Rlc-1040

[BWLover]

Hi there. If my power conditioner is powered off, is the connected equipment still protected from surges/lightning strikes?


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[wkhanna]

no.
only cuz power conditioners will not prevent damage due to V high voltage spikes typical of lightning strikes.

they may help with lower level surges & narrow band regulation.

the only sure way to protect your equipment is to unplug it.

[BWLover]

no.
only cuz power conditioners will not prevent damage due to V high voltage spikes typical of lightning strikes.

they may help with lower level surges & narrow band regulation.

the only sure way to protect your equipment is to unplug it.

Fair enough. Will it do what it can in terms of surges when it is off? Or is the protection it is capable of only available when it's powered on?


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[wkhanna]

to the best of my knowledge, it should 'work', or as you put it, "do what it can" regardless of whether is powered on or not.

[srb]

While few component surge protectors can protect against direct lightning strikes, the Rotel RLC-1040 (and the APC H15 on which it is based) will protect against lightning strikes up to its rated capacity of 5200 Joules / 250kA peak current.

It is expected that any telephone or cable systems that are connected to the RLC-1040 will have a proper system ground.

Steve

[BWLover]

While few component surge protectors can protect against direct lightning strikes, the Rotel RLC-1040 (and the APC H15 on which it is based) will protect against lightning strikes up to its rated capacity of 5200 Joules / 250kA peak current.

It is expected that any telephone or cable systems that are connected to the RLC-1040 will have a proper system ground.

Steve

Right. I was wondering if this protection is still available when the unit is powered off.


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[wkhanna]

the protection circuitry is in place & functioning regardless of the 'on' - 'off' condition of the power switch.

[srb]

the protection circuitry is in place & functioning regardless of the 'on' - 'off' condition of the power switch.

I think that's true, the MOV surge protection devices used in the RLC-1040 are passive devices normally in parallel with the receptacles.

Even with other surge technologies, conditioner/surge components like the RLC-1040 are often used to power up and down a complete system often with sequenced delay power-up settings, and it wouldn't make sense that surge protection was disabled when it was used as a master control to power the system down.

Unfortunately, MOVs degrade with successive accumulative surges, and while some conditioners and surge protectors purport to be able to monitor the condition and effectiveness of the MOVs, the RLC-1040 has no such monitoring ability so depending on the number and severity of accumulated surges, it's kind of a question mark if will still provide adequate surge protection.

Steve

[BWLover]

Rlc-1040

I think that's true, the MOV surge protection devices used in the RLC-1040 are passive devices normally in parallel with the receptacles.

Even with other surge technologies, conditioner/surge components like the RLC-1040 are often used to power up and down a complete system often with sequenced delay power-up settings, and it wouldn't make sense that surge protection was disabled when it was used as a master control to power the system down.

Unfortunately, MOVs degrade with successive accumulative surges, and while some conditioners and surge protectors purport to be able to monitor the condition and effectiveness of the MOVs, the RLC-1040 has no such monitoring ability so depending on the number and severity of accumulated surges, it's kind of a question mark if will still provide adequate surge protection.

Steve

Is there any way of knowing if the MOV needs replacement? Such as getting it serviced or something?


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[srb]

Is there any way of knowing if the MOV needs replacement? Such as getting it serviced or something?

I'm pretty sure the MOVs have to be removed from the circuit and the test procedure isn't simple (which also makes me question the efficacy of surge protectors with MOV monitoring LEDs), so from a labor standpoint replacement is the usual course of action. I have no idea if Rotel performs this replacement or if so, what it would cost.

My RLC-1040 is old enough that the MOVs certainly could be spent and I have no way of knowing how many surges at what level of intensity they've absorbed. The 5200 Joule rating being accumulative could encompass anywhere from 5200 1-Joule surges to 52 100-Joule surges to a single 5200-Joule surge.

That's why non-destructive supressors like the SurgeX series mode are a preferable surge supression technology.

Steve