Dick Smith 6 Outlet Surge Board - $49.97 (Save $40)

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• 

  neil on 17/12/2008 - 10:42

  Looks good, Joule Rating range: 1,675J.

  SirCH, do you happen to know what the clamping voltage and response time is for this board?

  • 

    SirCH on 17/12/2008 - 10:56

    Maximum surge rating 50,000A 1,675 Joules
    Telephone line maximum surge rating: 2,400A 64 Joules
    MOV Response time: <1 Nanosecond

    No idea what a clamping voltage is - is there any other names it would be under?

    • 

      neil on 17/12/2008 - 11:03

      Great, thanks for that. I think the commenting system misinterpreted the less than symbol.

      Might go pick one up.

      • 

        SirCH on 17/12/2008 - 11:09

        Ha - yeah I don't proof read things. That was a MOV response time of less than one nanosecond.

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  mick123 on 17/12/2008 - 11:20

  it says 6 outlet when i go to the link, plus phone + TV. is this better than the deals you see on zazz and cotd sometimes?

  • 

    neil on 17/12/2008 - 11:25

    Definitely, I've been looking for a good value board for a while. While COTD and ZAZZ sell cheap boards with insurance, they never served well in the three main areas in surge protectors:

    Clamping voltage, energy absorption, and clamping time

    Bit more info here, http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/surge-protector7.htm

    The DSE one seems to fair well in all of those, although I don't know what the clamping voltage is.

  • 

    SirCH on 17/12/2008 - 11:25

    Sorry - it is 6 outlet.

    I haven't looked at the technical specs of the Zazz and Catch ones, but this is probably a better quality board, but you pay for the quality. It's not that much more expensive than the COTD ones at the special price.

    • 

      mick123 on 17/12/2008 - 11:51

      are these online only prices?

      • 

        neil on 17/12/2008 - 11:53

        Wouldn't think so as it lists store availability.

        • 

          mick123 on 17/12/2008 - 11:54

          @neil: yea just checked it out - might get 2 on my way home from work tonight :)
          thanks for the find and help guys

      • 

        SirCH on 17/12/2008 - 11:56

        No - it was in this week's catalogue

  • 

    quop on 17/12/2008 - 12:59

    The better looking one from COTD's offerings is an Arista PB-852K 8-way board/surge protector.
    It has individual on/off switches as well as protection for telephone/data, TV aerial and satellite, and comes with $150,000 insurance. Can't find this product on arista.com.au, but if you google for the model you'll see some reported specs such as
    Camping Voltage: less than 775V (at 50A)
    Energy Absorption: 1,550 joules
    Response Time: less than 2 ns

    • 

      neil on 17/12/2008 - 13:25

      How is that better? Energy absorption and response time are worse.

      • 

        quop on 18/12/2008 - 11:22

        Hmm… I didn't say it was better than the DSE one. I was responding to the question of how the units from Zazz/COTD compare, and giving the specs on the better looking one out of COTD's various offerings (I've seen them offer 2 or 3 types of such units), not the better looking one compared to DSE. Sorry this was a bit ambiguous.

• 

  HueyData on 17/12/2008 - 21:02

  lifetime guarantee that my electronics will never get surged

  Check out Power struggle on dansdata.com.

  Excerpted:

  So you buy a surge/spike protector powerboard and you're fine, right? After all, there are quite a few brands of powerboard that now come with an impressive "Connected Equipment Warranty", offering thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars of insurance if something plugged in through the powerboard gets toasted. How can you lose? […]

  The technical side is simple enough. No ordinary cheap powerboard ("cheap" definitely includes "a hundred US bucks") actually provides very good protection from line current gremlins. It may protect you once from a big-ish spike, or several times from smaller ones, but it won't last forever.

  Cheap surge filters are all based around components called Metal-Oxide Varistors (MOVs). MOVs pass current only when the voltage across them is above a set value, and they react to overcurrent in microseconds. […]

  Unfortunately, MOVs will only work a few times, at best. The more work they have to do, the closer to death they come. A surge/spike powerboard with a toasted MOV is now… just a powerboard. […]

  The take-home message from all of this is that quality power filtering isn't cheap. Fortunately, though, most people here in Australia don't need quality power filtering.

  • 

    SirCH on 17/12/2008 - 23:11

    I haven't looked in to this - so don't take it as being fact, but I would assume that the power board tests the MOV - as the instruction manual indicates that the surge board isn't protected when the fault light is lit up. So even though they only work a few times, at least it's obvious when it has failed, and at least you know that you've taken the strain away from your expensive sound system, TV or computer and that will last longer, and you only have to replace a $100 powerboard instead of a $2000 TV.

    Just my thoughts. While I agree that there generally isn't a need for a surge protector, I'd rather spend the (in this case) $50 and have peace of mind than lose my computer and all of its data due to a temporary glitch with the power supply.

    • 

      Jabba the Hutt on 17/12/2008 - 23:42

      The "protected" light is usually just hooked up to a fuse and will only get knocked out in a severe surge. It doesn't indicate the status of the MOVs directly, which may have passed their useful life after many small surges.

      The specs on these boards are gibberish to most people and even those who do know their stuff can't help much when trying to figure out the cost/benefit. Pretty much every surge protection article including the Dan's Data one will give you an idea of how these devices work and what their weaknesses are, but little to help decide how much is worth spending. But 50 bucks on a 6-outlet board is hardly throwing one's money away - it's when you get into the $150-300 territory that home contents insurance and backup devices have clearer and more comprehensive benefits.

    • 

      HueyData on 18/12/2008 - 00:12

      +1

      I would assume that the power board tests the MOV - as the instruction manual indicates that the surge board isn’t protected when the fault light is lit up.

      Power struggle states "Better surge/spike boards are meant to tell you when their MOV's died via a little light or even a buzzer, but they commonly, actually, don't." I don't know what the basis for that claim is, however the next statement - "A surge/spike filter that's been in use for some years and still reports its MOV as perfectly healthy is, probably, lying" - seems reasonable and I do know surge protectors (various brands) reporting healthy after 10 or more years of use.

      Actually, now that I think about it, I have never seen a surge protector of any age or brand reporting unhealthy/out of action. I have seen surge protectors that were totally dead, but never any warning of lack of surge protection while still functioning as powerboards.

      at least you know that you’ve taken the strain away from your expensive sound system, TV or computer and that will last longer, and you only have to replace a $100 powerboard instead of a $2000 TV.

      That's a long way from "I would much rather spend $50 for a lifetime guarantee that my electronics will never get surged" :)

      Just my thoughts. While I agree that there generally isn’t a need for a surge protector, I’d rather spend the (in this case) $50 and have peace of mind than lose my computer and all of its data due to a temporary glitch with the power supply.

      Entirely reasonable, SirCH. However, it's possible that a surge protector isn't really providing protection as time goes by, which could lead to a costly discovery. On the flip side, if no problems are experienced (and they usually aren't, as you implied), that could also have nothing to do with the surge protector.

      • 

        SirCH on 18/12/2008 - 17:18

        Entirely reasonable, SirCH. However, it’s possible that a surge protector isn’t really providing protection as time goes by, which could lead to a costly discovery. On the flip side, if no problems are experienced (and they usually aren’t, as you implied), that could also have nothing to do with the surge protector.

        But surely if the surge protector reports that there isn't a problem while there is inadequate protection and you also experience (however unlikely) a power surge, surely that would be covered under the $75,000 warranty?

        • 

          Kranbone on 19/12/2008 - 03:54

          @SirCH: I second your comment. I've read the dans data thing quite a fair few times and it comes across as as arrogant smug technical ponce. I'd rather a surge protector than no surge protector at all. The internals in these ones seem decent enough.

          • 

            HueyData on 19/12/2008 - 07:50

            @Kranbone:

            I’ve read the dans data thing quite a fair few times and it comes across as as arrogant smug technical ponce.

            What you believe and how you read it is of course up to you. However, as Jabba the Hutt pointed out, Daniel Rutter (qualifications) is not the only source on the shortcomings of typical consumer surge protectors.

        • 

          HueyData on 19/12/2008 - 07:32

          @SirCH:

          But surely if the surge protector reports that there isn’t a problem while there is inadequate protection and you also experience (however unlikely) a power surge, surely that would be covered under the $75,000 warranty?

          Sure, you would hope so. However, I'd expect a difficult claims process and the lowest possible compensation, as discussed in the article; it's the necessary nature of the business. As Denzel says, "It's not what you know - it's what you can prove." How do you prove that the surge protector was reporting healthy/not reporting faulty at the time of the incident? Sounds like a stupid question but it could be one that comes up.

          It would be informative to read the T&Cs of this product's warranty if anyone has a link or transcription, and also to hear of any experiences with surge protector warranty claims. At the end of the day, I think there are a lot of caveats on this "peace of mind" - it's not a lifetime guarantee of protection and it may also be problematic insofar as compensation. Although again, most people are unlikely to need either.

          Excerpts from the US Belkin Connected Equipment Warranty (PDF):

          Belkin Components will repair or replace, at its option, any equipment which is damaged by a transient voltage surge/spike or lightning strike, (an “Occurrence”), while properly connected through a Belkin Surge Protector to a properly wired AC power line with protective ground. (For models …, the telephone line, and/or network line must be properly connected and installed, and for models …, the coaxial cable line must also be properly connected and installed, as determined by Belkin at its sole discretion.) […]

          Belkin Components will spend, to repair or replace the damaged connected equipment, at Belkin’s option, an amount equal to the fair market value of the damaged equipment or the original purchase price of the equipment, whichever is less, up to the maximum amount set forth below: […]

          The fair market value of the equipment shall be the current value of the equipment specified in the most recent edition of the Orion Blue Book by Orion Research Corporation, Roger Rohrs Publisher. […]

          Belkin Components reserves the right to review the damaged Belkin Surge Protector, the damaged equipment, and the site where the damage occurred. All costs of shipping the Belkin Surge Protector and the damaged equipment to Belkin Components for inspection shall be borne solely by the purchaser. Belkin reserves the right to negotiate the cost of repairs. If Belkin determines, in its sole discretion, that it is impractical to ship the damaged equipment to Belkin Components, Belkin may designate, in its sole discretion, an equipment repair facility to inspect and estimate the cost to repair such equipment. The cost, if any, of shipping the equipment to and from such repair facility and of such estimate shall be borne solely by the purchaser. Damaged equipment must remain available for inspection until the claim is finalized.

          Whenever claims are settled, Belkin Components reserves the right to be subrogated under any existing insurance policies the claimant may have. […]

          All above warranties are null and void if: the Belkin Surge Protector in use during the occurrence is not provided to Belkin Components for inspection upon Belkin’s request at the sole expense of the purchaser, Belkin Components determines that the Belkin Surge Protector has been improperly installed, altered in any way or tampered with, Belkin Components determines that the damage did not result from the occurrence or that no occurrence in fact took place, the repair or replacement of the damaged equipment is covered under a manufacturer’s warranty, or Belkin Components determines that the connected equipment was not used under normal operating conditions or in accordance with any labels or instructions. All Belkin Surge Protectors must be plugged directly into the power source and must not be “daisy-chained” together in serial fashion with other power strips, UPS, other surge protectors or extension cords. A three-to two-prong adapter may not be used. Any such installation voids the warranty.

          The Belkin Connected Equipment Warranty only protects against damage to properly connected equipment where Belkin Components has determined, in its sole discretion, that the damage resulted from an occurrence, and does not protect against acts of God (other than lightning) such as flood, earthquake, war, vandalism, theft, normal-use wear and tear, erosion, depletion, obsolescence, abuse, damage due to low voltage disturbances (i.e. brownouts or sags), non-authorized program, or system equipment modification or alteration. If you are using an AC surge protector only that does not have phone, network, or coaxial protection, the warranty is null and void if a power disturbance damages your equipment through the phone, network, or coaxial lines. You are only covered if the disturbance entered through the AC lines.

• 

  neil on 18/12/2008 - 01:11

  +1

  Wow, how bout Zazz's timing. They are currently selling a surge protector.

  http://www.zazz.com.au/

  Clamping voltage: less thn 275V (at 50A)
  Energy absorption: 525 Joules
  Response time: 1–3 nano seconds

  Not as good for almost the same price.

  Interesting article and I guess he makes a good point, we do have good power here. Never once experienced a surge that has damaged anything. Hmmmm…

• 

  wfdTamar on 20/12/2008 - 12:35

  These Cabac ones have much better specs and are $30!

  Clamping Voltage 710V
  Full 3 line surge protection
  3444 Joules
  144,000 Amps
  Max spike voltage 6Kv
  Respnes time under 1 Nonaosecond
  Phone line protection 160 joules

  http://www.dealsdirect.com.au/p/power-surge-protector-8-outl…

  also at www.oo.com.au

  I've seen them elsewhere with a $75,000 policy for $80 (in Officeworks I think)