Can you plug a microwave, refrigerator, gas range, and air conditioner into a surge protector?

[lancer420]

I apologize if this question doesn't belong here, but i don't use social media sites like Facebook and Reddit, so I'm asking it here. the title says it all, can i plug those things into a surge protector. And when i say this, i don't mean connect all four of them to the same surge protector, I just wanna make sure i can do it. And keep in mind that i said a surge protector, not a power strip, there is a difference. What do you guys think? Thanks!

 

[Doctor Rob]

yes and no.. you can get a whole home surge protector that would connect in the power box.

 

[Paperdoc]

The microwave, refrigerator and air conditioner all use a fair amount of power and, more importantly, can each pull a heavy current briefly while starting up. Check very carefully what the data plates on each of those say about their typical operating current, and MAYBE (not likely there) the max current for starting. Then compare that to the specs of any surge protector you propose to use.

 

[InvalidError]

Refrigerators usually often have their own dedicated circuit simply because you don't want your fridge breaker tripping while you aren't there since that means losing food and possibly getting food poisoning if you decide to take your chances with keeping something and lose that bet.

Most basic surge protectors are little more than a regular power bar with some MOVs across live and neutral, no real difference as far as what they can or cannot be used for is concerned.

 

[Doctor Rob]

I would check your fuse panel and see what kind you have. they have universal AND ones directly made for them normally. I have a Square D QO panel and they make ones for it you plug into an free spot (normally the first circuit) they also have ones (I have 2 panels) like I have in one that does not use a slot or two in the panel that work great. THEY ONLY protect against EXTERNAL surges. SO if you were to get an surge from something inside the house it more likely will not help.

one that i have is like this one.. though its an older version https://www.amazon.com/Square-Schneider-Electric-HEPD80-Electronics/dp/B00CONA1OQ/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1524196252&sr=8-7&keywords=whole+house+surge+protection


I still use point of usage surge for every thing in my house for extra safety EXCEPT the stove being that is 220V. and all my stuff is on different circuits when referring to the different appliances you mentioned. and I have ground fult on just about everything AND (on some I have switched over to arc fault as well)

 

[Doctor Rob]

OH FYI IF you don't understand power stuff like the power panel I would really advise you to get help from a pro as it is VERY dangerous to install yourself if you don't understand power.. not just that you could zap yourself dead.. but if you were to install a new whole house surge protector in the panel and put the wires on the wrong stuff you could start a fire and ALWAYS when doing something like this turn the main breaker off first and remember the wires going into it are STILL LIVE. the main breaker just turns off the power to the other breakers in the box or darn should! if your stuff is working properly.

 

[USAFRet]

Read the user manual, and the NEC. Some devices specifically say no.
The fridge being one. In a normal house, the fridge connection is a single circuit back to the main panel.

Having said that, my garage freezer is indeed plugged into a Tripplite surge protector. A large one, capable of running an entire server rack.

Even some laser printers say no, due to a high initial power draw. Unless you have an absurdly large surge protector for that device only, it might trip.


Why are you asking?

 

[InvalidError]

Even some laser printers say no, due to a high initial power draw.

For modern consumer and most low-volume laser printers, this hasn't been true in over 10 years. While laser printers used to have high power ceramic heaters (fusors) to melt toner into the paper which could take minutes to warm up before the first page print and could cause lights to flicker from their power draw, modern printers use a thin heating wire which warms up in seconds using a fraction as much power. My laserjet's label says 345W max, actual power is likely much less.

I remember people cursing a lot when their printers' fusors burnt up due to people setting their printers to keep them always on so they wouldn't have to wait for them warm back up between print jobs. With modern consumer laser printer, the heater wire is often a consumable built into the toner cartridge and you'll usually need to replace the cartridge because it is empty long before the wire burns out.

 

[lancer420]

Read the user manual, and the NEC. Some devices specifically say no.
The fridge being one. In a normal house, the fridge connection is a single circuit back to the main panel.

Having said that, my garage freezer is indeed plugged into a Tripplite surge protector. A large one, capable of running an entire server rack.

Even some laser printers say no, due to a high initial power draw. Unless you have an absurdly large surge protector for that device only, it might trip.


Why are you asking?

Sorry for such a late reply. I never got any E mail notifications from the site, so i thought no one replied and moved on. In terms of why I'm asking, well, that's a bit of a story. The short version is three years ago, There was no surge protectors in my house, and a tropical storm rolled through, caused major power spikes, and just about everything was ruined, including my 6,500 dollar gaming PC. After that fiasco, I got every electronic, TV, gaming PC, router ETC hooked up to surge protectors, but i never considered using them for appliances, so that's why I'm asking.