Lightning 
           and your 
                 computer
THIS CAN BE VERY BAD!

    THE ONLY SURE WAY TO PROTECT YOUR COMPUTER AND OTHER ELECTRONIC
               DEVICES FROM LIGHTNING STRIKES IS TO UNPLUG THEM ALL


 
Passive (non powered) buss strips with surge protectors can help to prevent small surges and powerline spikes (short bursts of voltage), however they most likely won't help in the event of a lightning strike in your area. Basic passive buss strip surge protectors are designed and built using an electronic device called a Metal Oxide Varistor. This MOV is rated for only so much power and can blow out if the rating is exceeded leaving your equipment unprotected. Power srips that have breaker switches can add to the overall protection, providing they can trip before the damaging surge gets to the equipment. Battery backup or UPS systems will provide power to your computer when the lights go out for a short period of time, giving you an opportunity to close all your applications and shut down your system. Despite thier added circuitry and batteries, they will not hold off a close proximity or direct hit. In the event of a hit of that nature, the UPS would most likley become damaged also. 

Line conditioners are much like UPS systems, however they don't provide battery time. They do in fact regulate the power to your computer, maintaining a steady rate under normal conditions.
Active (powered) buss strips afford a better line of protection, however still won't prevent a strong or direct hit from damaging your equipment. These devices will generaly provide indicator lights to notify you of a surge, along with increased protection by tracking the voltage and current and reacting faster to an event. Your best line of defense against lightning strikes is to unplug everything that could be potentialy damaged. Unplug the buss strip from the wall and don't forget to unplug your modem or network cable too. Remember.... If it isn't connected to anything, it won't be damaged.
 
 Lighning is extreamly high voltage (pressure) and also extreamly high current (flow). Any direct hit, and you will most likely not be worring about your computer. Surge protectors are rated by the capacity of energy, or Joules. When looking for a surge protector, take notice of the number of Joules it will handle, it should be listed on the box. If it doesn't reffer to Joules on the box, I would recommend not to purchase it. Otherwise find the surge protector with the highest Joules rating.

Battery backup systems or UPS (Uninteruptable Power Supplies) come with several MOVs and fast switching providing better protection, they also help prevent permenant data loss in case of no data backups.

With todays sensitive hardware, you should always make every attempt to protect your investment. If you see a storm rolling in or leave for extended periods of time; unplug all the cords from you computer, printer, modem, network or any switching devices you may have. This will afford the maximum protection. For additional information.... contact your PC service provider.

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