Greywolf, there are a couple of things you can do to protect the system.

Install the line from the panels to the equipment in metal conduit and bury it underground.

Add ferrites to all wired devices— they MAY do you some good. Their added impedance below 10 MHz isn’t that much but they may help in the higher frequency components. If you would like to add these to your existing system, you can buy them yourself easily from Digitkey for under $2 each.

http://www.digikey.com/product-deta...-products/28A2432-0A2/240-2123-ND/571930 is just an example. That one will pass wires up to 0.3 inches.

Surge suppressors (metal oxide varistors,MOV). You should install them on input and output of the electronics. Midnite Solar makes a great line of these and you can add them to your system without too much trouble.

Here is one of the midnite devices (they come in different voltage ratings,and you need to pick one that will safely pass the voltage of the input or output that you are protecting):

http://www.wholesalesolar.com/99600...ews.com/]http://www.motherearthnews.com/ diy/diy-ceramic-water-filters-revisited-zbcz1604.aspx[/url]

"The time for war has not yet come, but it will come and that soon, and when it does come, my advice is to draw the sword and throw away the scabbard." Gen. T.J. Jackson, March 1861