Yes, NO TIME 2 SEW. I understand about lightning hitting and affecting someplace or someone else nearby. Thirty five years ago my husband was near a tree which was struck by lightning. He was hit, with the lightning going through his body and out his shoulder. Yes, he's physically fine (well, some days I wonder if he's lost his mind!) However, his cardiologist feels the lightning caused the atrial fibrilation he developed not long after that. So I have been VERY respectful of lightning since then.

I live in Central Florida, the lightning capitol of the United States. We get a LOT of lightning during our almost daily summertime afternoon storms and I am also super careful with electrical equipment. As I get older, getting down on the floor and reaching under desks to unplug anything is miserable! We have a couple of solutions that might interest someone on this list.

Our computers and all the periferals are plugged into power strips that are mounted on the wall just behind the computers, above table height. These strips are easily reached for unplugging everything in case of a thunderstorm.

My studio worktable is two tables pushed together in the middle of the room. There is a floor plug underneath them. I have a super-sized power stick plugged into that floor plug with the cord coming up between the tables. It is easy to reach the outlets on the tabletop from either side, so I can plug multiple lamps, tools, both my sewing machines and other things into it. I think it has about 12 places for plugging in and has a very good surge protector as part of it. I can unplug precious equipment fast in case of lightning in our vicinity.

Please don't take a chance with your equipment. It's too expensive to replace because you thought it'd be okay and didn't take precautions. Unplugging it, even for a short while, is the best way to ensure it's safe.

you're not paranoid ~ I do the same thing, I consider my machines an investment! So higher end sewing machines, computer & large-format printer all get unplugged! I have had the UPS strips (the expensive surge protection ones for computers) go bad, one was smoking, literally. So I play it safe, too!

If your power cord will unhook from your machine....Just unhook it when you are not sewing and lay it where you can easily reach it ...That is what I do.....If lightning would happen to run into the cord it isn't hooked to anything so the worst thing that can happen is that you would have to buy a new cord....And that wouldn't be so bad plus you don't have to get down and crawl around to plug in or unplug.

No, not at all. I had lightening strike a tree way out in my front yard & it messed up my computer which was on a BIG power/surge protector and knocked out one TV & VCR player PLUS knocked a lot of pictures off my walls.

Do the same. Can't be careful enough.

I unplug mine anytime I am not sewing. Besides worrying about a storm or electrical surge, I don't waste money on "ghost electricity."

Better to be safe than sorry -- you are doing the right thing.

my expensive machines and long arm are never plugged unless in use.that way I never have to run around unplugging them.

I have made it a habit to unplug my sewing machine when I am through using it. You never know, a storm may hit while you are not at home. And I care more about my machine than I do my PC ;-)