EMP Shield

[Nepse]

I am not entirely familiar with the physics and effects of an actual EMP strike.
From my understanding you would need some kind of Faraday cage, or physical shielding of ALL of the cables and connection in order to properly protect from an EMP attack.

If my understanding is somewhat correct I don't see any way this product can help shield a house, let alone the grid cumming in to a house.
If I'm wrong however I would love to get more educated on the subject.

I also see a potential "scam" where they never really state that it would stop all the effects of an EMP. Maybe it's only protecting equipment from frying?

Is this product bogus?
If not, how would it work?



Product's home page

[T3sl4co1l]

Surge protector, NTL passed -- entirely possible.

EMP?  What kind.

They clearly show a mushroom cloud when they mention EMP, implying resistance to fast nuclear EMP.  This, is a laughable claim -- presumably, they're banking on it also being a nearly untestable claim, as we all hope...

(In short: the field strength and rate-of-rise of nuclear EMP, and similar but smaller of course for most conventional/explosive EMP generators, is far too much for a single-point device to have any impact on.  The wiring inside a house is going just anywhere, and not usually shielded in conduit, and not heavy conduit when it is.  It picks up all sorts of noise.  You need to route all cables in a strict tree structure, inside heavy, bonded conduit.  Or wrap the whole facility in welded plate, ala NORAD.  That at least keeps EMP out of the wiring, but anything you plug into it -- and most especially anything you connect between equipment on different branches, with cables not also routed inside the facility's conduits -- is still itself vulnerable.)

Tim

[jmelson]

A really big nuclear EMP, or a Carrington event, would bring in  massive voltage and current from any long wires to your house.  So, electrical mains, phone wire, cable TV, internet, etc.  A good whole-house surge suppressor is certainly a good idea.  The tiny wires in the photo are laughable, though.  You'd need a much more massive suppressor with much heavier wires to absorb the hundreds of amps that would be likely with such an event.

Jon

[ConKbot]

http://www.ets-lindgren.com/products/filters/6004/600403  off-the-shelf products, just sell a kidney or two, and give em a call. 

[richnormand]

A few spark-gaps?

If the EMP is nuclear and that close to cause issues you have a lot more to worry about....

Any way, the brand new "lab coat" and hat logo in front of the kitchen cupboards and closed window (cant see the sink behind though...), hmmm .

Remember in the 90s a company that sold a similar device that supposed to closely follow the AC sinewave and clip any deviation. On extracting the potted box it was just like a power-bar transient suppressors. Nothing special apart from being connected directly to the AC input to your house by an electrician.

[T3sl4co1l]

A few spark-gaps?

If the EMP is nuclear and that close to cause issues you have a lot more to worry about....

FYI, high altitude nuke EMP is continent-wide, in the 50kV/m range.  Aggressive enough that it knocked out Hawaii when they tested this over the Pacific back in the 60s -- before the days of electronic IT infrastructure.

The risk is not whether you'll get knocked out by it -- without heroic levels of shielding and filtering, you WILL be knocked out -- but whether it happens at all.  So far, nuclear attack has been a very small risk indeed.  But, who knows.

Tim

[jmelson]

A few spark-gaps?

If the EMP is nuclear and that close to cause issues you have a lot more to worry about....

No, not true.  On July 9, 1962, the US did the Starfish Prime test, and caused a lot of electrical damage in Hawaii, roughly 900 miles away.  On March 13, 1989, a solar storm blacked out a section of Canada.

Jon

[richnormand]

Not an EMP on your house....
The one in Quebec was induced over thousands on kilometers induction.
Even with this quizmo if the grid is out ... you are out... lightening bolt is the only one I can think of.

[EEVblog]

Behold!, the mains transient suppr... err... EMP Protection Device, with SightSpeed™ technology!

Invented and patented in the good'ol U S of A!

https://www.myempshield.com/

[Raj]

Sounds like a glorified bidirectional TVS diode

[Gyro]

Wow, that's impressive. A plastic enclosure and able to clamp 5kV in 20ns through the inductance of those flying leads!

So much more convenient than a big metal box with low inductance ground strap and though-connected power lines. 

[jmelson]

Wow, that's impressive. A plastic enclosure and able to clamp 5kV in 20ns through the inductance of those flying leads!

So much more convenient than a big metal box with low inductance ground strap and though-connected power lines. 

Note they say they did 40 simulated EMPs with "no damage to the device"!  Did it prevent any damage to sensitive electronics?  OF COURSE not, because it was not tested with any other gear to protect!  Might be a spark gap or just AIR in that box.

Jon

[Daixiwen]

Wow, that's impressive. A plastic enclosure and able to clamp 5kV in 20ns through the inductance of those flying leads!

So much more convenient than a big metal box with low inductance ground strap and though-connected power lines. 

You read wrong, it uses fast electrons to react in one billionth of a second! Not those crappy 20 nanoseconds like the competition.
This is typical negativity from know-it-all engineers. Just wait until the first nuclear explosion in the residential US and you will see it works! Stop being so sceptical and have faith.
I'd hate to see how the house would look like after 40 nuclear detonations though.