A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced our
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three houses
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.Nothing survives a direct hit.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure.
On Thursday, September 30, 2021 at 2:43:17 PM UTC-4, Peter W. wrote:houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
cable was coiled up around the base. The news reported over 1100 strikes in my area, in under a half hour.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
I had one hit the marsh behind my home in the mid '90s. I was inside my shop that had no windows, but it lit up thee inside. It caused a battery powered thermometer to explode, and killed my SVGA monitor that wasn't connected to anything. The video
I had the WACX TV mobile production unit at a telethon for a place for disabled children. We had loaned it to a low power non profit TV station to cover a marathon. They had a large party tent at the finish line, in front of their building. They had aplatform for a camera operator, under it. He was about a foot away from one of the steel poles when lightning struck, out of a clear sky. It arced to his back, and knocked him down. It also caused every piece of equipment in the mobile unit to fail. It
The original WACX studio site was also hit. It took out the 1A2 phone system, the 11GHz CARS system that we used as a STL, along with the computer terminals. It fried all the LNAs on two dishes, along with some electrical damage. It also blew away partof the concrete wall of the building. It did major damage to the CATV system, as well but their manager loaned us a bucket truck to replace the LNAs even though their crew was working until dark to restore service.. The microwave link had to be returned
Another strike hit the barn. It caused the TV antenna to explode, and got into the phone line. It took out the SLIC at the street and continued on into town to the CO. That 10 miles of copper was destroyed. It damaged a stereo and destroyed a C bandsatellite receiver.
There is a reason people use plastic pipe from their wells into their homes, in Florida.
I had just moved into this house in 1999 when lightning hit a tree in the Florida Greenbelt. It split the tree, and abot the top third fell to the ground. That strike took out a brand new 56K modem.
Lightning happens. :(
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
On Thu, 30 Sep 2021 11:43:14 -0700 (PDT), "Peter W."houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
<peterwieck33@gmail.com> wrote:
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
Nothing survives a direct hit.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
KenW <ken1943@invalid.net> wrote:houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
On Thu, 30 Sep 2021 11:43:14 -0700 (PDT), "Peter W."
<peterwieck33@gmail.com> wrote:
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset. >>>d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
Nothing survives a direct hit.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
Stuff that is prepared for direct hits survives them just fine.
Of course it requires measures that are too expensive for the typical
(not highrise) house, but e.g. telecom towers often get hit several
times a year without any adverse effects.
On Fri, 01 Oct 2021 09:35:16 +0200, Rob <nomail@example.com> wrote:houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
KenW <ken1943@invalid.net> wrote:
On Thu, 30 Sep 2021 11:43:14 -0700 (PDT), "Peter W."
<peterwieck33@gmail.com> wrote:
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset. >>>>d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
Nothing survives a direct hit.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
Stuff that is prepared for direct hits survives them just fine.
Of course it requires measures that are too expensive for the typical
(not highrise) house, but e.g. telecom towers often get hit several
times a year without any adverse effects.
Most of us can not afford a faraday cage.
KenW
**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not even blink, however, there were consequences:houses in both directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown. Comcast replaced
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also checked and verified the grounds three
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
On Friday, October 1, 2021 at 12:04:48 AM UTC-4, Trevor Wilson wrote:
**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
It was, in 1999. Broadband didn't hit this area for another year or so. It was only 3 Gb/second when it did. Now, some parts of town offer 1Gb/second. on Fiber.
The kU band uplink that we built for the ISS in 2000, was 40Mb/second.
On 9/30/2021 2:43 PM, Peter W. wrote:
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by
lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not
even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by surge-protectors,
but we expect that the damage was via the cable input, not the
electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset.
d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a
surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an hour
at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs between the
pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors. They also
checked and verified the grounds three houses in both directions. Our
electrician spent two hours checking the box and load-testing, as well
as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found (and replaced) one
additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly related? - unknown.
Comcast replaced our modem and all our TV boxes the following morning,
and Amazon supplied us with two new 'smart' televisions and phones
for very nearly pocket-change, also by the following day.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than
our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it was
built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
As I understand, surge protectors are useless
I had just moved into this house in 1999 when lightning hit a tree in the Florida Greenbelt.
It split the tree, and abot the top third fell to the ground.
That strike took out a brand new 56K modem.
Lightning happens. :(
**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
On 10/1/2021 11:57 AM, Michael Terrell wrote:
On Friday, October 1, 2021 at 12:04:48 AM UTC-4, Trevor Wilson wrote:
**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
It was, in 1999. Broadband didn't hit this area for another year or so. It was only 3 Gb/second when it did. Now, some parts of town offer 1Gb/second. on Fiber.
I assume you mean 3 Mb/s broadband. That's what I have via AT&T DSL
now. The download isn't so bad.. the trouble is the 384K upload.
On 10/1/2021 11:57 AM, Michael Terrell wrote:
On Friday, October 1, 2021 at 12:04:48 AM UTC-4, Trevor Wilson wrote:
**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
It was, in 1999. Broadband didn't hit this area for another year or so. It was only 3 Mb/second when it did. Now, some parts of town offer 1Gb/second. on Fiber.I assume you mean 3 Mb/s broadband. That's what I have via AT&T DSL
now. The download isn't so bad.. the trouble is the 384K upload.
On 2/10/2021 10:54 am, Michael Trew wrote:
On 9/30/2021 2:43 PM, Peter W. wrote:
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by
lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not
even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by
surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable
input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset. >>> d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a
surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an
hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs
between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors.
They also checked and verified the grounds three houses in both
directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and
load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found
(and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly
related? - unknown. Comcast replaced our modem and all our TV boxes
the following morning, and Amazon supplied us with two new 'smart'
televisions and phones for very nearly pocket-change, also by the
following day.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than
our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it
was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
As I understand, surge protectors are useless
**There. I fixed it for you.
Michael Trew<michael.trew@att.net> wrote:
On 10/1/2021 11:57 AM, Michael Terrell wrote:
On Friday, October 1, 2021 at 12:04:48 AM UTC-4, Trevor Wilson wrote:
**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
It was, in 1999. Broadband didn't hit this area for another year or so. It was only 3 Gb/second when it did. Now, some parts of town offer 1Gb/second. on Fiber.
I assume you mean 3 Mb/s broadband. That's what I have via AT&T DSL
now. The download isn't so bad.. the trouble is the 384K upload.
Is that a posting from the previous decade that leaked in somehow?
My DSL is 170Mbps download, 30Mbps upload, and that is considered "slow" here...
Well, they are useful for connecting multiple appliances to one outlet. :)
Well, they are useful for connecting multiple appliances to one outlet. :)And they protected the plasma TV and two quite nice audio systems without incident. The one on the TV has (had) an indicator stating that it must be replaced visible after the strike. Yes, it has been replaced.
On 10/2/2021 7:23 AM, Rob wrote:
Comcast offers up to gigabit service in my area, but I don't care to pay
for it. I haven't canceled the DSL because AT&T has grandfathered it..
if I shut it down, I can't ever get it back, and I have a good deal. Streaming on one device works OK, and you certainly don't need any
faster for e-mail or Usenet, unless uploading large attachments.
Trevor Wilson wrote:
=================
I had just moved into this house in 1999 when lightning hit a tree in the Florida Greenbelt.**Wow! 56k. So fast. :-)
It split the tree, and abot the top third fell to the ground.
That strike took out a brand new 56K modem.
Lightning happens. :(
** I well remember when 56K modems were the " ant's pants".
Slow jpegs, no video but OK for email & browsing text sites.
Quite astonishing they did that speed using nothing but one POTS voice circuit down miles of twisted pair.
On Saturday, October 2, 2021 at 11:17:32 AM UTC-4, Michael Trew wrote:replaced. Instead, it was just removed so the line is completely useless. No broadband, after I had an open neutral on my electric service, so I had to go to Hughesnet for a barely usable connection. It is on kA band, at 55 GHz and it has severe rain
On 10/2/2021 7:23 AM, Rob wrote:
Comcast offers up to gigabit service in my area, but I don't care to pay
for it. I haven't canceled the DSL because AT&T has grandfathered it..
if I shut it down, I can't ever get it back, and I have a good deal.
Streaming on one device works OK, and you certainly don't need any
faster for e-mail or Usenet, unless uploading large attachments.
The underground phone lines around here are almost 60 years old, and so bad that I can't even get usable landline phone service. That was prior to Hurricane Irma. A pedestal at the end of my street was smashed by a broken power pole, and it wasn't
Comcast offers up to gigabit service in my area, but I don't care to pay
for it.
I haven't canceled the DSL because AT&T has grandfathered it..
if I shut it down, I can't ever get it back, and I have a good deal. >Streaming on one device works OK, and you certainly don't need any
faster for e-mail or Usenet, unless uploading large attachments.
On 10/2/2021 2:49 PM, Michael Terrell wrote:replaced. Instead, it was just removed so the line is completely useless. No broadband, after I had an open neutral on my electric service, so I had to go to Hughesnet for a barely usable connection. It is on kA band, at 55 GHz and it has severe rain
On Saturday, October 2, 2021 at 11:17:32 AM UTC-4, Michael Trew wrote:
On 10/2/2021 7:23 AM, Rob wrote:
Comcast offers up to gigabit service in my area, but I don't care to pay >> for it. I haven't canceled the DSL because AT&T has grandfathered it..
if I shut it down, I can't ever get it back, and I have a good deal.
Streaming on one device works OK, and you certainly don't need any
faster for e-mail or Usenet, unless uploading large attachments.
The underground phone lines around here are almost 60 years old, and so bad that I can't even get usable landline phone service. That was prior to Hurricane Irma. A pedestal at the end of my street was smashed by a broken power pole, and it wasn't
Our lines are even older, but they are overhead. It took the tech
forever to find a good pair, but I have no issues or noise on the line.
I also have a new drop into my house, and all new from the demarc inside.
On Sat, 02 Oct 2021 11:17:33 -0400, Michael Trew
<michael.trew@att.net> wrote:
Comcast offers up to gigabit service in my area, but I don't care to pay
for it.
If you're on SSI or some form of public assistance, and haven't had Comcast/Xfinity service for 9 months, this might be of interest: <https://www.internetessentials.com>
I haven't canceled the DSL because AT&T has grandfathered it..
if I shut it down, I can't ever get it back, and I have a good deal.
Streaming on one device works OK, and you certainly don't need any
faster for e-mail or Usenet, unless uploading large attachments.
I was on Cruzio 1.5Mbit/sec ADSL since 1999. They used AT&T lines.
Last year, AT&T shut down all the "legacy DSL" accounts and
sub-contracts, which included me. Cruzio had nothing that they could
sell me.
POTS home phone will shortly be the last to go after I switch to VoIP
and/or cellular. I haven't heard of AT&T "grandfathering" legacy
ADSL. In my case, it wasn't an option.
In my experience, Netlfix and YouTube were useable at 1.5MBits/sec.
Most of the other streaming services and channels were useless. VoIP
(one line) was fine, but rather redundant because my ADSL line was
attached to my POTS home phone line.
I was on Cruzio 1.5Mbit/sec ADSL since 1999. They used AT&T lines.
Last year, AT&T shut down all the "legacy DSL" accounts and
sub-contracts, which included me. Cruzio had nothing that they could
sell me.
What region is this? I've heard several people tell me, especially out
west, that AT&T simply shut down the old ADSL out there, and resellers
and all couldn't sell it. I live in Ohio, former Ameritech region.
POTS home phone will shortly be the last to go after I switch to VoIP
and/or cellular. I haven't heard of AT&T "grandfathering" legacy
ADSL. In my case, it wasn't an option.
I like my POTS line.. if it ever become unreliable, or the price keeps >creeping up to an unreasonable level, I'll probably drop it.
See my post linked here when I got the bill notice; several other people >noticed this as a company-wide decision. I'm still using it at the
moment.. as I was told, I can't move, change speed, etc.. but it still
works as of now.
https://www.dslreports.com/forum/r32848850-DSL-is-officially-grandfathered-Get-orders-in-BEFORE-October
In my experience, Netlfix and YouTube were useable at 1.5MBits/sec.
Most of the other streaming services and channels were useless. VoIP
(one line) was fine, but rather redundant because my ADSL line was
attached to my POTS home phone line.
"Real speed" is about 2 down on any given test. It seems to work OK on
one device, streaming, browsing on one or two others. I doubt it could
do much more.
I also like POTS phone lines, mostly because they're far more reliable
than anything that goes via the internet or cellular data. However,
my latest AT&T POTS bill was $41.25 for flat rate, no long distance. I originate or receive perhaps 50 fairly short, non-telemarketting,
phone calls per month making my cost about $0.80 per valid call.
Meanwhile, I'm also paying $75/year for my former office VoIP phone
from:
<https://www.future-nine.com/plans.html> (Bare Essentials plan)
with 2000 incoming minutes and 250 outgoing minutes included. That's
a net savings of about $420/year. I can also switch to all cellular
(cutting the cord) for which I alread pay $28/month.
I also like POTS phone lines, mostly because they're far more reliable
than anything that goes via the internet or cellular data. However,
my latest AT&T POTS bill was $41.25 for flat rate, no long distance. I originate or receive perhaps 50 fairly short, non-telemarketting,
phone calls per month making my cost about $0.80 per valid call.
On 2/10/2021 10:54 am, Michael Trew wrote:
On 9/30/2021 2:43 PM, Peter W. wrote:
A week ago, today (Thursday), our house was struck directly by
lightning right about noontime. interesting that the lights did not
even blink, however, there were consequences:
a) We lost our cable-modem and all three TV boxes.
b) We lost two older televisions - both protected by
surge-protectors, but we expect that the damage was via the cable
input, not the electrical input.
c) We lost four (4) local GFI receptacles - popped, but would not reset. >>> d) We lost all our Panasonic wireless phones - base and satellites.
e) We lost the (Dell) computer power-supply brick - on a
surge-protected UPS, go figure. But not the computer, or the printer.
Our Utility (PECO) visited the following day, and spent nearly an
hour at our house, checking the pole-pig, and remaking the bugs
between the pig and the house for us and for our nearest neighbors.
They also checked and verified the grounds three houses in both
directions. Our electrician spent two hours checking the box and
load-testing, as well as replacing the damaged GFI devices. He found
(and replaced) one additional receptacle with a bad ground. Directly
related? - unknown. Comcast replaced our modem and all our TV boxes
the following morning, and Amazon supplied us with two new 'smart'
televisions and phones for very nearly pocket-change, also by the
following day.
All-in, the "spend" was well under US$1,000, considerably less than
our insurance deductible. And no damage to the house at all. As it
was built in 1890, I suspect that it has survived far worse.
Stuff happens.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
As I understand, surge protectors are useless
**There. I fixed it for you.
On Sat, 02 Oct 2021 11:17:33 -0400, Michael Trew
<michael.trew@att.net> wrote:
Comcast offers up to gigabit service in my area, but I don't care to pay
for it.
If you're on SSI or some form of public assistance, and haven't had Comcast/Xfinity service for 9 months, this might be of interest: <https://www.internetessentials.com>
I haven't canceled the DSL because AT&T has grandfathered it..
if I shut it down, I can't ever get it back, and I have a good deal.
Streaming on one device works OK, and you certainly don't need any
faster for e-mail or Usenet, unless uploading large attachments.
I was on Cruzio 1.5Mbit/sec ADSL since 1999. They used AT&T lines.
Last year, AT&T shut down all the "legacy DSL" accounts and
sub-contracts, which included me. Cruzio had nothing that they could
sell me. The available options were Comcast, AT&T U-Verse, Comcast,
WISP wireless, licensed wireless (Etheric), satellite (Dish/Viasat, HughesNet), or 4G cellular, in order of increasing cost. I would have
gone with Startlink except that I live in a thick forest that blocks
the signal from the satellites. Since then, I've been changing
internet and phone service for my customers and I away from AT&T. My
POTS home phone will shortly be the last to go after I switch to VoIP
and/or cellular. I haven't heard of AT&T "grandfathering" legacy
ADSL. In my case, it wasn't an option. However, not to worry. AT&T
will improve after China takes over: <http://www.learnbydestroying.com/jeffl/pics/drivel/Comrade-Ma-Bell-01.jpg>
In my experience, Netlfix and YouTube were useable at 1.5MBits/sec.
Most of the other streaming services and channels were useless. VoIP
(one line) was fine, but rather redundant because my ADSL line was
attached to my POTS home phone line. I considered this acceptable
because I did most of my work in my former palatial office, where I
had 20Mbit/sec Comcast business class. However, I closed the office
Nov 2020 and now need more speed at home.
Interestingly, we had wildfires and power outages in the area since
the beginning of last summer. Comcast has backup batteries in their
pole mounted amplifiers which typically only ran for 2 hrs. AT&T had
their own power systems at the central offices, branch offices, and
some ADSL/PairGain/IDSN/T1/etc pedestals. Those would last much
longer. Since PG&E couldn't supply charger power to the Comcast
amplifiers, and since Comcast was providing lifeline telephone service
which required a proper backup, various government agencies threatened
to investigate. During the last two outages (allegedly caused by
squirrels) Comcast stayed up for 5 and 8 hours respectively.
Obviously, something was done to improved the situation, but nobody is providing useful info from either Comcast or PG&E.
Well, they are useful for connecting multiple appliances to one outlet. :)
And they protected the plasma TV and two quite nice audio systems without incident. The one on the TV has (had) an indicator stating that it must be replaced visible after the strike. Yes, it has been replaced.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
What make and model were they Peter?,
I don't know if or when it will be provided in your area, but the Cruzio >fiber is great, both speed and latency.
On Wed, 13 Oct 2021 17:56:58 -0700, Mike S <mscir@yahoo.com> wrote:
I don't know if or when it will be provided in your area, but the Cruzio
fiber is great, both speed and latency.
I could only dream. I have friends and customers that have Cruzio
fiber or wireless. They love it. I've talked to them about the
possibility. Cruzio seems to be concentrating on high density and
urban areas, where the number of users per mile of fiber is much
higher than in the semi-rural areas of SLV (San Lorenzo Valley). In
the FAQ, it proclaims:
<https://santacruzfiber.com/faq>
What Neighborhood will get built first?
High rates of signups will move neighborhoods up in priority.
Other factors will matter, too, including how close a
neighborhood is to the fiber hub, and how many barriers are
in the way. The best way to get your neighborhood ahead in
priority is to get lots of people to tell us they’re interested.
That's unlikely to happen in SLV. Even in the denser areas near SCZ,
fiber service is spotty:
<https://santacruzfiber.com/blog/rollout-progress>
I don't have a current map showing areas covered, but currently it's
downtown SCZ, Scotts Valley, several trailer parks in Live Oak, and Watsonville:
<https://santacruzfiber.com/watsonville>
I probably missed a few areas, but currently nothing in SLV (Felton,
Ben Lomond, and Boulder Creek).
What make and model were they Peter?,
Cyberpower is the make. The unit in place was from 2009, we replaced it with a more recent model, of course.
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
One more thing: Every single string-filament LED in the house got fried - those that were in the chandeliers, not the spares, that is. As we found out yesterday when the kids and grands were over for dinner. No small thing, as there are 26 in thedining room, 16 in the center-hall, and 12 in the library.
They look like this - in various wattages: https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/7175z+CxhXL._AC_SL1420_.jpg
How, I do not know, unless the strike came down the neutral as well as the cable - not impossible. They were all turned off, of course.
Induction perhaps? Those LED "filaments" form a 1 turn loop of 60
LED's in series. A lightning strike nearby could create enough of a
field to blow out the bulbs.
Induction perhaps? Those LED "filaments" form a 1 turn loop of 60
LED's in series. A lightning strike nearby could create enough of a
field to blow out the bulbs.
I would agree with this, but for the fact that the failure modes were not uniform.
Some began blinking at turn-on.
Two cracked the glass envelope - neatly at the base.
Some just never lit.
Some got intermittent dark spots on the filaments.
My best guess is that there is some sort of driver element(s) in the base that were affected.... When I am back on my feet, reliably, I will slit one with the Dremel and see what gives.
Peter Wieck--
Melrose Park, PA
On Mon, 25 Oct 2021 10:53:28 -0700 (PDT), "Peter W."
<peterwieck33@gmail.com> wrote:
Induction perhaps? Those LED "filaments" form a 1 turn loop of 60
LED's in series. A lightning strike nearby could create enough of a
field to blow out the bulbs.
I would agree with this, but for the fact that the failure modes were not uniform.
LED's and diodes usually fail by shorting out. Once one diode is
shorted, the current increases causing the next diode in the string to
short. This continues until the current is high enough the blow up a
thin wire or trace, usually in the base. If you have a microscope
handy, you can possibly visually distinguish between the good and
shorted diodes.
Some began blinking at turn-on.
Current regulator device or circuit might be oscillating. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LED_filament>
"The simple capacitive or resistive dropper power supply used by some
cheaper bulbs will cause some flickering..."
Two cracked the glass envelope - neatly at the base.
The glass envelope is sealed. Sudden rise in internal gas pressure
might cause the envelope to explode.
Some just never lit.
Simulated a fuse?
Some got intermittent dark spots on the filaments.
I have some bad guesses for what caused that. Maybe later.
My best guess is that there is some sort of driver element(s) in the base that were affected.... When I am back on my feet, reliably, I will slit one with the Dremel and see what gives.
Autopsy. Some design details here: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LED_filament#Design> <https://patents.google.com/patent/US8400051>
Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA
Interesting discussion, I'm looking fwd to followups. I looked around
online a little but and nobody I read seemed to think a lightning
arrestor on the neutral would be of any use, but I don't know myself,
here to learn.
On Mon, 25 Oct 2021 21:09:21 -0700, Mike S <mscir@yahoo.com> wrote:In my first home an arrestor ? was installed in the electric panel
Interesting discussion, I'm looking fwd to followups. I looked around >>online a little but and nobody I read seemed to think a lightning
arrestor on the neutral would be of any use, but I don't know myself,
here to learn.
Where would you ground or connect such a lightning arrestor? The
neutral (white) wire is always connected to earth (green) ground at
the main electrical panel. Installing a lightning arrestor across
ground to ground is not going to do anything useful.
More than you probably wanted to know on electrical grounding: ><https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_and_neutral>
On Mon, 25 Oct 2021 21:09:21 -0700, Mike S <mscir@yahoo.com> wrote:
Interesting discussion, I'm looking fwd to followups. I looked around
online a little but and nobody I read seemed to think a lightning
arrestor on the neutral would be of any use, but I don't know myself,
here to learn.
Where would you ground or connect such a lightning arrestor? The
neutral (white) wire is always connected to earth (green) ground at
the main electrical panel. Installing a lightning arrestor across
ground to ground is not going to do anything useful.
More than you probably wanted to know on electrical grounding: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_and_neutral>
On 10/25/2021 9:53 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
On Mon, 25 Oct 2021 21:09:21 -0700, Mike S <mscir@yahoo.com> wrote:
Interesting discussion, I'm looking fwd to followups. I looked around
online a little but and nobody I read seemed to think a lightning
arrestor on the neutral would be of any use, but I don't know myself,
here to learn.
Where would you ground or connect such a lightning arrestor? The
neutral (white) wire is always connected to earth (green) ground at
the main electrical panel. Installing a lightning arrestor across
ground to ground is not going to do anything useful.
More than you probably wanted to know on electrical grounding:
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_and_neutral>
Thanks, that was a good read, I never knew the "difference".
This was interesting,
"The current drawn by non-linear loads, such as fluorescent & HID
lighting and electronic equipment containing switching power supplies,
often contains harmonics. Triplen harmonic currents (odd multiples of
the third harmonic) are additive, resulting in more current in the
shared neutral conductor than in any of the phase conductors. In the
absolute worst case, the current in the shared neutral conductor can be triple that in each phase conductor."
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