Whole house surge protection.

[budm]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

I tighten my panel about every two years.

[TechGeek]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

Loosest wire ever?

[delaware74b]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

Spork - I just read the instructions for that protector you linked in your first post. I have a few suggestions for you:
The protector should be connected as close as possible to the incoming panel feed. In your application, mount it on the right side of the panel (assuming your incoming lugs are actually on the top)

Replace the unused double-pole breaker on the right side with a double-pole breaker rated for 50amps (per instructions). Keep the protector's lines short and straight as possible.

This protector can be mounted inside the panel, however it would require you to remove the cover to check the indicators. If your panel is recessed in the wall, this is your only option. If it is on the surface of the wall, you can use a knock-out and mount it on the side, bottom or top of the panel.

Good surge protection is done in layers. The one for the panel is your first layer but it's not the only point of entry. Don't forget your phone and satellite/cable-TV coax. I have seen a direct lightning strike to a comcast line that was strung around the perimeter of a house. It followed that line, blew it completely apart, through the modem/phone interface destroyed computers, everything electronic in that house. It also blew the vinyl siding apart where comcast tucked their line under the siding.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

It looks like one of the incoming Phase wire (top) got hot.
https://www.badcaps.net/forum/attach...0&d=1431030372
Houses in the US are fed by 120/240VAC SPLIT-PHASE (120-0-120)

I don't know much about the AC stuff. My father built the house but hired some scam artist to do all the wiring. The guy was truly a con-man. I came over one day and he was telling my dad to run this wire and that wire and I'm like dad, what are you doing? I thought you was paying the guy to do all this stuff! And he says I am but the guy says he only does the actual hookups, he doesn't run any of the wire. Which was B.S. if you ask me. He'd tell him where to run it but he'd just watch while my dad ran it. My dad still paid him while he sat there and watched though. I know we had a lot of trouble with outlets not working and stuff when we moved in. I'd remove the cover and the guy had the wires bent in a hook shape and screwed into the screws but the screws weren't tight and the wires came out. I was taught that you keep the wire straight and put it in the little hole on the outlets and then you take electrical tape and wrap it around the screws. I wouldn't be surprised at all if he messed something up. So, you think something got hot in the box? What's the incoming phase wire? The wires that come from the pole? Do you say that because the top one, where it goes into the GRUB screw or whatever it's called, you can see some of the bare metal? If I accidently touched that, would it kill me? Can I try to strip it some how and feed it back in so the metal isn't touching? And can I use my multimeter if I wanted to (I don't) to check the voltage on those? Or would that blow it up? Thanks!

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

Spork - I just read the instructions for that protector you linked in your first post. I have a few suggestions for you:
The protector should be connected as close as possible to the incoming panel feed. In your application, mount it on the right side of the panel (assuming your incoming lugs are actually on the top)

Replace the unused double-pole breaker on the right side with a double-pole breaker rated for 50amps (per instructions). Keep the protector's lines short and straight as possible.

This protector can be mounted inside the panel, however it would require you to remove the cover to check the indicators. If your panel is recessed in the wall, this is your only option. If it is on the surface of the wall, you can use a knock-out and mount it on the side, bottom or top of the panel.

Good surge protection is done in layers. The one for the panel is your first layer but it's not the only point of entry. Don't forget your phone and satellite/cable-TV coax. I have seen a direct lightning strike to a comcast line that was strung around the perimeter of a house. It followed that line, blew it completely apart, through the modem/phone interface destroyed computers, everything electronic in that house. It also blew the vinyl siding apart where comcast tucked their line under the siding.

Thank you. However, most of this is french to me. I went to the electrician that my sister has doing her wiring on her new house, he says he knows what a whole house surge protector is, he can get one for 80$ and regardless of whether I use his or buy my own, he'd charge me 30$ to install it. He says it'll take about an hour for him to do, if there is room. The panel is recessed in the wall. So, with a whole home surge protector, is it best to get the top of the line model or would an 80$ one do just as well?

From what I was reading on-line, I still need to use surge protectors in the outlets (not just for cable / phone but for all electronics) on top of this whole house surge protector. Is that true? The only other entry point should be cable. The telephone goes through the cable modem, the high speed internet goes through the cable modem and the television goes through the TV tuner (which is already hooked up to a surge protector, the AC part and the coax part).

[budm]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

I would hire a certified electrician to verify that the HOT, NEUTRAL, and Ground are wired properly and tightened properly at the panel and at all the outlets and switches, it is not something to fool around with and taking a chance of burning down the house or get electrocuted.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

Okay, when the electrician is done with my sisters house, I will see how much he will charge and hire him. This guy really seems to know what's he doing. I'll verified that he's certified. I want to say there was something about EVE or something like that. I know the code inspector keeps coming and he keeps working, so he must be doing something right. He's hooking up all her breakers and stuff. Seems like a nice guy too. He's the one that said he'd only charge 30$ to hook up that Whole House Surge Protector.

[redwire]

Re: Whole house surge protection.

I figure that's aluminum lead-in wire.
Also, I found you pay extra for panels with copper busbars, they are aluminum now.