The problem is not when the power goes but when it comes back. You should be fine with a surge protector. Btw, be careful hurricanes are serious business.
I dunno, this one has inspired me to make hot cocoa and get under my nice warm blanket.
Yea, power OFF isn't the issue. You'll also have a LOT of issues with that wierd on/off thing that periodically happens. That being said, the WORST of the damage should be protected. You need to check your surge protector rating though. Different ones cover different things AT different speeds.
A surge protector only protects you against sudden spikes in voltage that cause the MOVs in the surge protector to kick in and send a power spike right back to the wall rather than passing it through to your computer.
Depending on where you live, flooding may (or may not) be a bigger concern than power outages. Electronics don't like to get wet while turned on.
When hurricanes pass by where I live (south Florida) and the power goes out, I just unplug my computer and keep it off the ground till the power comes back on and there's no worry about flooding - that's the safest thing to do for the computer in my opinion.
I'm in the hurricane right now weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
The eye should be coming through here in a few hours, things are getting pretty sketchy.
Be safe everyone who is in Sandy's path. Was in a category 5 in NC many years ago as a child. Like a poster above already said, hurricanes are serious business. Be prepared.
I'm in the hurricane right now weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
The eye should be coming through here in a few hours, things are getting pretty sketchy.
Be safe everyone who is in Sandy's path. Was in a category 5 in NC many years ago as a child. Like a poster above already said, hurricanes are serious business. Be prepared.
im in vineland NJ so im right in the path... wish me luck
Surge protectors protect against surges - those can damage your computer even if they are turned off (blowing diodes in the power supply, or modems in those that are connected directly to a line) - it isn't common, but it can happen. That sort of event happens when, say, lightning strikes a power line.
The biggest hazard for electronics powered on are brownouts - when a car hits a power pole, a squirrel gets fried in a transformer, water grounds out live power lines, etc - you see the lights go really dim a few times, then the power finally goes out (because some safety device has finally tripped somewhere) - that is the absolute worst thing for electronic components that can happen. The only thing that can protect against those: being turned off in the first place, or having a UPS (preferably with voltage correction).
Being unplugged is the safest bet for a computer in bad weather.
You should also want to have your cable or what ever internet service wire you have, hooked up to a surge protector as well, if you don't already. I found that out the hard way a few years ago when lightening came through my cable service.
Comments
I dunno, this one has inspired me to make hot cocoa and get under my nice warm blanket.
Yea, power OFF isn't the issue. You'll also have a LOT of issues with that wierd on/off thing that periodically happens. That being said, the WORST of the damage should be protected. You need to check your surge protector rating though. Different ones cover different things AT different speeds.
A surge protector only protects you against sudden spikes in voltage that cause the MOVs in the surge protector to kick in and send a power spike right back to the wall rather than passing it through to your computer.
Depending on where you live, flooding may (or may not) be a bigger concern than power outages. Electronics don't like to get wet while turned on.
I'm in the hurricane right now weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
The eye should be coming through here in a few hours, things are getting pretty sketchy.
Be safe everyone who is in Sandy's path. Was in a category 5 in NC many years ago as a child. Like a poster above already said, hurricanes are serious business. Be prepared.
im in vineland NJ so im right in the path... wish me luck
Surge protectors protect against surges - those can damage your computer even if they are turned off (blowing diodes in the power supply, or modems in those that are connected directly to a line) - it isn't common, but it can happen. That sort of event happens when, say, lightning strikes a power line.
The biggest hazard for electronics powered on are brownouts - when a car hits a power pole, a squirrel gets fried in a transformer, water grounds out live power lines, etc - you see the lights go really dim a few times, then the power finally goes out (because some safety device has finally tripped somewhere) - that is the absolute worst thing for electronic components that can happen. The only thing that can protect against those: being turned off in the first place, or having a UPS (preferably with voltage correction).
Being unplugged is the safest bet for a computer in bad weather.