frying a computer with a cable modem?

[hazard666]

i don't have a cable modem, but just am cusrious, i know that you could fry our comp if thunder strike the line and went through the phone line into your modem, but could that also happen if you are using a cable modem?

 

[Elledan]

The current could go via the UTP cable from the cable modem to your PC, but most likely only the NIC will be fried since (newer) motherboards are protected against high currents.

 

[hazard666]

ok thats what i thought, ok thank you

 

[Vegito]

A properly install cable line would not hit your computer

If the cable is properly grounded to your electric meter or to any ground rod, it'll go there and get absorbed. If you dont have a ground block on ur meter pipe which should goto the ground rod, ur screwed. Also electric travels shortest distance in a Y pipe, ie, ur ground wire is longer to the ground rod than ur computer..

ie. ur computer is right by the ground block, your ground rod is on the other side of the house... ur computer fries before it gets absorbed.

Get an ups if ur in a heavy thunder storm area..

 

[hazard666]

ok now heres my question about dialup modem getting fried:
i have a 56k and have my comp hook into a apc surge, but the phone cable is going straight to the phone jack, whats my chance of gettin hit?

 

[randal]

if you live in a high-lightning prone area, the chances of your modem getting hit aren't bad. I have cooked 3 modems that way; lightning hits, charges up a telephone line, kills my modem ... I have learned and now run telephone lines through surge protectors.

$.02
randal

 

[Russ]

Damn, Randal, remind me never to get near you!:Q

Russ, NCNE

 

[hazard666]

i really don't know what type of area i live in, i never got hit, but you never know and i could get hit during the next storm, so what i wnna is there a way to test or how to tell if u live in a high-lightning area?

 

[Tallgeese]

<< The current could go via the UTP cable from the cable modem to your PC, but most likely only the NIC will be fried since (newer) motherboards are protected against high currents. >>

Although lightning does some freaky sh*t.

And the only time I've ever completely lost a machine was to one using a digitizing card. I had it hooked to an old VCR (simply for channel tuning). The strike came in through the coax and fried the HELL out of the MB. Looked in there and about 7 chips had the tops blown off. The VCR and digitizing card continued to work flawlessly until I sold them a few years after.

Recently lost an old upstream hub to a lightning strike coming in on the cable modem line. I'd been rearranging my rack and temporarily removed my lightning filter. Two days later, and CRACK! Cable modem just fine, tho. And since the hub ports were grouped, only the group of four that included the port the cable modem was hooked to was fried.