the units are solely sacrificial. i have the big brother unit.
»
www.amazon.com/gp/produc ··· F8&psc=1it is wired to the first 240 breaker after the main breaker.
remember this is kind of designed for HIGH HIGH voltage. not high amperage.
when the high voltage comes in, it goes path of least resistance, hopefully this is the first breaker wired with 10 guage wire into the surge supression panel. mine is bonded via a 10 guage neutral wire. thus shorting to ground/neutral
these are designed as second level of defense, first is tied directly into the meter.
these are designed to get the voltage down enough for the 3rd level surge suppressor, or surge strip to be able to actually stop it.
remember if the lights went out, the surge may have worked but it did not stop all the voltage since it burned out. that is why they recommended 3 steps
that said the levition pictured only has a 5 or 10 year warranty and a lower total damage policy
the one i linked is warranted for the life of the house