The last 20 years of Home Power Have Been Amazing

Here’s a story. Neighbor here in the lowcountry had lightning hit tree then it went to his gutters, then to internal supporting bolts in footers, then to random outlets zapping his dryer, washer, and two tv’s. Would these upgraded outlets you mentioned prevented this? Any solution other than multiple surge protectors?

@jpwarren58 - Neither the GFCI nor CAFCI breakers help with electrical surges. The first reduces fatalities from electric shocks especially around wet areas, while CAFCI reduces fires which may start in a wall. While the statistical evidence of reduced deaths and structure fires is clear no one sells them as lightning or surge devices. Protecting your appliances and home wiring from lightning and power line surges however is what a whole house surge protector should do.

Now, as far as whole house surge protectors, yes, protecting appliances from power surges is what they should do. Keep in mind that no protection is perfect, but we often look to the worst case scenarios to prove something doesn’t work. Like seat belts. Any first responder working through the 1990s will tell you the mandatory seat belt laws meant they were rescuing more accident victims and picking up fewer bodies than they used to. Traffic fatalities have dropped about 50% since states started adopting mandatory seat belt requirements, but it's also true that traffic fatalities do occur.  The question I ask people is whether you know when you are going to get into a car accident or not.  If you do, then sure, don't wear a seat belt until you know you are going to be in an accident.  Otherwise put it on at all times. 

I also happen to live in the SC lowcountry and a whole house unit was the first thing I installed here, but they do have their limitations. All whole house units have relatively high let-through voltages. I wrote about the technical differences at length here. To make a long story short, your most delicate devices may still need a good surge protector. I lost a MacBook Air I left charging overnight through a thunderstorm, forgot all about it, but the multiple PC’s and electronics I have on surge strips didn’t even notice.

I also have about 50 devices which are permanently connected which I can’t surge protect. ~ 20 automated light switches, 4 HVAC units, 7 major kitchen appliances, the hot water heater, fire alarms, etc. Also, many of these devices have become more delicate. Mechanical timers have given way to computerized circuits throughout the kitchen and laundry area.

Hi @erik_squires

I’m in Missouri and have never heard of needing whole house anything and I can use a 29cent receptacle anywhere except for within 6’ of water. I just had a couple of rooms added to the house and I had to get a 100amp sub panel. The only thing I noticed that was different was that the buttons on the 110 outlets were both white instead of (red and black)in the new laundry room. I also had to rebuild a bathroom ( no fun at all!) and I was required to use the same 110 plug with the white buttons.

@carlsbad2 

While diaphragm gas meters are commonplace, your gas company should be actively looking to replace them as smart meters provide remote billing and can detect leaks. Kind of a thing nowadays ensure a house doesn't blow up!

There is evidence that home gas explosions are on the rise and gas utility companies are held responsible for leaks that cause those explosions. And, of course, insurance companies pay for those damages so gas companies are on the hook to fix their own issues; not the homeowner. If explosions are up, insurance companies know it, and unless the gas utility upgrades their meters, their insurance premiums will go up, forcing change.

Your gas company should be actively looking to replace those meters and would be required to install it 3 feet or more away from the electrical meter to meet today's code requirements. 

While my house was built in 2011, our natural gas company just last week sent us a notice that they will replace the diaphragm meters this year; and ours in particular in just a couple of weeks. 

You should have a grandfather clause on your meter location and while it may not be up to code at this time, they cannot (IMHO) force a homeowner to fix a code issue, especially when the utility must be the one to do the work. It is their network; their risk. 

If I had the issue you have, I would call the gas company and tell them you sometimes smell gas outside your home and would like it checked out. That should get the ball rolling quite quickly to have your meter replaced.

@goodlistening64 The gas company is quite aware of it. they are grandfathered. Nothing needs to change until you try to pull a permit to work on either the gas meter or the electrical panel. then CA makes you bring your installation up to code. While there may be a slight risk to having them right beside each other, it is tiny compared to the risk of the FPE breakers staying installed for who knows how long.

And the gas company has replaced the gas meter, the electric company has replaced the electric meter.  No indication of any interest in moving either of them.  they are grandfathered.

Jerry

Don’t get me going in 50$ arc fault breakers and their failure rate. Complete bs. They cause more problems than their supposed safety value.