Replacing electrical wall outlets...

And wiggle it if it is hard to get out, pull on one side, then the other. Most plugs from computer stuff are really big and easy to get a hold of. I have lamp plugs that are 50 years old and only a half-inch deep and they might be hard to grip.

I'm wondering too. And what is a three-pronged data cable? What kind of data cable is plugged into the wall in the average house?

I don't unplug anything either. I may have lost an internal modem via a surge on the phone line, or maybe it broke for some other reason.

But I did have a girlfriend who lived on a wooded lot with a lot of trees just outside her property, in Baltimore. She said that she lost two fancier than average telephones, a fancy microwave, and the refrigerator in one lighting storm. I replaced the electronic module for the microwave but it was expensive, 30 to 50% of the cost of a new microwave. 60 to 100% of the cost of the microwave used, but I've never understood that comparison since she had no way to buy it used, unless she wanted to spend weeks going to yard sales and looking at ads etc.

Despite all that she lost, no one moves the fridge to unplug it in every storm, and the odds are so low that I don't blame them.

Oh, I may have also lost the control panel for my home burglar alarm because of lightning, but maybe it was some other cause. One morning when I was leaving for work, there was a little smoke coming out of it.

Lightning doesn't usually hit the house, or its damage is really visible. It hits a tree outside and induces currents in a wire going into the house.

Lighning rods don't conduct the lightning to ground. They are so thin they'd melt. IIRC they conduct to ground the negagive charge that would build up at the top of the house, and the lightning isn't attracted to the house anymore. Something like that.

Reply to
mm
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My house is 20 yrs. old, and I'm tired of leaving parts of these 3 pronged cable plugs in my outlets, because I can't remove them without so much force. Living in the SE I have to unplug my computers, and video stuff *frequently*, and just today destroyed another $50 surge protector pulling it out of the wall.

Can anyone tell me what it would cost *roughly* to replace each box or whatever is required? Or even if that is going to help, and make these small appliances and data cables any easier to unplug? [That is, hiring a professional electrician to do it.] TIA as always...

Barbara

Reply to
chicagofan

snug fitting electrical receptacles are actually a good thing and you will find commercial grade receptacles of higher quality are generally "snugger" fitting. They will break in over time though. If the outlets look new and the only problem is the retention force, i'd keep them as is.

If you are powering off your equipment due to thunderstorm activity, consider hiring an electrician to install a lightning arrestor at your electrical panel. this will shunt a lightning strike to earth ground, protecting your household wiring. This combined with power strips of sufficient joule rating should help protect your sensitive electronic equipmetn from all but the worst direct lightning strikes.

h> My house is 20 yrs. old, and I'm tired of leaving parts of these 3

Reply to
Malto

You might try putting a little smear of "dielectric grease" on the prongs of those plugs so that it lubricates the inside of the female recepticals.

You can get that kind of grease at auto supply stores.

HTH,

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff Wisnia

In a home only 20 years old, you should not be having a problem. Of course you should expect that they used the cheapest outlets they could find. Replacing them with quality heavy duty outlets would be a good idea. The cost would be something like $2.50 plus labor for each outlet. The time should not be long for each outlet, but the cost per hour varies greatly from one area to another. You will need to ask for some estimates from local electricians. Count the number of outlets you need replaced (doing all of them might not be a bad idea) and then get on the phone.

Now about unplugging all these devices. With a proper modern wiring, it should not be necessary to unplug all those devices every time. I might suggest buying a few quality surge protectors and check out their warranty. Many include insurance for any equipment plugged into them so if the worse happens and the equipment is fried, you get a replacement.

Always remember to keep all your personal files backed up.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

I'd recommend getting it from an electrical supply, or you may wind up with wheel bearing grease

Reply to
RBM

In the last sixty years, I've unplugged many an AC cord, but I've yet to 'leave parts of the plug' in the outlet! I hope you mean by 'pulling it out of the wall', you aren't pulling on the AC cord itself? Rather than grasping the plug near the outlet and gently but firmly unplugging it?

Just wondering.

lee

Reply to
lee h

I was wondering about that also, I have never heard of anything breaking off in the outlet!

30 years ago lighting struck the building across the street from my office and destroyed one of the 9 computer monitors in my office. That is the only damage I have ever seen from lighting, despite never unplugging anything. I am wondering just why she is unplugging everything. (I expect it did a bit more damage in the building it hit; it is also the only lighting strike I have ever seen hit.)
Reply to
Toller

A whole-house surge protector is indicated. About $50.

It attaches to the distribution system at the circuit-breaker box.

Reply to
HeyBub

I am in SW Florida where we have flash/bang ligntning all the time (hit so close the flash and bang are together). I never unboplug anything.The only thing I have ever lost was my weather station and it "almost" worked. (RF was fine, wired connection failed) The lightning hit the air terminal on the post the wind speed indicator was on. I have PCs networked all over the house and one in the garage. The trick is good lightning protection and a good grounding system that everything connects to. You need protectors on everything coming in (Power, Phone and Cable). I also have point of use protection. The hole in my system was that wire from the wind sensor but the damage was still isolated to that one box. The PC it plugged into was fine. I now have that on a protector too.

Reply to
gfretwell

It sure does sound like the OP is pulling the cord and not the plug.

Reply to
Terry

Or simpler still, in the electrical department at Home Depot, Lowe's, Ace Hardware, etc. -- you're looking for "OxGard".

Reply to
Doug Miller
[snip]

I remember several cases of losing computer equipment during a thunderstorm. All of them were modems (connected to phoneline). That's ONE reason why I prefer external modems.

[snip]
Reply to
Mark Lloyd

The NIST has a guide on surges and surge protection at:

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to NIST guide, US insurance information indicates equipment most frequently damaged by lightning is computers with a modem connection TVs, VCRs and similar equipment (presumably with cable TV connections). All can be damaged by high voltages between power and signal wires.

One of the ways to protect against high voltage between signal an power is to have a *short* 'ground' wire from the phone, cable, ... entry protectors to the earthing wire at the power service. With any large surge current to earth, the building 'ground' will lift far above 'absolute' ground. You want the 'ground' for phone, cable, power to lift together.

When using a plug-in suppressor, all interconnected equipment needs to be connected to the same plug-in suppressor, or interconnecting wires need to go through the suppressor. External connections, like phone, also need to go through the suppressor. Connecting all wiring through the suppressor prevents damaging voltages between power and signal wires.

------------------- If the plug on a plug-in suppressor is damaged it can be replaced. The suppressor doesn't have to be junked.

Reply to
bud--

LOL... creeping senility is a problem, but that's one thing I haven't done. The prong of the left side of 2 plugs now, have been left in the wall outlet... pulling on the plug normally. bj

Reply to
chicagofan

Thanks to all of you who suggested this. I've made a note of this. Home Depot is nearby. bj

Reply to
chicagofan

I've lost 2 motherboards, 2 surge protectors and 2 VCRS, not at the same time.

Thanks for this...

I didn't know this, but I'd probably have to pay more to have it repaired than it's worth. Thanks for your reply. bj

Reply to
chicagofan

I was thinking about doing them all, based on the replies I got. :)

When my computers were fried, I looked into those warranties and they required me to ship them my computer to be fixed, which I couldn't do without. Since that time, I started unplugging it all when I was here.

I finally learned that lesson and bought an external hard drive for backup. :) Thanks so much for the estimate.

To Malto and HeyBub... I have considered the whole house surge protection, but when I looked into it with my power company... their service seemed to have so many exclusions, I wondered what it did cover.

If I knew a *reputable* electrician, I would do this. Is there an electrical society or something whose referrals mean something?

I'll keep asking around, and see if I can find someone who has had this done. Thanks so much for all the responses and advice everyone. bj

Reply to
chicagofan

We had two severe thunderstorms about 2 weeks apart. We lost a total of 3 motherboards. In the second incident, a new motherboard was taken out. That's convinced me to: 1) just buy a new computer than screw about with MB replacement; and 2) get UPS for each computer. The main risk to our machines is now just the network cable. If we go wireless, we should be safe from just about anything.

Reply to
John Gilmer

Hi,

I thought that a lightning rod system *would* conduct a lighting bolt to ground.

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I had a system installed on my house by these guys and the cables looked sort of chunky in size.
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Warmest regards, Mike.

Reply to
hobbes

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