Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums banner

On solid grounds

1K views 2 replies 2 participants last post by  Groundedforlife 
#1 ·
Here is a copy of my post from a local cord cutter group with photo last spring.

ON SOLID GROUNDS
Here at our place in Florida we have no shortage of trees. We also have no shortage of nasty spring weather with thunderstorms, high winds and hail. Central Florida is the lightning capitol of the world after all, so this is normal, for us. About a month ago we had a particularly heavy thunderstorm roll through, very windy with almost constant thunder yet not much rain.

I was looking out the back window watching the lawn chairs blow around when lightning hit somewhere in the back yard. A big one, very close, the thunder boom was instant and the flash blinded me for a few seconds. This shook us up a bit, that was close and we know from experience that if nothing explodes or bursts into flames we are usually OK.

Cut to the chase. About three weeks later I noticed pine bark on the ground under our 100 ft. tall pine tree. The pine took the massive lightning hit from the top and was completely dead shedding bark, needles and small branches. Dang, what a shame, we really liked that tree, all that can be done now is to have it removed.

So what does this have to do with Antennas you may ask ? Plenty, my antenna setup is only 30 ft away and much of the massive static energy from the strike fed into the antenna system. I could tell by the very light carbon like arc print on the ground connection at the mast and the balun leads. (Update; the copper in the coax was also burned back breaking the connection to the top antenna.) Thankfully I Grounded the system according to the National Electrical Code (NEC) guidelines, as I always do and recommend to everyone who has an antenna for tv. This simple effort of grounding properly saved not only our equipment but also the devastating damage that can result when high voltage gets into a home. I had it happen long ago and it destroyed most of a home.

Bottom Line, Ground your system according to the NEC GUIDELINES. This simple inexpensive step could save your life one dark and stormy night and you'll sleep better knowing you're well protected from lightning.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ERS-_N7su6WUEPDePWwK28DdDsyL_ArB/view?usp=drivesdk

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EXKOGIkKjz-3JYiSfuhPvtV_r4uw0Q4j/view?usp=drivesdk

Grounding Article
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_65A4EVaw5eVzE4SHFmSTlsQ0E/view?usp=drivesdk
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I was looking out back window watching the lawn chairs blow around when lightning hit somewhere in the back yard. A big one, very close, the thunder boom was instant and the flash blinded me for a few seconds. This shook us up a bit, that was close and we know from experience that if nothing explodes or bursts into flames we are usually OK.
I had a close-strike experience also; the thunder boom and flash were at the same instant.

I lost my desktop computer.

The computer was turned off and it was plugged into a surge suppressor strip which was also off, but the strip was plugged into a receptacle.

In the living room the 20" Sony TV (with picture tube not LCD) was turned on during the strike. The colors were weird. I turned off the TV, and then turned it on again. I heard the normal loud "thunk" which was the degausser coil demagnetizing the shadow mask of the picture tube; the colors were then OK. The EMP (electromagnetic pulse) from the strike had magnetized the shadow mask.

If I know a storm might be coming, I now unplug the power strip for the computer and anything else that might be harmed.



 
#3 ·
"I had a close-strike experience also; the thunder boom and flash were at the same instant.

I lost my desktop computer."

The EMP is responsible for many fried computers and TV'S. Sometime in the early 2000s our power companies started installing a surge suppressor at the point the power lines attach to the house or emerge from underground, close to the meter. It's a 4" cube with three wires that tie right in to the lines. The suppressor does a good job of keeping the EMP and other surges out of the house. No system is perfect but it helps.
At the same time my county put some teeth in the local code requiring the cable and satellite installers ground their systems per the NEC. The rules for antenna and tower grounding and bonding have been in place since the 60s.

As you can see by the flash map you posted we get the hits, almost everyday from April to October and sometimes in the winter. It's just something we live with and are used to. The trick is to stay out of the way....
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top