SIEMENS BOLTSHIELD Plug-in Surge Protection Device 2-Pole 65kA 120/240V, 1Ø, 3W

Best price. Great surge protection.

This product is an effective solution for a whole house surge suppressor. Very easy to install, even easier than replacing a breaker. Even though my Siemens panel is about 35 years old, I had no issues. Fits like a glove.It's best to have this at the top of the panel. This way any voltage transient will be shunted by the surge suppressor before it has a chance to run down the circuits. As current will take every available parallel path that it can, and travels at ~90% of the speed of light, I would suggest installing it at the top of your panel nearest the feeder inputs – no sense in taking a risk of a voltage transient running down other circuits and causing damage, that sort of defeats the purpose of the surge suppressor in the first place. For me that did mean moving the right-side breakers down two slots, but that wasn't difficult. Also best to have it on the same side as the neutral bus bar so you can make a direct connection to it with the pigtail (cut as short as practical), which was also on the right side of my Siemens load center. I saw some comments regarding the 14 AWG pigtail as being too small a gauge. However, that’s a false concern, as the product is UL listed for this application, the wire gauge size must be correct, or it wouldn’t pass the UL certification tests.To note there are two mechanical flags (they are not LEDs) that show green if the unit is functioning. Not an issue, as there is also a LED indicator that will flash green if the unit is operating, so you’ll know it’s properly functioning. My unit has the LED happily flashing green. I also like the alarm feature if the unit fails due to a large voltage transient and needs to be replaced. In that case it did its job and sacrificed itself to save my expensive appliances and electronics. In that event, replacing it will be a breeze.My only comment this unit is more than twice the cost of Siemens entry level Boltshield surge suppressor. Given this version has twice the surge protection capability as well as lower clamping voltages (that’s a key aspect of surge suppression), this is the unit I wanted. Still seems just a tad pricey.If you have electrical skills to safely change a breaker, you can install this product without any issues. I love the Siemens load center approach, just hook the breakers on the channel and snap them into place. Easy as can be.

Easy to install and lit up as expected. I can't tell you how well it works, since I haven't had a surge, but I feel a little safer having it installed.

VERY EASY TO INSTALL

Had an electrician install it, but the light was red after installation. Had to return to Amazon and bought one from Home Depot due to the delays in Amazon shipping. Replacement seems to be working fine but haven't had any power surges.

I was surprised when I opened up the panel and found an old X10 repeater in there. I always wondered what that 50 amp breaker was for. I left it in there as it doesn't hurt anything, but I no longer have any X10 devices in my homeAnyway, super easy to put in took me all about four minutes to do. I like that this one has an LED to let you know it's working.

I installed this easily. But there are two indicators that the instructions say should light up. The top indicator is fine but the lower indicators do not. I can't find any information about this. I exchanged it once and the replacement had the same situation. I assume it is working because the top indicator shows. I'd like Siemens to clear up this anomaly.

I only had two bottom slots available in my breaker box, unless I moved all of the breakers down two positions and their two breaker replacement option only had a 2 year warranty and lesser coverage, so I spoke with a Siemens' engineer and he put this in writing."Some people do believe it is better to place the SPD on top of the load center,closer to the AC entrance. Indeed, in case a surge comes following this path (service entrance) that isthe optimal location.But, if the surge comes from the ground or neutral, the SPD at the top would be further away.BEN: Many surges come from INSIDE thew home!+++A technical analysis explain that the SPD device reacts in nanoseconds, while a surge incident occurs inmicroseconds, therefore the MOV (component inside the SPD) is a thousand faster than the surge itself.The relative distance inside a load center is not going to change the reaction time of the SPD, the surgewill conduct through the SPD either way.We concur with NEC 242.24 where SPD conductor length shall not be any longer than necessary.Connection to electrical service at the top or bottom of the panel doesn’t necessarily impact the SPD’sprotective capabilities.Our integrally mounted SPDs are designed to provide optimal protection."