Marion residents who want surge protection for their homes need only phone city hall to arrange installation.

Meter socket surge arresters with a limited lifetime warranty are available at a cost of $229, payable to the city in three installments.

The devices are being made available because of the number of power surges throughout the city. Recent surges have occurred because of switch replacements at the city substation and problems with Westar Energy’s equipment resulting in failure of switches at the Marion substation.

Power surges can disrupt electronic devices and cause them to malfunction.

City electric superintendent Clayton Garnica said the surge protector is installed after the electric meter, stopping power surges before electricity enters the residence.