2) Unless the surge protection within any device (Dish receiver) is UL or equivalent – listed or a recognized component – there is little if any surge protection present (refer to last sentence from #1). This also applies to UPS products in general as well.

3) Most off-the-shelf surge protectors have a protection life of around 6 months in an active surge environment. In general – if you’re using “plug-in” surge strips of mass produced and mass marketed manufacturers it’s a good idea to replace them annually.

4) You get what you pay for. A $20.00 plug-in surge protector is not quality (refer to #3). Sorry, it just isn’t.

5) Why you wouldn’t plug your Dish receiver into a quality surge protector – I have no clue. A surge protector is a “non-load bearing” device. It shouldn’t affect anything. 95 + % of the surge strips out there won’t even turn on unless there’s actually a change in voltage (goes above 150 volts). I’d argue the Dish guy is clueless. The only issue I could see is if the receiver is sending a signal over the power side (and this would make no sense – unless it’s somehow between equipment). Plus, this would only be an issue if you were using a surge protector with frequency responsive circuitry. You aren’t getting a frequency responsive circuitry unit for $20 or on 95 + % of the units off the shelf. Again, this tech guy I don’t think understands surge protection – but at the end of the day, it’s your call.