A good surge protector is something that everybody should have for their home or office. The surge protection they offer are necessary to protect your electronic appliances and electrical systems from power surges that can damage it. However, not all surge protectors are created the same. Many people choose to turn off their surge protector when not in use.
But here’s 3 reasons why you should turn off your Surge Protector when not in use.
Table of Contents
Save Money On Your Electricity Bill
Temporarily shut down your surge protector to save yourself 10 – 20% off your total electric bill. Surge protectors are a common culprit for high energy bills. This condition happens when a power surge from the wall outlet enters a component in or around the surge protector that is not in use, thus turning the unneeded equipment on and using up electricity that could be directed elsewhere.
For most people, turning off surge protectors when not in use doesn’t make a difference—or even cross their minds. For the U.S. Department of Energy, the annual cost of lost electricity due to this single behavior is a whopping $8 billion.
It Improves The Surge Protector’s Life Span
It is not a good idea to leave a surge protector standby when you are not using the appliances. Using a surge protector for long time will make it accumulate dust and that will cause some malfunctions. One of the main reasons why you should turn off your surge protector when not in use is that it makes your surge protector to last longer.
As an electronic device, a surge protector is always in danger of heat damage. Constantly energizing and dissipating electricity can subject a surge protector to extreme heat, which may cause it to fail or decrease its efficiency over time.
Avoid Fire Hazards
Today, most appliances and electronics are plugged into surge protectors on a daily basis. While these products are designed for surge protection, they can also be an extreme fire hazard when not in use. That’s because surge protectors consume energy even when the devices they’re protecting are turned off.
You should turn off surge protector when not in use because it could be causing a fire hazard. People often leave surge protectors on week after week, month after month, and year after year without turning them off. But sudden spikes can drastically weaken and damage appliances, electronics, and even start a fire if a surge protector is left on for months at a time without being turned off.
The disadvantage of Turning Off Your Surge Protector
It is good practice when working on a sensitive electronics equipment like a computer, to turn off your surge protector. A surge protector will protect the delicate equipment from lightning and power surges. However, turning it off also has its disadvantages.
Surge protectors help protect your electronics from dangerous power spikes, but you should never simply turn them off while they are plugged into the wall. That’s because surge protectors are designed to work in a specific way, and turning your protector off could actually damage your device. In addition, turning off your surge protector could leave you vulnerable to power outages that could also damage your devices.
Conclusion
I think this article has given you enough reasons why you should not leave your surge protector on when unused. It is only good for your power saving and it will save electricity by turning it off when you are not using the device. Surge protectors are available everywhere; from the electronic stores to other gadget shops. If you have read everything that I have shared, I am sure that you would have gained something out of it aside from what is included here in this article.
