I have a three-year old UPC unit (APC brand) rated at 445 joules of protection. (It came with a $25,000 protection promise, whatever that means.)
I’ve noticed at Best Buy bigger, better models that offer protection upward of 2,000 joules. I’m also guessing that a direct lightning strike could deliver a jolt rated in the millions of joules.
Backup power during a power loss is good, but I’m more interested in lightning protection–and protecting my backup hard drives (internal and external) from being fried.
I’ve read here on SDMB that no consumer device realistically protects a PC/sensitive electronics from a direct lightning strike, butwhat protection is basically considered sufficient for indirect strikes/surges?
This is pretty much true, but some level of direct-strike protection is possible, dependingt on the amount of money you care to throw at the problem. If you live in an area where lightning is frequent, you may want to look into having lightning arrestors installed on all above-ground power, telephone and cable lines coming into the building. In combination with high-quality surge suppressors, these provide a far greater level of protection than surge suppressors alone. The linked page is just one example, to give you an idea of the type of devices available and the kind of protection they can offer. You should have a qualified electrician evaluate your particular situation and install the appropriate devices.
When selecting a surge suppressor, be sure to get one with coax inputs and outputs if you have a cable modem. I replaced at least three cable modems or ethernet cards that were fried by surges that came via the coax cable.
Agreed. Also, don’t overlook telephone line protection for dialup and DSL service. There are standalone telephone line suppressors available. And, while we’re on the subject of surge suppressors in general, let me remind you to check the Protected When Lit indicator on all your suppressors periodically and after electrical storms. If this light is out, your surge suppressor is just a fancy outlet strip at that point and needs to be replaced.
Be sure that your protector is suitable for DSL - many of the older ones (like my four year old APC Back-UPS Pro) have “noise” filters that will filter out the DSL signals.
FWIW, there are no above-ground lines coming into my home, but something fried my modem about 4 years ago, so your suggestion re: telephone line protection seems good.