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At Edelman, we take the safety and performance of your home’s electrical system seriously. While many homeowners are familiar with using power strips to protect electronics from voltage spikes, there’s a much more comprehensive way to safeguard your entire home: whole-home surge protection. As experts in electrical installation and electrical repair in Bloomington, we highly recommend this solution to protect your property, your investments, and your peace of mind.
What Is Whole-Home Surge Protection?
Whole-home surge protection is a system installed directly into your electrical panel by a licensed electrician. Unlike point-of-use surge protectors (like power strips), which only protect individual devices, a whole-home surge protector guards your entire electrical system against sudden voltage spikes caused by lightning, utility grid switching, or even large appliances cycling on and off.
The Limitations of Power Strips
Power strips with built-in surge protectors are helpful and certainly better than plugging electronics straight into the wall. They offer a line of defense for sensitive devices like computers, TVs, and game consoles. However, they can only protect what is plugged directly into them, and their effectiveness is limited by their quality and age. Most homeowners don’t realize that these strips degrade over time and eventually offer little to no protection.
More importantly, power strips do nothing to protect the major systems and appliances in your home, such as HVAC units, refrigerators, washers, dryers, or hardwired devices like ovens and security systems.
Why Whole-Home Surge Protection Is a Smarter Investment
Comprehensive Protection
Whole-home surge protection defends all your electrical components, including appliances and devices that aren’t plugged into surge-protecting power strips. This means your air conditioner, water heater, dishwasher, and even LED lighting are covered.
Long-Term Savings
Surge damage can be costly, both in terms of repairing appliances and replacing expensive electronics. A professionally installed surge protector helps prevent those expenses by stopping harmful voltage spikes before they can reach your devices.
Protection From Internal Surges
While most people think of lightning as the primary cause of power surges, about 60-80% of surges originate inside your home. These minor, repeated surges from devices like air conditioners and refrigerators can gradually wear down sensitive electronics. A whole-home system mitigates these internal threats.
Enhanced Safety
By reducing the risk of electrical fires or device malfunctions caused by surges, whole-home surge protection adds an extra layer of safety to your home.
Insurance and Peace of Mind
Some homeowners insurance policies offer discounts for having surge protection in place. But beyond the financial benefit, knowing your entire home is protected can give you confidence during storms or utility disruptions.
Why Professional Installation Matters
Whole-home surge protection systems are not plug-and-play devices. They must be installed at the electrical panel, which involves working with high-voltage systems. That’s why professional installation by licensed electricians like our team at Edelman is crucial. We ensure the surge protector is properly rated for your home, meets code requirements, and provides optimal performance.
Additionally, we can assess your home’s specific needs and even recommend multi-tiered protection if you have especially sensitive or high-end electronics. A layered approach—combining whole-home surge protection with quality power strips—is often the best defense.
Trust Edelman to Protect Your Home
When it comes to protecting your home’s electrical infrastructure, don’t settle for half-measures. Whole-home surge protection offers robust, reliable defense against the unexpected—and it starts with expert installation from a trusted contractor.
At Edelman, we have the experience, training, and commitment to ensure your home is fully protected. Whether you’re building a new home, upgrading your electrical system, or just looking to improve safety and reliability, our team is here to help.