Electronics Protection

Tagged with automatic voltage regulator, electricity, home appliances, laptop computer, raspberry pi, surge protector, uninterruptible power supply on January 4, 2024

I never had to worry about protecting any of my electronics, other than my computers, when I lived in the United States. My computers were connected to a surge protector and an uninterruptible power supply (UPS).

In the last 14 years I lived there, I only experienced one power outage, and it was for less than two hours. The surge protector fuse never popped. I was self-hosting a website on a dedicated IP address for several years as a business customer instead of a residential customer. I had no way of knowing I would need neither piece of equipment. Well, better safe than sorry.

After I moved to the Philippines in 2006, I discovered the local electricity supply was unstable. Never mind the unannounced brownouts lasting for hours at a time. I’m not going to mention anything about the years when we had a 110-volt line because we don’t have it anymore.

When a lightning strike took out the transformer that controlled it, the electric company chose not to replace it. They only guaranteed a 220-volt line, so I can’t complain. I now use surge protectors and a UPS for my computers, and automatic voltage regulators for everything else important.

Surge Protector

For desktop computers, televisions, and other electronics like them, you should use a surge protector at the very least. Its purpose is to prevent higher than normal voltages from burning out the power supply.

You have to be careful what you’re buying when you buy a surge suppressor. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. If you buy the least expensive one you can find, it probably won’t work as expected. Good surge protectors have fuses that can be reset. A power bar doesn’t, and it’s only used for multiplying outlets. It can sometimes be visually mistaken for one type of surge protector.

Automatic Voltage Regulator

An automatic voltage regulator (AVR, also called a transformer) maintains a steady voltage, which is usually 110 in the United States and 220 internationally. The type I buy in the Philippines typically have three 220v outlets and one 110v (or 100v) outlet, and are designed for computers.

An AVR has surge protection built in while regulating the voltage. Unlike a surge protector, it also protects from sags (too little voltage). I use one for any expensive electronics that I can’t afford to replace.

Some of my home appliances are 110v from the United States, but I can’t use the same type of AVR. Because of the high wattages they use, I need an AVR that handle at least 2000 watts. I have a couple of electric grills and griddles that I can’t use until I buy one.

Uninterruptible Power Supply

A UPS combines the features of a surge protector and an AVR while providing a short-term battery backup. All of these electronic protection devices serve one general purpose: To protect your electronics from the effects of an unstable electricity supply. Just because you live in a modern, highly industrialized city doesn’t mean you can’t be affected.

While “dirty power” is more common in developing societies, modern societies can suffer as well. It really depends on factors beyond the electric company’s control. Improperly grounded homes, old wiring and a vast array of other problems can create unstable electricity reception.

Devices with batteries are a different story altogether. The electricity coming from an outlet is alternating current (AC) while batteries supply direct current (DC). An adapter converting from AC to DC acts as a kind of buffer in itself, but the adapter itself can burn out.

While surges and sags aren’t much of a concern for mobile devices, you can never be too sure. If you leave your laptop computer plugged in, it’s not using the battery.

Laptop Adapters

This is something I never thought about until the laptop adapters for two of my nieces burned out before I returned in 2022. I knew we had unstable electricity because I’ve had wall outlets tested at various times with a voltmeter, but I didn’t think it would affect laptop adapters.

I bought replacement adapters and automatic voltage regulators for them, and their parents reimbursed me. Unless they choose to not use the automatic voltage regulators, the new adapters should last as long as the laptop computers.

I’m Paranoid About Electronics

Since the protection devices themselves can be burned out, I’m a bit paranoid. I have a UPS plugged into the wall outlet, with a surge protector plugged into it. The power cables for the laptop computer, the Raspberry Pi 400 (and its computer monitor) and some laptop computer speakers are all plugged into the surge protector. The most expensive item in this chain is the UPS, and it only cost me around $22 at the time.

The whole point of all of this is to not only protect my electronics, but to keep the costs of replacing my electronics to a minimum. I’d rather replace a $5 AVR than a $500 TV. Speaking of televisions…

A year or so before I left the Philippines in 2018, someone “borrowed” the automatic voltage regulator for the TV in the living room. Within a month, I found myself unable to turn it on. I hired some television repairmen to fix it, and it didn’t cost much. The point is, it didn’t take a month for our unstable electricity supply to damage it. I gave the TV to a sister-in-law before I left, in working order. When I returned in 2022, that TV was nowhere to be found.

Image by Evan-Amos, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons