Grounding Info & Standards: OTA/Dish/CATV/Telecom

[jflarin]

Originally Posted by roger1818

You would have to read the section on cable burial. I seem to remember someone telling me that buried cables must be surrounded by a foot of sand to protect them from injury, but don't quote me on that.

Ok, I checked burial, Here is what I find in 12-012:

12-012 Underground installations (see Appendix B)
(1) Direct buried conductors, cables, or raceways shall be installed to meet the minimum cover requirements
of Table 53.
(2) The minimum cover requirements shall be permitted to be reduced by 150 mm where mechanical
protection is placed in the trench over the underground installation.
(3) Mechanical protection shall consist of one of the following and, when in flat form, shall be wide enough to
extend at least 50 mm beyond the conductor, cables, or raceways on each side:
(a) treated planking at least 38 mm thick;
(b) poured concrete at least 50 mm thick;
(c) concrete slabs at least 50 mm thick;
(d) concrete encasement at least 50 mm thick; or
(e) other suitable material.
(4) Direct buried conductors or cables shall be installed so that they run adjacent to each other and do not
cross over each other and with a layer of screened sand with a maximum particle size of 4.75 mm or
screened earth at least 75 mm deep both above and below the conductors.
(5) Where conductors or cables rise for terminations or splices or where access is otherwise required, they shall
be protected from mechanical damage by location or by rigid conduit terminated vertically in the trench
and including a bushing or bell end fitting, or other acceptable protection, at the bottom end from
300 mm above the bottom of the trench to at least 2 m above finished grade, and beyond that as may be
required by other Rules of the Code, and with sufficient slack provided in the conductors at the bottom end
of the conduit so that the conductors enter the conduit from a vertical position.

Table 53 calls for 600 mm of soil. But I can say that my curent ground instalation (for the 120V/240V supply from Hydro) doesn't comply to that: the ground cable isn't installed in a rigid conduit, so I'm not use that this section applies.

However, throughout the code and in sub-rule 4 above, they mention that cable must be in clean soil or sand, 75 mm above and below. So no rock, brick or other garbage...

jf

[Metallo]

Hi all,

I live in new Brunswick and I just installed an OTA antenna the I need to ground.

I read many pages in this forum and I found many opinions.
I do have the electrical code but I understand that it has nothing to do with the antenna.

My conclusion so far is that, among the different options, the safest is to ground it with a grounding rod using a 6# wire.
Here in NB the code mentions that the grounding rods should be 2 with a length of 10ft each and 10ft distant one to the other, but again, this is the electrical code.

For the antenna only should I simply put a 4ft rod in the ground and hook there the 6# wire from the mast as well has the cable RG6 ?

Thanks
Alex

[roger1818]

4 feet is not long enough, especially in most parts of Canada. For a grounding rod to be effective it needs to be in damp soil and 4 feet is getting awfully close to the frost line (frozen earth is not considered damp electrically).

[Metallo]

Originally Posted by roger1818

4 feet is not long enough, especially in most parts of Canada. For a grounding rod to be effective it needs to be in damp soil and 4 feet is getting awfully close to the frost line (frozen earth is not considered damp electrically).

Roger1818,

so you think the 10ft statement in the electrical code is the way to go?
Why two rods though is a mystery to me

Should I also ground the line right?

Thanks
Alex

[roger1818]

One grounding rod should be adequate, but you should also connect the antenna ground with your electrical ground as shown in post #263.

[Metallo]

I tried to do some tests with a 10ft iron rod, my garden looks like Gruyère but there is no way I can go further down than 6ft, I find the rock everywhere.

How far from the outer concrete basement should the hole be? 1ft or so?

Thanks
Alex

[majortom]

I think ~ 1ft from the basement footer, angle slightly away from the basement in case it hits a ledge in the footer it can skip off it. They make hammer drill attachments to drive a ground rod. Google "ground rod bit" to see what they look like.

[JamesK]

10ft iron rod

I thought iron wasn't a good choice because it corrodes so easily.

[Metallo]

Originally Posted by JamesK

I thought iron wasn't a good choice because it corrodes so easily.

That's just for testing the ground before buying a proper copper ground rod

Alex

[jgwhite]

Simple question.

Will a grounded (OTA) splitter behave the same way a grounding block behaves?

[BOUVAL]

Will a grounded (OTA) splitter behave the same way a grounding block behaves?

Yes it will.
.

[joe1]

I know there are a million posts but there are too many answers. To save me some time, here is the equipment I have and I wanted to know how to ground it please:
1.antenna direct clear stream 2
2. five foot copper grounding antenna
3. grounding block



somewhere I read says I should put two 5 foot rods together so I have a total of 10feet of grounding????

[Trunks]

What kind of risk do I run for having an antenna out on my all-concrete patio on the 6th floor of a 24 floor apartment building with no protection except a surge protector directly connected to my TV? My building has a lightning rod on the roof.

[JamesK]

Not much. You will be protected by the higher structure.

[jflarin]

Originally Posted by joe1

I know there are a million posts but there are too many answers. To save me some time, here is the equipment I have and I wanted to know how to ground it please:
1.antenna direct clear stream 2
2. five foot copper grounding antenna
3. grounding block



somewhere I read says I should put two 5 foot rods together so I have a total of 10feet of grounding????

You antenna mast is metallic, isn't it? Then you must ground the mast. You also have a picture of the grounding post. That must be grounded also, before the antenna cable enters the building. What is the straitest practical path between the grounding block and the earth, the antenna mast and the earth? if that shortest path goes through the electrical ground of the house, then you can use that ground. Otherwise, you must install a new grounding rod and then connect that new grounding rod to existing house ground with a #6 ground wire.

10-700 Grounding electrodes (see Appendix B)
(1) Grounding electrodes shall consist of
(a) manufactured grounding electrodes;
(b) field-assembled grounding electrodes installed in accordance with this Rule; or
(c) in-situ grounding electrodes forming part of existing infrastructure as defined in this Rule.
(2) Manufactured grounding electrodes shall
(a) in the case of a rod grounding electrode, consist of 2 rod electrodes (except for a chemically charged
rod electrode where only one need be installed) spaced no less than 3 m apart,
(i) bonded together with a grounding conductor sized in accordance with Rule 10-812; and
(ii) driven to the full length of the rod; or
(b) in the case of a plate electrode, be
(i) in direct contact with exterior soil at no less than 600 mm below grade level; or
(ii) encased within the bottom 50 mm of a concrete foundation footing in direct contact with the
earth at not less than 600 mm below finished grade.
(3) A field-assembled grounding electrode shall consist of
(a) a bare copper conductor not less than 6 m in length, sized in accordance with Table 43 and encased
within the bottom 50 mm of a concrete foundation footing in direct contact with the earth at not
less than 600 mm below finished grade; or
(b) a bare copper conductor not less than 6 m in length, sized in accordance with Table 43 and directly
buried in earth at least 600 mm below finished grade.
(4) For the purposes of Rule 2-024, an in-situ grounding electrode shall not be considered electrical equipment
and shall provide, at 600 mm or more below finished grade, a surface area exposure to earth equivalent to
that of a similar manufactured electrode.
(5) Where a local condition such as rock or permafrost prevents a rod or a plate grounding electrode from
being installed at the required burial depth, a lesser acceptable depth shall be permitted.

jf