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“Whoops… There
go the lights again.” Heard that before? Who hasn’t! Well, not only
are the lights out but your computer may be also. You may need a Surge
Protector!
Power outages
may be caused by many things but one thing all power outages share are
surges. When the power is off for even a short period of time and then
returns, a power surge can occur. Some times as high as 300+ volts. Since
your computer runs on 110 to 120 volts, this is not good. Compare this to
washing your car or watering a plant with a garden hose. You release the
handle on the nozzle of the hose, go inside for a drink and return to
finish the job. As soon as you squeeze the nozzle again a surge of water
gushes forward. The surge before the water pressure levels out can be
compared to a voltage surge.
This voltage
surge is what can damage your computer even if it was turned off at the
time. The first line of defense is the power supply. Often this will
succumb to the surge and burn up preventing further damage. (About a $144
cost.) If the surge gets through the power supply the next items in line
can be your main or motherboard, the CPU, (Central Processing Unit), your
CD player and possibly your hard drive. You’re talking between $144 and
$350 or more for repairs. Not to mention losing your data, your records,
etc. if the hard drive is destroyed.
All this can
be avoided with a small investment in a Surge Protector. Don’t be
confused by power strips. A power strip protects your home circuits from a
shorted computer. A surge protector protects your computer from voltage
surges. Just the opposite. Surge protection is rated in Joules. The higher
the Joule rating, the better the protection. Many off the shelf surge
protectors are only rated at about 300 Joules. To be safe, never use one
rated at less than 1000 Joules. In addition, the better surge protectors
will offer modem and broadband Internet protection as well. These are
protected from lightning strikes to a phone or cable line even as far as
miles away. A lightning strike even miles away can release a residual
voltage through your phone line and fry your modem or internet connection.
Another $100 plus cost.
We live in a
storm prone area, especially during the monsoon season. And power outages
come with the territory. So… be safe! Invest in a good surge protector
and keep on computing.
So if your
computer acts weird or refuses to act at all after a power outage or
electrical storm, call us. We can help. Call us for more information or to
purchase a dependable surge protector for your computer.
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