While pricing generally runs less than 1% of the value of the structure, costs for lightning protection systems vary depending on the size of the structure, location, construction, roof type and grounding conditions. Lightning protection is typically less expensive than other building systems and amenities like security, plumbing, generators and specialty lighting fixtures.

No. Surge protection is only one element of a complete lightning protection system. A grounding network for lightning (lightning protection system) must be implemented to provide structural protection.

Safety standards recommend periodic inspection of lightning protection systems to ensure safety, system continuity and proper maintenance. A maintenance inspection is especially important if modifications to your structure have occurred, including renovations to roof, electrical system updates, and satellite dish installations or HVAC alterations. Maintenance may also be needed if cable T.V. or telephone systems have been serviced in recent years. LPI-certified specialists can advise regarding maintenance plans and industry requirements to ensure the continued performance of your lightning protection system.

Any structure is a good candidate for lightning protection. All buildings are subject to lightning damage. A structures use and contents are as much a consideration as location and construction when determining lightning risk.

It is commonplace for lightning protection systems to be installed on schools, hospitals, health care facilities, airports, shopping centers, office buildings, manufacturing facilities, etc. In some parts of the country, there has been a move to mandate the installation of lightning protection on certain types of buildings.

Nothing can prevent lightning from striking. If lightning is zeroed in on a particular object, it will strike that object regardless of anything that is on the ground. The purpose of lightning protection is to intercept the lightning strike and carry it to ground. This is accomplished by placing the rods at regular intervals on all of the highest and most exposed parts of a structure. These rods become the most likely point for the lightning streamer to attach, since they represent the shortest path to ground. A network of highly conductive cables that provide a low-resistance path to ground connects the rods.

No. A surge protector is simply a gatekeeper, not an energy saving device. The power coming to your surge protector will have already passed through your meter and be recorded to your account with your electrical service provider. The surge protector is designed only to block surges in energy.

Yes, we recommend that you use any “point of use” surge protectors or “power strips” that you already have behind your TV, computer, or other sensitive equipment, as added protection! Lightning can still strike the gutter or roofline, for example, and then “jump” to a nearby cable and travel through your home that way, bypassing the surge protector altogether. In an instance like this, the point of use surge protector that your equipment is plugged into would block the surge.

Whole house surge protectors are installed at the main electrical panel or meter in your home.

Yes, there is a warranty offered by the manufacturer including a limited warranty for damage to connected equipment (appliances, furnaces, well pumps, etc.). Please check the warranty information on your unit for exact details.  We encourage customers to look at the warranty when buying surge protection. However, the most important thing is that you have surge protection. The worst call we get is from a customer who did not get a surge protector installed, for whatever reason, and now has extensive damage and costs to worry about.

The cable surge protector is very similar in function to the panel surge protector. It is installed in your cable box, which is usually found mounted on a wall outside your home. It works the same way as the panel surge protector does by stopping excess energy right at the source, before it enters your home, and diverting it out into your grounding system. If you have cable television or Internet service, you want to have a cable surge protector because a lightning surge can travel along your cable line and into your computers, televisions, DVR, DVD players, and any other connected equipment. You also want to be sure that you have an adequate and properly installed grounding system and that your cable system is connected to it.

A good ground is important for surge protection devices (SPD) to work properly. AC power SPD’s are designed to divert surge current to ground by providing the least resistive path. Without surge protection on the AC power, the surge current will look for other paths to a good ground. In many cases, this path is found through electric/electronic equipment. Once the dielectric strength of the components in electronic equipment has been surpassed large currents begin to flow through the sensitive electronics thus causing failure.

There are not many areas of the world today that do not experience surge-related incidents. Lightning is only one of the many causes of transient surge related problems. Today’s modern electronic equipment is much smaller, much faster, and much more susceptible to transient related problems than was the last generation of equipment. The sheer number of control and communication devices interlinked together in today’s networks make their susceptibility many times greater. These new problems were not nearly as frequent with previous generations of control equipment.

Full protection is one of the most inexpensive insurance policies you can buy. The cost of system unavailability is far more expensive than proper protection. One major surge event in a ten-year period far outweighs the cost of protection.

The protection the Phone Company provides is there mainly for personal safety to prevent lightning from migrating in on their wires and causing personal injury. It provides little protection for sensitive electronic communications equipment. It provides primary protection but does not eliminate the need for secondary protection at the equipment.

No. Wood is not conducive material for lightning. In many cases, lightning can side-flash from a tree and hit a nearby structure. In addition, lightning traveling along tree roots can enter a structure by jumping onto nearby telephone, cable and electrical lines, introducing harmful surges. Lightning can also injure a tree from a direct strike that can cause heavy limbs to split and fall onto a nearby structure.

Lightning protection can be installed on existing structures and new construction, as options are available to incorporate installation at just about any phase of construction. However, lightning protection that is designed during the planning and design phase may provide the most options for concealing components and materials. Early planning can also allow for better coordination of work with other trades. This coordination can be beneficial when making provisions for chases for interior conductor runs, ground locations and use of compatible roofing components and adhesives. Certified specialists can provide design, specification, consultation and installation services to develop a plan that best fits your project needs.

No. An improperly installed system may be dangerous. Lightning protection is a very specialized industry requiring trained technicians. A proper system takes into account your home’s design, construction, electrical components, soil condition, location and more.

Without the lightning protection system, when a building is struck the lightning attempts to find a path to ground. If there are not enough interconnections providing a continuous path for the lightning to follow, there will be arcing or side flashing. The lightning will also travel on other mechanical systems in a building such as the electrical or HVAC systems. The lightning current jumping from object to object within a building is dangerous and has been known to cause fires, explosions, etc.

The surge protectors that we supply are installed in the main panel box, the heart of your home’s electrical system. They are designed to stop lightning or power surges at the panel, before they enter the rest of your home, unlike the point of use surge protectors that stops a surge after it is already in your house (and next to your walls, furniture, carpet drapes and other flammables)! The panel surge protector diverts all of the energy away from your home and out into your homes grounding system. You will want to make sure you have a good grounding system (our electrician can inspect the grounding system while he is there installing the surge protector). Additionally, surge protectors “clean up” the minor fluctuations in energy that occur throughout the day. While these small spikes in power may go unnoticed by you, over time they can wear down and reduce the lifetime of more sensitive electronics.

Yes, however, there are several ways lightning can enter your home. The most common way is to travel along the main electrical, cable or phone lines after a strike. Lightning commonly takes the path of least resistance to quickly exhaust all of its energy. While lightning is extremely powerful, it is also lazy, and its preferential path is an unobstructed one. A whole house surge protector will protect your entire home once the voltage increase reaches the electrical panel, but will not be able to prevent lightning damage on circuits the lightning hit before reaching the panel. This is why secondary “point of use” surge strips and plugs are very important to a comprehensive protection plan.

The main panel surge protector is about the size of two decks of cards. The cable and phone surge protectors are smaller.

If you have more than one panel you may or may not need two surge protectors. It depends on how your panels are fed from the meter. The electrician can look at it and let you know.

Televisions are protected by the whole house panel surge protector connected equipment warranty if a point of use surge protector is installed at the plug and have the all the television components (cable, power, etc.) running through the point of use surge protector at the time of the incident. This is a warranty requirement found in the fine print of most surge protector manufactures instructions. Install secondary surge protection on your sensitive electronics and equipment.

The phone surge protector is also very similar in function to the panel surge protector. It is installed in your phone box, which is usually found mounted on a wall outside your home. It works the same way as the panel surge protector by stopping the energy right at the source, before it enters your house. If you have a home phone line and/or are using a phone line for your Internet, you want to have a phone surge protector installed because a lightning surge can travel along your phone line and into your computers, corded phones, and cordless phone bases, answering machines and any other connected equipment. You also want to be sure that you have an adequate and properly installed grounding system and that your phone system is connected to it.

UPS systems play a very important part in an overall power protection plan. They are designed to provide good clean uninterruptible power to critical equipment. They provide no protection for the communication and control lines found in today’s network type environments. They also do not normally provide AC power protection to the many nodes connected within the network. The surge protection elements found within even a very large UPS is very small in comparison to stand-alone SPD’s. Normally around 25 to 40kA. In comparison, our smallest AC entrance protector is 70kA and our largest is 600kA.

Many areas of the world do not experience as many lightning-related problems as others. As much as companies today depend on their control and network systems, the system availability has become paramount. For most companies, a single surge related incident in a ten-year period, which causes the loss of system availability, would more than pay for proper protection.

The surge protection devices are actually medium priced. There are many more expensive devices on the market as well as the low-cost commodity devices. If you look at the four main factors: Price, Packaging, Performance, and Safety, the Raycap product offering is the best in the industry.