Life on the Internet is so leading edge, so fast paced, so avant garde, so "now," that we often forget what it takes just to get from here to there. All of this was brought home to me rather forcefully this week when someone decided to slam an automobile into a nearby telephone pole. Now it should be obvious to everyone that connecting to the Internet is a rather interesting proposition when both your phones and your power are out, but that's not where we're headed.

In fact, our phone lines never did go out (memo to Bell Atlantic: Thank you for burying our T1 circuit in underground pipes), and our power came back online before the Uninterrupted Power Supply gave out.

Instead, what actually happened, as near as we can make out, is that when the pole went down, several of the main power lines snapped and crossed. When this happened, the power grid sent a huge spike with a reversed polarity right into our building. Our main circuit panel overloaded, but not before the spike rammed its way straight into our wiring. Surge protectors throughout the building blew several main junction boxes, filling the air with thick black smoke and the popping sound of large capacitors giving up their lives for the rest of our equipment. One unit actually caught on fire, charring a two-square-foot section of carpet.

Once the fire department cleared the buildings for re-entry and the electricians finished checking all of our lines, we were able to take stock of the situation. Result: We lost three fax machines, two terminals and three PCs — several of which were not on high-quality surge protectors. The bulk of our gear — eight servers, over 100 workstations and terminals, a dozen high-speed laser printers, a dozen photocopiers, a telephone system and PBX, and more — all survived the spike. Approximately 165 surge suppressors either were destroyed or retired as a result of the incident.

The bad news is that it cost APICS $6,720.60 to replace the surge suppressors, and the total bill for this little fiasco will probably top $10,000. The good news is that the gear that these devices protect is worth well over $1 million in retail cost alone. More to the point, their protection enabled APICS to restore service to most stations with well under seven business hours of downtime.

OK, so what? That's our job, right? Absolutely! But all of this applies to your home PC, too.

Take a good look at your PC. Add up what it would cost to replace everything you see there. Then, consider all the time you will spend trying to convince your insurance agent to cover this gear in the event of a loss similar to what APICS experienced. Consider your deductible. Now throw in all the time it will take you to buy a new PC, re-install all of your software and restore your data. You do have backup copies, don't you?

Now take a good look at the lines coming out of your computer. Is every one of them plugged into a high-quality surge suppressor? Including your modem line? Is that suppressor plugged into a grounded outlet — preferably one of those special orange outlets that indicate tested grounding and fusing?

What does a good surge suppressor look like? It has four to six plugs spaced far enough apart to fit some of the bulkier transformers common to consumer electronic gear. It will have line, fault and protection indicators. Many of them have special sockets for telephone or coaxial lines. It will have some heft to it, as large capacitors and noise dampening chokes are not lightweight. Last but not least, if you see all of this, you will probably recall having spent at least 50 bucks for it. While you're at it, you will want to verify that the unit is situated in an area with space for ventilation and is reasonably free of dust.

If you don't see all of this, or if you don't recall what you paid for the thing, it's probably time to buy a new unit.

Rules of Thumb
I'm not a master electrician, but I look for units that dissipate higher voltages/amperages/joules — mine start at 1,000 joules. I demand very low transient response times — zero to one nanosecond is good. I look for noise filtering of at least 50db in a broad range of frequencies, and I demand a circuit breaker. I want good current handling loads — more is generally better, up to a point. I look for NEMA standard plugs and UL ratings for voltage let-through and noise filtering. If you want a unit with phone line protection (and if you use a modem, you do want it), look for a UL rating on that too. Then look at the warranty protection — all of my suppressors carry at least $10,000 lifetime insurance. Last of all, I look at the price tag.

No, this kind of protection is not cheap. But look at it this way; do you want a cheap bulletproof vest or a good one?

As I said, I'm no electrician, but I have lived through two major power disasters in less than six years with APICS. Buy the best. Buy a suppressor for each and every item you need. Don't forget your large screen TV, your stereo system, your home security system, and some of the other items in your home — especially if you live near an industrial area. Trust me, you won't regret it.

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