While I was finishing a cup of morning coffee and watching the news a few weeks ago, the room lights brightened suddenly to
twice normal. At the same time the cable-TV converter box barked out a loud "SNAP," flashed brightly, and sent smoke signals
my way as if to say, "Help me!" in a metallic voice. The TV screen turned blue and then faded to black as the room lights
dimmed to nothing. After turning off the power switch on the surge suppressor connected to the TV and converter box, and making
sure there was not a fire, I ran upstairs to check on the computers. I glanced at the fire extinguisher on the landing at
the top of the stairs and hoped I would not need to use it. Meanwhile, the lights came back on. The computer screens — my
wife Beth and I both have our own desktops — were normal save for small messages from the attached interruptible power supplies
(UPS) that reported a power "incident." I feared a repeat occurrence, so I shut down the computers and unplugged everything
from the wall sockets. Then Beth called me into another room where she smelled smoke. The surge suppressor in there was blackened
around its sockets and actually had scorched the carpet. I unplugged it and then went around the rest of the house looking
for more burnt-out items and unplugged whatever I found, running or not. I went into the garage to check the electrical breaker
panel. One breaker had tripped, but when I threw it to the on position, the garage door opener emitted a loud humming noise
and signaled displeasure by turning on its light — not normal — so I flipped the breaker off again, climbed up a ladder, and
disconnected the unfortunate opener. I found that the kitchen microwave oven was in good shape as I reheated my now cold cup
of coffee and began to compose a mental list of damaged household electrics that we would report to the insurance company.
While many LCGC readers work in large companies that effectively take care of the issues of electrical fault protection and data stewardship,
there are many who might not have an effective plan, or perhaps do not believe that implementing one is cost effective. My
home electronics situation is not a workplace, but there are some lessons here that can be applied to the needs of chromatographers
who want to conserve their data and their equipment in a working environment.
Laboratory Power
After the surge had subsided, I waited for what seemed like a reasonable time and, finding no further power instability, I
plugged in and restarted the various electrics around my home. Beth said she would call the power company and our insurance,
so I headed in to work. I wondered if a surge had hit there as well, and I tried to picture how the various pieces of laboratory
equipment and office computers were connected. Was there a surge suppressor on that computer? What would happen if the gas
chromatographs were hit with 1000 V?
As I paused at the stoplights on the way to work, I glanced up at the electrical power poles on the street and observed the
two sets of wires. On the top, three high-voltage lines — charged to several thousand volts, at the least — were positioned
over some apparently lower-voltage lines, and canister step-down transformers hung precariously on a few widely spaced poles.
The lower lines were connected to cables that led into buildings along the way. I had heard stories about automotive accidents
or storms that caused high-voltage lines to drop across a transformer or onto the lower voltage lines. Suddenly, this seemed
like a real possibility, and it worried me that every day there was some chance that a large voltage surge, fluctuation, or
blackout would come my way again.
A quick word about lightning strikes is in order here. No point-of-service consumer surge protector will keep attached equipment
from harm if lightning scores a direct hit on power lines at the street or building level. Dedicated equipment expressly for
this purpose should be installed by professionals if lightning strikes are a concern. It is said that lightning never strikes
twice in the same place, and in Oregon, where I live, it hardly strikes at all. But the chances of encountering another power
problem loomed large in my mind.
![[Get Copyright Permissions]](http://license.icopyright.net/images/icopy-w.gif){kind=small}
