Beside rewire the whole house, can a surge arrester replace the function provided by grounding rods?
Answer Hi Allen There are a couple of issues to address regarding an older home: 1. You need a ground rod. It is bonded to the neutral bar and the neutral bar is also bonded to the cold water pipe. That is to stabilize the voltage feeding the house. It also facilitates ground faults and surges. 2. After you install a ground rod, a panel mount surge arrestor might work, however you need the ground rod for that to happen. The surge voltage has to go somewhere. 3. If your panel has been upgraded, great. If it has not, that might be a good next step. If you keep your aging wiring system, you will want to make sure the electrical system safety equipment( breakers) will actually work if there is a problem. 4. If you have appliances or electronic equipment, you will want to protect those with a grounding circuit. You might consider rewiring just those outlets instead of the whole house. Let me know if that is enough info.
