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Post by 405x5 on Jul 6, 2024 9:09:33 GMT -5
Last night we had a double whammy on the radar two big blips with thunder and lightning in the early morning that just wouldn’t let up.
But… I was so wiped out I couldn’t drag myself out of bed to pull the plug. Normally I am so diligent about that
No harm done and actually as powerful as it was, we didn’t get that one big blast that scares the crap out of you and you’re SURE that something must’ve happened.
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Post by novisnick on Jul 6, 2024 11:27:32 GMT -5
We had two huge house fires due to lightning strikes. I don’t know the extent of damage but fire trucks from the city across the river responded as well.
Unbelievably my power never went out. It usually goes out when a strong wind blows.
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Post by 405x5 on Jul 6, 2024 12:09:54 GMT -5
We had two huge house fires due to lightning strikes. I don’t know the extent of damage but fire trucks from the city across the river responded as well. Unbelievably my power never went out. It usually goes out when a strong wind blows. Oh God, that’s awful…… Are you in an area that’s prone to violent weather more than usual or just unlucky? |
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Post by novisnick on Jul 6, 2024 12:39:54 GMT -5
We had two huge house fires due to lightning strikes. I don’t know the extent of damage but fire trucks from the city across the river responded as well. Unbelievably my power never went out. It usually goes out when a strong wind blows. Oh God, that’s awful…… Are you in an area that’s prone to violent weather more than usual or just unlucky? We get hurricanes from the Gulf of Mexico and storms that come from Texas. To answer your question, we do get plenty of very bad weather. |
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Post by LuisV on Jul 7, 2024 15:49:58 GMT -5
Simply curious where you guys live... does your electrical company offer a meter with surge protection? No, it won't help if the house is hit, but it with a whole home surge protector at the panel may avoid needing to disconnect things.
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LCSeminole
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Post by LCSeminole on Jul 7, 2024 18:04:21 GMT -5
Simply curious where you guys live... does your electrical company offer a meter with surge protection? No, it won't help if the house is hit, but it with a whole home surge protector at the panel may avoid needing to disconnect things. I've never checked with the local power company, but I'd bet they probably have a list of recommended whole home surge protectors, whether a meter is a feature would be a manufacturers question. I do know they all have their own distinct amperage levels of protection. As you said, none of these devices will protect against direct lightning strike, but will be good insurance against surges from the utilities side. I have one being used for just the AC/Heat Pump, and a Square D whole home rated at 80kA at the top of the load side of my box. |
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Post by LuisV on Jul 7, 2024 18:11:06 GMT -5
FPL and Peace River (PRECO) offer surge protected meters installs with a monthly fee... every so often they offer free installs; otherwise, it's like $24.95. I never looked into it, but it seems that lightning rods are still a thing... even in Florida. www.floridalightningprotection.com/ |
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LCSeminole
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Post by LCSeminole on Jul 7, 2024 18:27:32 GMT -5
FPL and Peace River (PRECO) offer surge protected meters installs with a monthly fee... every so often they offer free installs; otherwise, it's like $24.95. I never looked into it, but it seems that lightning rods are still a thing... even in Florida. www.floridalightningprotection.com/Most of these surge protectors are quite easy to install, as long as you have a twin pole breaker(most require a 15/20/30) at the top of the load side or as close to the top as possible but not on the line side. Not sure what a monthly charge would be, but most of the type 2(indoor) whole home protectors are relatively inexpensive <$200. I believe mine was $130ish, and I installed it during the "pandemic" when I had plenty of time to research. |
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Post by LuisV on Jul 7, 2024 18:30:22 GMT -5
Sorry for any confusion, I was speaking about a surge protector at the meter for the install and monthly fee... installed between the meter and box.  |
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LCSeminole
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Post by LCSeminole on Jul 7, 2024 18:37:54 GMT -5
Sorry for any confusion, I was speaking about a surge protector at the meter for the install and monthly fee... installed between the meter and box. I read correctly, just interpreted wrong!!!  .................Anyhow, I'd be curious to know what's the monthly fee? |
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Post by LuisV on Jul 7, 2024 18:43:30 GMT -5
Not sure about FPL, but PRECO is $5.95 / month plus tax.
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LCSeminole
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Post by LCSeminole on Jul 7, 2024 18:51:58 GMT -5
Not sure about FPL, but PRECO is $5.95 / month plus tax. That's pretty inexpensive monthly insurance. |
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Post by SteveH on Jul 11, 2024 19:33:37 GMT -5
Sorry for any confusion, I was speaking about a surge protector at the meter for the install and monthly fee... installed between the meter and box. I live in South Florida and I have this exact apparatus from Florida Power and Light, it is called Surge Shield. It is $10.95 plus tax per month. I does not protect your home from a ground zero lightning strike but it does protect you from lightning strikes that spike the line voltage on the power lines. Make sure you monitor the LEDs at the meter and report a failed unit so it can be replaced. FPL replaces the Surge Shield every so many years to upgraded units. I have had three upgrades and one replaced because of a failure indicated by the LEDs. There are other bundles for electronics surge protection as well. This gives a peace of mind when I am not able to provide the best defense which is unplugging everything. |
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Post by LuisV on Jul 12, 2024 8:59:26 GMT -5
Agreed... living on Florida's Gulf Coast, we have the meter socket surge suppressor and a whole home surge protector in the panel. Except for a direct hit, we should be covered.
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Post by Zombie on Jul 12, 2024 10:22:51 GMT -5
I’m thinking about having one installed after we close on the new house at the end of the year. I looked online at a few local places that install them and the best average I can find on the cost is around $400-450. Does that sound about right? I’m familiar with lightning protection as I’m a previous Ham Radio Operator. Although that relates specifically to antenna grounding and isolation.
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Post by LuisV on Jul 12, 2024 13:51:42 GMT -5
I got my meter surge protector installed for for free from my power company and it costs $5.95 / month. The whole home installed in the panel was around $175.
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Post by Zombie on Jul 12, 2024 14:23:44 GMT -5
Cool, free is always a good deal. I haven’t enquired with my power company just yet as I’ve just started researching this possibility. All they can say is no so it won’t hurt anything. Will it also kick in with a whole house generator (Generac) or would it be out of the loop?
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Post by 405x5 on Jul 16, 2024 16:29:03 GMT -5
On Monday, I was both lazy and lucky…… Normally, I am so proactive regarding keeping an eye on the electrical storms and pulling the plug as I have mentioned in the past year yet somehow that day when they started to roll in, I just couldn’t be bothered. And of all the days, we had hits of dangerous cloud to ground lightning, the likes of which we haven’t had in a few years and a few of those just made me jump out of my socks and still I didn’t take any measures (A brain dead Moment, I guess) It just didn’t look so bad on the radar in reality so I took a chance and lucked out next time I take no chances Lol.  |
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Post by LuisV on Jul 16, 2024 17:53:06 GMT -5
Cool, free is always a good deal. I haven’t enquired with my power company just yet as I’ve just started researching this possibility. All they can say is no so it won’t hurt anything. Will it also kick in with a whole house generator (Generac) or would it be out of the loop? Since the generator should disconnect the main line from the street, I assume the meter is out of the loop; however, to be certain, I would verify with an electrician. |
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Post by Zombie on Jul 17, 2024 2:32:15 GMT -5
Cool, free is always a good deal. I haven’t enquired with my power company just yet as I’ve just started researching this possibility. All they can say is no so it won’t hurt anything. Will it also kick in with a whole house generator (Generac) or would it be out of the loop? Since the generator should disconnect the main line from the street, I assume the meter is out of the loop; however, to be certain, I would verify with an electrician. That’s kind of what I was thinking. I’ll have to enquire about it. |
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.................Anyhow, I'd be curious to know what's the monthly fee?
