Buying a surge protector for your home requires that you know a few things about your purchase.
There are many surge protectors out there but not all can be recommended as good to meet your needs.
There are requirements to consider.
Rating Requirements
The surge protectors on the market are rated based on the current each can manage.
For many homes in the US and other regions of the world, it is very unlike to experience a surge higher than 10 Kiloamps.
To be adequately protected, you can go for a unit greater than this capacity to be safe.
The higher you can acquire in the rating, the better protected will your house be?
Buying It Right
Make sure to buy the right product from trusted manufacturers. Go for only approved electrical surge protectors. It is required by law that all electrical appliances available for sale are approved. You should find an RCM (regulatory compliance mark) or a special number on approval in such products. Know that it is not legal for manufacturers to sell unapproved electrical products; this implies that it is unlikely to find unapproved products in the market but it is never impossible.
The top manufacturers have some of the best offers for consumers. Here are a few you’ll find the products highly efficient and affordable.
Square D Schneider Electric HEPD80
Schneider Electric has one of the best offers in the market when it comes to affordable and efficient surge regulators. The whole house surge protector comes with an 80KA rating.
It provides equal protection to all circuits and outlets in the house. Square D is designed to offer surge control on residential load units. It comes with a NEMA 4X rating and can be installed both indoors and outdoors. It is designed in a compact format and comes in a metal enclosure.
Other Features:
- The circuit is designed to have a high-suppression power to protect all home equipment.
- It has a LED status indicator to monitor its operation
- It has a 120/240 V application
- It comes with a 5-year warranty including a $50, 000 cover for your home appliances. It is listed on Amazon for $98.99. The CSA and UL 1449 3rd edition Type 1 certification is also on it. Y
Siemens FS140
Siemens quality surge protector, Siemens FS140, is a valuable product with lot more functionality than others of its rank. It is one of the most reliable and effective designs available. For its high capacity of 140KA, the surge protector can handle a lot more protection at high electrical spikes.
More to it, it is designed to be used on any load center and other brand’s circuit breakers. You can’t rule out the effectiveness of the Siemens’ product when it comes to electrical safety and protection.
For its NEMA Type 4 rating, it can be used indoors and outdoors. The LED indicator light shows the product’s protection status and a prompt on “Service Now” indication. The unit comes with an audio alarm system installed. It outputs the regular 120/240 V when in operation.
Users have an amazing 10 years warranty on the product and $25, 000 connected equipment cover. It is UL 1449 3rd Edition registered and certified.
The Siemens brand has a three-stage surge protection design to give maximum protection to the house. It is listed on Amazon for $241.69
Easton CHSPT2ULTRA
The Easton surge protector is one of the affordable yet efficient designs available for home protection. For the average home, the 108KA rating of the device is adequate to accommodate any lightning strike or spike that may occur.
It comes with a NEMA Type 4 enclosure and a LED light indicator clearly visible from the outside to monitor its operation. Using the model doesn’t come with any difficulty; it is compact and can be moved around easily. It is UL certified and has a $75, 000 equipment cover with a limited warranty period.
You can find this product on Amazon for $118.00
Leviton 51120
Leviton 51120 is a medium capacity surge protector device that is sufficient to handle most surge levels in homes. It is designed with a standard (J-box) metal enclosure. It can be used indoor as it has a NEMA Type 1 rated enclosure.
The installed LED light allows users to monitor the status of the device. It is UL 1449 3rd edition registered product with a $25, 000 equipment coverage and limited lifetime warranty. The Leviton 51120 goes for $190.50 on Amazon.
