In our last blog, we discussed the most common causes of weather-related damage to businesses and gave some tips and recommendations as to how you can protect your equipment from severe, unpredictable storms and weather events.

You may recall one of our major safety suggestions: surge protectors, which help prevent equipment from being damaged by voltage fluctuations due to nearby lightning strikes. In that section of the blog, we warned against buying power strips that don’t offer surge protection, saying: 

“One way to protect your equipment from a nearby strike is a simple serge protector. Unlike a direct strike, the surge protector will keep your equipment safe from voltage fluctuations that result from a nearby strike. When buying a surge protector, it is important to chose one that has an auto-shutoff feature when compromised. The most important thing to remember is not all power strips are surge protectors. While many power strips and surge protectors may include similar features such as an off switch and multiple outlets, it’s important to read the packaging to be sure that it is, in fact, a surge protector.”

This time around, we thought it would be a good idea to zero-in on this topic, and give you some more information on surge protectors and how to tell if your extension cord provides protection from voltage fluctuations.

Surge Protectors Vs. Power Strips

The technical differences between surge protectors and power strips are quite simple: A power strip is an extension cord with multiple outlets, and a surge protector is an extension cord with multiple outlets that also absorbs power surges and prevents them from damaging any equipment that is plugged into them.

Telling the two apart is a bit trickier.

Is it a Surge Protector, or a Power Strip? (And Why Does is Matter?)

The biggest reason why many confuse power strips with surge protectors is due to their physical similarities, and you can’t blame them! They do, in fact, look very similar. Fortunately, there are a couple tell-tale signs to look for.

• One good way to tell is by flipping the strip over (don’t do this if it is plugged in!) Generally, surge protectors will have information on the back about the Joule rating or other protection capabilities. If none of this information is present, it’s most likely just a power strip.
• Another major thing to look for when purchasing a surge protector is an indicator light. These lights glow when plugged-in to indicate that the surge protection feature is working. If your extension cord has a light on the switch, it is most likely a surge protector.

If your cord has an indicator but it isn’t glowing, then it most likely means that your device is a surge protector, but it needs to be replaced. The light stops glowing when it has worn out and lost the ability to protect against surges.

Surge protectors are fantastic tools for damage prevention, but they don’t last forever. Old and damaged surge protectors are fire hazards in and of themselves, so be sure to replace them once they start showing signs of age.

Weather-related damage wrecks havoc on thousands of small business around the country every year. Since most small business only have one location, this kind of damage proves to be fatal for affected companies.

If you’re looking for more robust solutions to keep your equipment and your data safe, contact us or check out our Managed IT Services page.