Surge Protection in Mackay.

What surge protection actually does

A surge is a brief spike in voltage, far above the normal 230 volts your appliances are built for. It might last a fraction of a second, but that is enough to damage the electronics inside a TV, a fridge controller, a computer or an air conditioner. A surge protective device (SPD) sits between that spike and your gear. When the voltage jumps, it diverts the excess energy to earth so less of it reaches the things plugged in around the house.

It is a different job to a safety switch. A safety switch (RCD) protects people by cutting the power when current leaks somewhere it should not, such as through a person. A surge protector protects equipment from overvoltage. Most homes need both, and having one does not cover you for the other.

Where surges come from in a Mackay home

Storms are the obvious one. Lightning does not have to hit your house to cause trouble, because a strike on or near the network can send a spike down the lines into every property connected to it. Mackay’s summer storm and cyclone season makes that a real risk for a good part of the year.

Not every surge comes from outside, though. Power coming back on after an outage can arrive with a spike, and large motor loads such as air conditioners and pool pumps can create smaller spikes inside the home each time they switch on and off. Surges can also travel in on phone and data lines, TV antenna cabling and solar wiring, not just the mains.

Switchboard protection or a surge power board?

There are two layers, and they work best together.

• Switchboard-mounted SPD. Fitted in your meter box or switchboard, it covers every circuit in the property, including hard-wired gear like the oven, air conditioner, hot water system and pool equipment that never plugs into a power board.
• Point-of-use protection. Surge-rated power boards at the TV, computer or home office add a second line of defence for sensitive electronics, and can include protection on data or antenna connections.

A power board on its own leaves everything hard-wired unprotected, and a board-mounted device on its own may still let a smaller spike through to delicate electronics. Putting both in place is the sensible setup for most homes and small businesses.

Signs it is worth adding surge protection

• Your switchboard has no surge protective device fitted at all.
• You have lost an appliance, modem or TV after a storm or a power outage.
• You run expensive or sensitive gear such as a home office, a home theatre, solar, a battery or an EV charger.
• Your home is on the coast or somewhere storms hit hard.
• You are already upgrading the switchboard or adding circuits, so the board is open anyway.

What affects the price

Every job is quoted against the property, so there is no fixed figure that fits every home. The main things that move the price are whether your switchboard has room for the device, whether the supply is single or three phase, whether an older board needs upgrading first, and how many point-of-use devices you want on top. If the board needs work, it often makes sense to do both at once. Our guide to what an electrician costs in Mackay explains how electrical jobs are usually priced.

Surge protection questions