On Sun, 2003-09-14 at 12:14, John Haxby wrote: > Chris Kloiber wrote: > > > Oh, and invest in a good UPS if you haven't already. I have 4 all over > > tha house. Nothing gets plugged directly into the wall except kitchen > > appliances and lamps. > > Not that it will do much in the way of protecting you from lightning > strikes. There isn't much point in investing in a UPS unless you > really do have a power problem -- if you're lucky though, the UPS might > blow up instead of the computer in the event of lightning. A surge > protector isn't much good either -- they're only safe for a few tens of > kilovolts, not several million. > > It was you, Marie-ThÃrÃse, wasn't it, that had problems with lightning? > > jch > > Hi: Just my $.02 worth... I worked for a midwest power company for 35 years, and I have seen firsthand the results of lightning strikes and voltage spikes due to electrical storms. It isn't the direct hit you need to worry about, because any eletronic equipment that has taken a direct hit will need to be 86'd anyhow. What you *do* need to be concerned about is spikes. A UPS is probably the best protection from power line waveform distortion, spikes, brown-outs, etc. Next best choice is a power strip with MOVs or gas-discharge elements to shunt high-current or over-voltage to ground. I am not talking about $9.95 power strips, here - I mean those that offer good spike protection, and guarantee your equipment against damage, with an equipment replacement clause in the warranty. Diodes and chips on a motherboard that has been subjected to a heavy-duty spike can fail months and years later, without warning or explanation. FWIW Regards, Glenn n0hn@xxxxxxxxxx -- Shrike-list mailing list Shrike-list@xxxxxxxxxx https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/shrike-list
