 | Scott Blythe is the Owner/Operator of PHONEGUY Inc. of Pittsburg KS. Scott is a lifetime resident of SE Kansas, graduating from Frontenac High School, and attended PSU Vo Tech in Electronics. Scott has 34 years of experience in installing and maintaining hundreds of business telephone systems. For more information or to reach Scott please call 620-249-2759. |
Phone Systems
2013-04-29 15:13:00
Business phone systems & lightning
Q-What can I do to protect my business phone system from lightning during the upcoming spring storm season?
A-To be clear, I am not an electrician. However, I have had 35 years of experience installing and working with power in the Telephone industry. Here are some measures you can take now to help avoid damage to your equipment.
Let’s start outside your home or business, at your service provider’s Network Interface Device (N.I.D.), or protector. A quick visual inspection will tell you all you need to know here. This box will have surge protectors inside. If the box is properly grounded, it will provide some protection. Look for the ground wire leaving the N.I.D. It may be inside a plastic conduit, usually down to a ground rod, or it can be run exposed to your power meter. If it is not visible, or not attached at either end, call and have them check it.
Now let’s go inside to the spot your Phone System is located. This should be a climate controlled area, free of excess moisture and dust. Your equipment should not be attached directly to structural steel, or any conductive material. Ideally, your equipment should be mounted on a piece of 3/4" plywood, with spacers behind so the board is not in direct contact with the wall. Do not wrap the spare power cord into a tight circle, or leave it folded back and forth like the manufacturer ships it. The power cord should not be fastened to the mounting board at all. Let it hang loose and as straight as possible. The outlet used for your communications equipment should be a home run. Nothing else should be on this circuit. Check the outlet, make sure it is grounded. Do not use a three prong adapter, or an extension cord. In the case of the next two items, you get what your pay for, so be picky.
U.L. (Underwriters Laboratory. means quality electrical component.) - You need a quality surge protector plugged into the outlet. This should act as a fuse, and in the event of lightning, it will blow first to avoid damage to your equipment. Then plug your UPS (Uninterrupted Power Source battery backup for power failure) into the surge protector. The UPS will do two jobs for you. First, it will allow your phones to keep working through a complete power outage,(size matters) and second, it will filter the power provided to your equipment, so you avoid some of the issues with power spikes and brown outs. Now plug your phone system into the UPS, making sure to use the side that says "protected". Lastly, make sure your phone system has a chassis ground that meets the manufacturer’s specifications for wire size and distance. When in doubt, have a qualified professional check it for you. Enjoy spring, it will be hot before you know it.
