How to Fix Electrical Power Surges
How to Fix Electrical Power Surges
There are a few different types of power surges that can occur, and when they do, you’ll need to know how to fix the circuit so that you can regain the use of your electricals.
Fortunately, in most cases, you can resolve the situation by simply resetting the circuit breaker, but in some cases, the power surge can be more severe.
Power surges can, in some cases, damage or destroy the electronics plugged into them, and in the worst-case scenario, can even cause an electrical fire that could destroy your home or worse.
This brief article will explain the risks of power surges, what causes them, some warning signs to look out for, and will give you some tips and tricks on how to prevent a power surge from occurring in your home. What follows are some tips on how to fix electric power surges.
The Risks of Power Surges
First and foremost, power surges can, in extreme cases, cause electrical fires, which can destroy your home and endanger your family. Electrical fires, though rare, do happen; and power surges are one of the leading causes.
That said, a power surge will be much more likely to destroy the devices plugged into the circuit, and although that’s better than a fire, it’s still an awful thing to have to happen.
Causes of Power Surges
Several things can cause a power surge to occur. The leading cause of power surges is putting too much voltage on the circuit.
This type of power surge is all too familiar to travellers who didn’t have the right travel adaptor for their devices or those who have ordered appliances from another country only to find out the hard way that the voltage was different.
There are some other things that can also cause a power surge, such as if any wiring on the circuit were to become compromised or if a tree was to fall onto a transformer.
There’s little you can do to prevent a tree from falling, but once you know the warning signs, there are a few simple precautions you can take that will decrease the odds of you suffering a power surge in your home.
Signs of Power Surges
The most common sign of a power surge is when a circuit breaker trips. Especially, if the breaker is tripping often or when it trips every time you turn on a particular appliance.
Should this be the case, make sure that you unplug everything from the circuit and then plug whatever device is the most power-intensive into its own circuit, or one with a higher voltage rating if that’s the issue.
Other signs of an imminent power surge include when all of your connected devices lose power at the same time or if you have a power outage in your home.
When the power goes off in your home and then comes back on all of a sudden, there is a huge influx of power coming in at once which can cause a power surge.
So, whenever you lose power in your home, always be sure to unplug your largest appliances to avoid a dangerous power surge.
Protection and Prevention
Preventing power surges is often a matter of spotting the warning signs or otherwise just being aware of how much electricity a circuit can safely conduct. If you have foreign appliances, then be sure to get the necessary adaptors.
The standard main voltage is 240 Volts (50Hz) in Australia, so if you have Japanese appliances pushing 110 Volts at (60Hz), you will need an adaptor.
Other than that, always make sure that you unplug any appliances when not in use, and you shouldn’t have any major problems due to a power surge.
If your circuit breaker is tripped, then try resetting it, but if it trips again, then you will need to redistribute your electricals among other circuits. Power surges seldom cause fires or damage your electronics, but it can happen, and so it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Featured photo by Clint Patterson on Unsplash
