Thanks,  I haven't heard of joule rating as a standard, although
I remember joule units from physics class.  What I see on specs
for surge protectors is MOV, which I don't know what that refers
to (v probably stands for voltage).


> > Do surge power strips "wear out"?.  When they've taken a few
surge 'hits'
> > to they lose their effectiveness for attenuating power
spikes?
> >

>
> Hi,
>   The surge protection doesn't "wear out" as you put it, but
they can be
> rendered ineffective. The protection device will try to clamp
any surge
> voltage to a "safe" level, right up to the point it self
destructs (from
> overheating). The amount of energy it can absorb before this
happens is
> called a joule rating. Better protectors have a higher joule
rating (the
> protection devices are physically larger inside the unit), so
they can
> withstand a bigger "hit", before overheating to the point of
> self-destruction.
>   There is no simple way of testing them, to see if they are
still
> functioning properly, so if you have any doubts, you should
just replace them
> (and maybe move the questionable ones to less valuable
equipment, or stuff
> that is not likely to be hurt by surges...incandescent lights,
or things with
> just a motor, like fans for example, are not too susceptible to
surges).

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