The typical surge suppressor is a strip of grounded (three prong) outlets, with a couple of switches and as mentioned, these days often a set of “in” and “out” jacks for phone, Ethernet, and cable lines.

The mechanism in most surge suppressors is a fairly simple — reliable and repeatable — circuit breaker, or a kind of electric switch that simply turns off power in the event of too big a load. A high quality circuit breaker can be reset many times.

If the circuit breaker uses a fuse, or if there is a simple fuse only without an electric circuit breaker, a single event will burn out the fuse and it will need to be replaced. This is usually easy and inexpensive but can be annoying.

Some cheaper surge suppressors use only what is called an MOV which is a form of ground. These are OK but are generally only good for one “surge” and this part is not easily, or advisedly, replaceable.

Stick with high-quality circuit-breaker equipped, warranted and rated UL listed equipment. This is not the place to try to save $20, $30, or $50.

UPS

We don’t mean the guys with the brown trucks, but “uninterruptible power supply.”

A few minutes ago when we mentioned how a surge suppressor shuts off electricity instead of overloading your equipment, some of you got very unhappy expressions and started calculating how much money you’d lose if your systems all shut down for say, 15 minutes every time there was a bad thunderstorm in your neighborhood.

Fear not. For those inclined, uninterruptible power supplies are no longer the province of the technically elite and ultra-wealthy. You can buy pretty good ones from any office supply store and use them with or instead of a standalone surge protector/suppressor.

The UPS runs off a battery system. The battery is charged while the electric current is on. Then, due either to a complete power failure to your building or a surge that trips your surge suppressors, the UPS takes over, keeping things running smoothly.

Like a generator for your home or cabin, a UPS will supply a certain amount of juice for a certain amount of time. Needless to say, the more of either, the more expensive the system.