[TowerTalk] MOV's

[Jim Jarvis]

If an MOV has accumulated enough charge such that it is
close to failure, and it fails open during an event, you
are unprotected.   And you have no way to know if you're
in a condition which could go that way with the next shot.

Therefore, an MOV solution seems to me to be no solution.

Unless you could pass a trickle current through the device,
to monitor its resistance, and look for changes as an indicator
of status.  This isn't done, because MOV's are seen as a cheap
solution...and adding monitor circuitry is costly.  

n2ea
jimjarvis at ieee.org