Electricity question

[RayK]

I figure this is the best section to ask this question in...I have a small to medium sized room with a lot of electronics in it (LCD TV, 5.1 Speakers, Xbox, Rogers HD Terminal, PC with all it's accessories etc.) I recently put a mini fridge in the room as well and I notice that whenever the motor begins to run (every 15 minutes or so) all my lights dim a little bit for about 1 second. All my important electronics are plugged into surge protectors, but I'm wondering if this heavy draw of electricity in the room could possibly damage my tv, pc or any of the other electronics?

[Oversized Rooster]

I doubt it. I'm usually running 3 machines in a small room, together with a laser printer, 1010W sound system, several monitors and even though when the laser printers starts printing, the lights do dim but nothing has ever happened to any of my equipment years later. :D

[MkmBandit]

I had this EXACT issue years back with my mini-fridge, until I got a UPS :!:

Either way you should be fine. I wouldn't worry until your electronics suddenly start clipping off.

[Oversized Rooster]

The problem with UPSes is that consumer-level UPS devices are just too weak! To get a decent 1500-2000W UPS, you must shell out 4 digit dollars. What gives?!

[woof]

When electric motors and compressors are starting up they draw a heavy current for a moment or two which may cause the line voltage (~ 120 volts) to temporarily drop a bit. This can be seen as a momentary dimming of flickering of the lights. This should not be significant enough to affect electronics components since their built in power supplies are able to buffer these small fluctuations in voltage. It is not something that's desirable though and as mentioned a UPS would provide the best protection for electronics if you're really really worried.