A Home Surge-Protection Checklist - Room by Room
Last verified: September 2026
A practical, do-it-in-a-sensible-order checklist for protecting your whole home from surges — room by room, plus the panel. Plug-in protectors first, then grounding, then whole-home, then habits. Want a hand? Call me at (330) 200-8042.
The Home Surge Checklist, at a Glance
Protecting your whole home from surges is easier when you do it in a sensible order. First, put good plug-in protectors on your sensitive electronics — the TV, computer, and network gear — which you can do yourself. Then check your grounding, add a whole-home unit at the panel (a licensed electrician's job), replace any worn-out protectors, and build a few storm habits. This guide walks your home room by room, with checklists you can tick off. There's a printable 29-page version up top.
Common Questions
1 Where should I start?
With the easy, do-it-yourself part: good plug-in surge protectors on your sensitive electronics — the TV and home theater, the computer, and the network gear — plugged into grounded outlets. It's inexpensive and covers a great deal.
2 What order should I do things in?
Plug-in protectors on sensitive gear first, then a grounding check, then a whole-home unit at the panel when you're ready, then storm habits. That way you're never waiting on one step to make progress on another.
3 Which parts can I do myself?
The plug-in protectors, adding a battery backup (UPS), checking the indicator lights, and testing outlets with an inexpensive tester. The whole-home unit at the panel and any new grounding or wiring are a licensed electrician's job.
4 Do I need to protect the cable and internet lines?
Yes — surges travel in on data lines (coax, phone, ethernet) just like the power cord. Use a protector with the right pass-through jacks for your TV and internet gear, and unplug those lines too in a severe storm.
5 What's different for a rural home on a well?
A few extra boxes: add the 240-volt well pump to the plan (an electrician can add a protector at its controls), lean toward a whole-home unit given the extra lightning exposure, and make a backup-power plan for the pumps. Store some drinking water for long outages too.
6 How often should I check everything?
A quick lap twice a year — when the clocks change is easy to remember — to glance at the indicator lights and make sure nothing's warm or discolored. Also check after any severe storm or nearby lightning strike, including the whole-home unit's indicator.
Would You Rather I Just Help?
A whole-house list is far easier with company. I'll walk your home with you, tick off this checklist together, and set up the plug-in protectors and battery backups on the spot — then line you up with a trusted electrician for the whole-home unit and any grounding. Nothing to sell you, ever. $99 flat for a visit, 30-day come-back-free.
Would you rather I just do this for you?
No shame in it — plenty of folks would rather hand it off, and that's what I'm here for. I'll come to your home, set it up right, and make sure it's working before I leave. Flat $99 per visit — no jargon, no upsell, and every visit is 30-day come-back-free.
Not a hardware job? I can often fix it remotely for $49 — a secure screen-share, up to 2 hours, that you watch the whole time and can end whenever (included free for $39/mo Support Plan members, and it counts toward the $99 if it turns out I need to come out).