Effects of dirty power on controllers and hardware – ProdataKey, Inc.

All electrical systems are based on a supply of power at a certain voltage and frequency. Dirty power or electrical noise is any electrical current that varies by more than 10% from the usual 120 volts. Dirty power refers to variations in voltage or current that are often random, usually of relatively low amplitude, and always undesirable. It is an abnormality in the power quality that is being delivered to a system. These abnormalities can include low power factors, voltage variations, frequency variations, and surges. Power spikes, surges, sags, and brownouts, the results of dirty power, can ruin expensive equipment.

Clean power helps protect and extend the life of your electronics.

To guard your controllers and hardware against dirty power, it is recommended to plug your equipment into a surge protector to guard against such power annoyances.

How to know if your electricity is dirty

A line noise EMI meter measures the harmonics or dirty electricity on the electrical lines. An EMI meter measures a wide range of frequencies and translates these frequencies into millivolts (mV) or Volts. An EMI Meter measures the level of electrical noise, line noise, power line EMI present on the electrical wiring in buildings. Simply plug it into electrical outlets to find out how much dirty electricity (EMI) is present on nearby wiring.

You may also refer to the following Power Management video for additional overview information about power.