update post-electrician visit (thanks for the recs!), power surge at around 3am monday november 17 (we heard two loud explosions outside) was serious. electrician found evidence of surge, scorching. our dishwasher, washing machine, and large kitchen ceiling fixture fan/light have been fried and will never turn on again. we filed a claim with duquesne light. electrician said when he sees a surge like this it's usually even more catastrophic and includes fridge, wifi, cable box, etc. he installed a surge protector at the fusebox so if this happens again we should only have to replace that...wish we'd had one before this happened.