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Post by Boomzilla on May 15, 2019 11:13:38 GMT -5
Could have been much worse...
This past weekend, we had a storm front roll through with lots of lightning. One bolt struck somewhere close enough that I heard the plasma slap.
Although my cable television and cable telephone services survived, my internet connection would no longer work. As is typical of such things, today (Wednesday) was the earliest that the cable company (Cox) could schedule a technician to come out and troubleshoot.
Long story short, the cable itself and cable modem were fine. What got fried was the Ethernet port that came off the cable modem. By switching my Ethernet feed wire to one of the other three ports on the modem, everything began working again. Speed tests look great.
So I'm thinking that since the cable modem is undamaged, other than the one Ethernet output port, the EMF of the nearby strike caused an induced voltage on that specific Ethernet wire that fried the one port on the cable modem. Learnings:
1. If this happens again, try a different Ethernet port on the cable modem.
2. The Ethernet switch (other end of the wire that apparently got too much voltage) isn't damaged, so maybe the modem is more delicate than the switch (or alternately, the switch had other attached Ethernet cables to distribute its end of the voltage to, so no individual cable got a high enough voltage to damage other equipment)
3. Since 80% of voltage spikes come from inside the house, spending a lot on a whole house surge suppressor may not be money well spent - just protect individual items? In this particular case, since the voltage didn't come from the AC distribution network, a whole house suppressor would not have worked.
And now that I've got my internet back, I'm ordering my new computer surge suppressor today.
Boom
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Post by garbulky on May 15, 2019 11:35:54 GMT -5
Surge suppressors do little in a lightning strike. Interesting you mentioned cable modems because I just had a (forced) upgrade from Cox of my cable modem because mine was too old - though working just fine. If your cable modem is old, chances are you are eligible for a free upgrade.
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Post by novisnick on May 15, 2019 13:18:00 GMT -5
Surge suppressors do little in a lightning strike. Interesting you mentioned cable modems because I just had a (forced) upgrade from Cox of my cable modem because mine was too old - though working just fine. If your cable modem is old, chances are you are eligible for a free upgrade. Upgraded mine long ago, cost analysts shows I’ve made money owning my own. |
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Post by garbulky on May 15, 2019 13:22:07 GMT -5
Surge suppressors do little in a lightning strike. Interesting you mentioned cable modems because I just had a (forced) upgrade from Cox of my cable modem because mine was too old - though working just fine. If your cable modem is old, chances are you are eligible for a free upgrade. Upgraded mine long ago, cost analysts shows I’ve made money owning my own. I heard about this. How does this work? Are you using cox? |
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Post by novisnick on May 15, 2019 13:51:02 GMT -5
Upgraded mine long ago, cost analysts shows I’ve made money owning my own. I heard about this. How does this work? Are you using cox? We had Cox a few years ago, now Suddenlink but you have the right to use your own compliant DOS 3 Modem orModem/Router. You don’t have to rent theirs. My modems have lasted an average of 8/10 years each at a cost of about $100 which I believe is 10 months rental on their unit. Call and ask what requirements your own modem odes will be and save some money by paying up front at Best Buy or wherever . |
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Post by garbulky on May 15, 2019 14:09:05 GMT -5
I heard about this. How does this work? Are you using cox? We had Cox a few years ago, now Suddenlink but you have the right to use your own compliant DOS 3 Modem orModem/Router. You don’t have to rent theirs. My modems have lasted an average of 8/10 years each at a cost of about $100 which I believe is 10 months rental on their unit. Call and ask what requirements your own modem odes will be and save some money by paying up front at Best Buy or wherever . I didn't realize I was renting a modem. Well hot diggity! I'm going to have to give them a call |
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Post by doc1963 on May 15, 2019 14:43:09 GMT -5
We had Cox a few years ago, now Suddenlink but you have the right to use your own compliant DOS 3 Modem orModem/Router. You don’t have to rent theirs. My modems have lasted an average of 8/10 years each at a cost of about $100 which I believe is 10 months rental on their unit. Call and ask what requirements your own modem odes will be and save some money by paying up front at Best Buy or wherever . I didn't realize I was renting a modem. Well hot diggity! I'm going to have to give them a call Most cable ISPs require a DOCSIS 3 (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification) modem. Moreover, it's also important to verify how many "download" channels your modem would require to achieve the rated download speed of your particular internet package. For example, a DOCSIS 3 cable modem that has "16x4" channels has sixteen dedicated download channels and four dedicated upload channels. Those sixteen dedicated download channels can achieve over 600mbps of sustained data. Check with your ISP to determine what is required for your plan. If you only need an "8x4" modem, a "16x4" will not get you "faster" download speeds. You'd just be paying more money for capabilities you can't appreciate. However, if you change your plan down the road, it may be worth considering...  |
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Post by garbulky on May 15, 2019 14:46:46 GMT -5
I didn't realize I was renting a modem. Well hot diggity! I'm going to have to give them a call Most cable ISPs require a DOCSIS 3 (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification) modem. Moreover, it's also important to verify how many "download" channels your modem would require to achieve the rated download speed of your particular internet package. For example, a DOCSIS 3 cable modem that has "16x4" channels has sixteen dedicated download channels and four dedicated upload channels. Those sixteen dedicated download channels can achieve over 600mbps of sustained data. Check with your ISP to determine what is required for your plan. If you only need an "8x4" modem, a "16x4" will not get you "faster" download speeds. You'd just be paying more money for capabilities you can't appreciate. However, if you change your plan down the road, it may be worth considering... Thanks doc! |
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Post by Bonzo on May 15, 2019 16:14:26 GMT -5
We had Cox a few years ago, now Suddenlink but you have the right to use your own compliant DOS 3 Modem orModem/Router. You don’t have to rent theirs. My modems have lasted an average of 8/10 years each at a cost of about $100 which I believe is 10 months rental on their unit. Call and ask what requirements your own modem odes will be and save some money by paying up front at Best Buy or wherever . I didn't realize I was renting a modem. Well hot diggity! I'm going to have to give them a call Where have you been? Hello, McFly! 😉😁 |
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Post by vcautokid on May 15, 2019 16:19:39 GMT -5
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Post by teaman on May 15, 2019 16:58:08 GMT -5
Never even heard of them, but they sound pretty amazing, thanks! |
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klinemj
Emo VIPs 
Official Emofest Scribe
Posts: 15,095
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Post by klinemj on May 15, 2019 17:37:42 GMT -5
I had this happen years ago. I am pretty sure the actual lightning strike was on my property. Dark went to light and a sudden explosion was felt. Power went out, then came back on quickly. If I recall correctly, I lost a Sonos unit (under warranty and replaced w/no issue), a cheap video player, and also 1 port on my router. I lived with 1 dead port for a while then upgraded my router to a new Gigabit speed router when the time was right.
Mark
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Post by drtrey3 on May 16, 2019 7:58:19 GMT -5
I lost a laptop due to static electricity. It was a nice big pop, and bye bye motherboard! Everything was backed up and the hard drive was fine, but that was a surprise.
Trey
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2019 14:43:04 GMT -5
Count your blessings it was just a modem and not your A/V system
Surge protectors with MOV's measured is "joules of protection" (in my opinion) is usually junk
What you want is a voltage regulator that shunts over-threshold to ground. Check out Brickwall.com for an explanation.
After losing over $2500 of equipment, I learn my lesson.
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Post by saturnx on May 16, 2019 17:21:08 GMT -5
The coax plant on the poles are basically miles of lightening rods. Though grounded at nearly every active and at termination it's important that you regularly inspect the grounding at your residence. Typically what is found is burned out ground blocks and not burned up in home equipment. Docsis 3.1 modems with MTA or voice can be an expensive upfront purchase. But if you just have high speed internet purchasing your own modem will save plenty of money in the long run.
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Post by Ex_Vintage on May 16, 2019 18:20:37 GMT -5
Count your blessings it was just a modem and not your A/V system Surge protectors with MOV's measured is "joules of protection" (in my opinion) is usually junk What you want is a voltage regulator that shunts over-threshold to ground. Check out Brickwall.com for an explanation. After losing over $2500 of equipment, I learn my lesson. Respectfully disagree. I design industrial power converters and have used MOV's for line protection. A common test is a 6kV 2kA surge applied to the input of the equipment. The MOV will limit the surge voltage to less than 1600V peak. A voltage regulator would have to be made of electronic components and would fail under those conditions. The only thing faster than an MOV is a spark gap. A spark gap arrestor would need a fuse or circuit breaker to open the line because it effectively shorts the source once activated. If you want to protect your electronics, the best solution is local protection, not whole house. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2019 19:50:55 GMT -5
My equipment was on local MOV circuit protection.
It all went in the trash the next day & we designed our own protection- that was over 10 years ago.
Have Brickwall units throughout the house- they work over & over, unlike MOV's that die when they're hit-.maybe, maybe not, they protect your electronics.
To each their own, buy what you want.
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