Protecting your business’s electronics during Arizona’s monsoon season

It’s monsoon time in Arizona which means lightning, wind, dust and rain. With the storm season upon us, what precautions are you taking now to ensure your electronics are protected?

Tools to Have

All of your electronics should be plugged into surge protectors. These help in the case of a surge of power if a lightning strike occurs. Surge protectors stop the electronics from getting an overload of power during a monsoon.

A battery backup with a surge protector built into it is the best item you can buy to protect your devices. The surge protector will actually protect you even longer because it has a battery built in. The battery will give you some time to shut down your electronics properly. A decent priced one will run you just $40. A small price to pay to protect those big ticket items you may have spent thousands on.

What not to do

Don’t go for the cheap power strip you see at the big box stores. Power strips will offer no protection to your devices if there is a sudden surge of power. You would never unplug your computer to simply turn it off. This is essentially what happens if your power goes off because of a black out and your devices are plugged into a power strip.

Plugging a computer straight into the wall is a recipe for disaster. Electrical sockets are designed to provide a consistent voltage of electricity. In some cases, a power spike can occur when the voltage suddenly increases. It only takes one power surge or spike and your expensive electronics could become useless.

It’s important to remember that any piece of equipment that has a surge or starvation of power can be damaged. A lot of surge protectors now have USB ports making it easier for devices like smartphones to plug directly in. One of the most important pieces of advice I can give any business is to make sure all of their data is backed up. While these tools will help during the monsoon, nothing is guaranteed. We always make sure all of our clients are continuously backed up so if there is a loss of any information, we can always restore it.

Silicon Desert Insider is a weekly blog published every Wednesday on azBIGmedia.com, about technology, trends, advice and more that  could help your company. If you have an idea for a piece for “Silicon Desert Insider,” please email AZ BIG Media Digital Editor Jesse A. Millard at jesse.millard@azbigmedia.com.