Author Topic: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection  (Read 2673 times)

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Offline bigbadwolvTopic starter

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What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« on: January 27, 2019, 12:34:13 pm »
Hi all,

I'm a n00b (so go easy on me :) ) and I have a question - I trolled through a bunch of previous posts and couldn't find anything that completely answers it. If you can find something I missed feel free to point me in that direction.

BACKGROUND
During an insanely heavy downpour at home (in Australia), we got some flooding in the house which fried one of my existing power boards with surge protection which I use for my TV, amp and other related products in the lounge room.
Now I need to purchase a new power board. Historically I have always just gone out and purchased something based on pretty much on price - nothing overly expensive but certainly not cheap.

QUESTION
Can you recommend any power boards with surge protection for me or give me some things I need to look for in a power board with surge protection?

REQUIREMENTS
- 6-8 outlets (no real need for ethernet - unless you can convince me otherwise)
- Surge Protection - I am open to other suggestions - it's all learning for me

EXTRA INFO
Original Power board
Brand: Connexia
Model: 55015
Rating: 230-240V ~ 50Hz
Loading: Max 10A 2400W
Outlets: 6 + Ethernet In/out
Other: Indicates it has EMI / RFI Filtration
     [Data obtained from the power board itself]

Other Existing Power board:
Brand: Belkin
Model: F9G820au2M-GRY
    Dataline Protection: RJ-11 Fax/Modem/Phone (In/out/out)
    Filtering: EMI/RFI 150kHz~100MHz up to 65db reduction
    Frequency: 50 Hz
    Input Voltage: 250 V AC
    Power Cord/Cable: 2 m
    Power Handling: 2.40 kVA
    Receptacles: 8
    Response Time: 1 Nanosecond
    Maximum Spike Volts: 6000 Volts
     [Data obtained from https://www.mightyape.com.au/product/belkin-surgemaster-adsl-8-way-2m-cordtel-incl-unlimited-warranty/10337790]
Would appreciate the help - as I said I am a n00b so please try to refrain as much as possible from using abbreviations and such wwithout first acknowledgigng them

P.S. I planned to hide or spoiler tag the Extra Info to make the post smaller but couldn't work out how to do it here (if it is possible) :-//
P.P.S. I apologise if I have left anything important out - just hit me up and I'll edit if required.
« Last Edit: January 27, 2019, 12:36:30 pm by bigbadwolv »
 

Offline Halcyon

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #1 on: January 30, 2019, 10:41:48 am »
Others can correct me if I'm wrong, but I wouldn't worry too much on what's inside a standard "surge protected" power board. They all do more or less the same thing (just avoid the cheap and nasty Chinese ones).

Most power supplies have filtering and rudimentary surge protection built-in but all components eventually wear out, especially with repeated surges. Obviously not having to replace your TV's PSU would be ideal and you want something in between to take the load. In power boards/strips, the most common method to absorb surges are by using components called MOVs (Metal Oxide Varistors). The joule rating in the specs is what you should look at. The higher the rating, the more energy it can absorb without failing. Any half-decent product manufacturer will mention this in their product specs.

I'd just stick with one of the better known brands such as Belkin. You can pick up their power boards for well under AUD$100 and they come with a connected equipment warranty as well (read the terms and conditions before buying their products).

No power board will protect you from a direct (or nearby) lightning strike. The best thing to do in those situations is physically disconnect your appliances from the wall.

I wouldn't get too hung up about it though. Any more than $50 and you're paying way too much for a power board. You also have the option of making a claim through your home and contents insurance if an appliance is damaged by a surge or you can always try and make a claim through the energy distributor. Whilst the energy companies don't really have an obligation to provide compensation, many will look at individual cases and will sometimes agree to compensate you, for example: https://www.ausgrid.com.au/Contact-Us/Claims

On a different note, this is what can happen if you cheap-out on garbage products:

 

Offline bigbadwolvTopic starter

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #2 on: January 31, 2019, 04:25:37 am »
Thanks Halcyon,

Is there a "standard" joule rating that is considered acceptable or is it really a case by case basis?
 

Offline tsman

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #3 on: January 31, 2019, 05:01:12 am »
You can pick up their power boards for well under AUD$100 and they come with a connected equipment warranty as well
Those connected equipment warranties are just a marketing gimmick so don't base any particular purchase on them. They've got so many loopholes that it is very rare that they'll pay out.
 
The following users thanked this post: Electro Detective

Offline Halcyon

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #4 on: January 31, 2019, 05:50:20 am »
You can pick up their power boards for well under AUD$100 and they come with a connected equipment warranty as well
Those connected equipment warranties are just a marketing gimmick so don't base any particular purchase on them. They've got so many loopholes that it is very rare that they'll pay out.

Some are actually quite decent as long as they are connected according to their instructions and you don't do anything silly with them.

As I also mentioned, you need to read the terms and conditions so you know what is/is not covered when making a claim.

Here is what I wrote:

I'd just stick with one of the better known brands such as Belkin. You can pick up their power boards for well under AUD$100 and they come with a connected equipment warranty as well (read the terms and conditions before buying their products).
 

Offline bigbadwolvTopic starter

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #5 on: February 01, 2019, 02:11:51 am »
Cheers for the heads up re warranties (not that I would place a lot of emphasis on purchase based on warranties).

Any more info re the joule ratings?
 

Offline james_s

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #6 on: February 01, 2019, 02:19:32 am »
I avoid the ones with surge protection personally. I had a close call at home where I caught one melting and at a previous job we had one catch fire and burn a patch of carpet after a neutral failed at the building transformer. I've seen several pictures of other MOV based surge suppressors that burned up too.
 

Offline bigbadwolvTopic starter

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #7 on: February 01, 2019, 05:14:06 am »
I avoid the ones with surge protection personally. I had a close call at home where I caught one melting and at a previous job we had one catch fire and burn a patch of carpet after a neutral failed at the building transformer. I've seen several pictures of other MOV based surge suppressors that burned up too.

What would you suggest as an alternative?
 

Offline james_s

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #8 on: February 01, 2019, 06:01:55 am »
I use power strips without surge protection, we don't get much in the way of power surges here and electronic equipment is cheap these days. If surges are a problem where you are I would look for something that doesn't rely on MOVs, or at least make sure it has a metal housing.
 

Offline Electro Detective

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Re: What to look for in a Powerboard with surge protection
« Reply #9 on: February 05, 2019, 09:12:10 am »


You can pick up their power boards for well under AUD$100 and they come with a connected equipment warranty as well[



Those connected equipment warranties are just a marketing gimmick so don't base any particular purchase on them.

They've got so many loopholes that it is very rare that they'll pay out.




Yay, we have a winner comment that beat me to it  !   :clap: 



Dear OP: Those 'feel safe' powerboards are a wank mate, especially the ones you listed, it's no surprise they died in the ass, just when you needed them to do what you thought you paid for   :(
 

Get the plain non 'surge protection' power boards with the overload buttons, AND a separate RCD you can test

or better still, an orange tradie style 4 way cube/brick thingie with a combined RCD and MCB, and read the instructions!


Clipsal, Arlec, HPM, Deta, go for a reputable Brand name that make a decent product, and have lots of money in reserve
in case you have to sue their ass for an occasional faulty POS
that slips through the OS sweatshoppe assembly line. 

i.e. Any water, faults or user stupidity will 'usually' trip these devices a LOT better than the 'surge protection' placebo boards 


As most snobby, anti-mates rates electrical retailers will shaft you on the price, Bunnings, Mitre 10, or local hardware store are your friends on this,
after wasting time searching on google and wiki for info about surge BS
from clueless keyboard typing turkeys that can't tell a dog from a cat, much less AC or DC,
or what surge, brownout, short or polarity mean for the frustrated aussie home battler that just wants to plug in and get on with it  :-//   


FWIW: you buy these things once and cry once,

otherwise ignore the above gab and buy same or a better $ $ $   'surge protection' power boards,  if you enjoy crossed finger exercises and crying (NOT! I hope...)


FWIW: there are genuine 'surge' come protection devices out there that will protect your gear pretty much unconditionally,

but you need a healthy credit card to buy one,  :o

and a mate to help carry it to the car and into the man cave  :phew:

« Last Edit: February 11, 2019, 11:25:00 pm by Electro Detective »
 


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