Installation

The Ethernet lightning arrestor must be properly grounded to work. The ethernet ground wire (11 Inch - 12 AWG) on the surge protector needs to be connected to ground through the shortest path. Excess electricity will follow the path of least resistance. In most cases, a ground busbar on an electrical panel or network rack cabinet is already grounded and is typically the easiest way to ground the wire. Other options to ground RJ45 surge protector are grounding block on the breaker panel, grounding rod or terminal of the closest outlet by connecting the ground wire to circular grounding hole on the grounded outlet center screw. The lightning arrestor can be used with unshielded twisted pair (UTP) or shielded (STP) cables.

Protection Modes Line-Line, Line-Ground

The Line-to-Line ethernet surge protection mode helps protect against short circuits between different nodes of the network system while the Line-to-Ground mode protects against short circuits between the network node and the earth. As it is not known where the transient will happen, having both modes protected ensures damage is minimized. Nominal Discharge Current of 5KA defines the peak value of the current that can be passed through the SPD having a waveshape of 8/20µs microsecond where the RJ45 lightning arrestor remains functional after 15 surges.

Once the surge protector ethernet voltage exceeds its designed rating it “begins to clamp” and starts to conduct energy directly to the electrical grounding system. A bidirectional clamping on CAT5 surge protector allows levels above and below the reference voltage by clamping the voltage that can cause damage.