Key Terms:

Surges — Sudden, small increases in voltage beyond the standard level (e.g., 120V in the US)

Spikes — Short-lived voltage increases, often caused by short circuits, tripped breakers, or lightning

Sags — Brief decreases in voltage, usually not severe enough to cause system shutdown

Under-voltage Events (Brownouts) — Prolonged reduction in voltage, leading to system shutdown

Power Loss Events (Blackouts) — Complete loss of power for a period, potentially causing data loss an damage

Power Protection Components

Line Conditioners

• Stabilize voltage supply and filter out fluctuations
• Mitigate surges, sags, and undervoltage events
• Prevent unexpected system behavior and hardware degradation
• Unsuitable for significant undervoltage events or complete power failures

Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS)

• Provide emergency power during power source failures
• Offer line conditioning functions
• Include battery backup to maintain power during short-duration failures
• Typically supply 15 to 60 minutes of power during a complete power failure

Generators

• Convert mechanical energy into electrical energy for use in an external circuit through the process of electromagnetic induction
• Backup generators supply power during power grid outages