surge protection... | Home Repair | |||
DIY surge protection... | Metalworking | |||
DIY surge protection... | Metalworking | |||
surge protection | Electronics Repair | |||
Surge protection? | UK diy |