lightning rods any believers ?

[RPW]

One other aspect of lightning protection is not only the rod "may" be hit first but by having the system properly installed will also create a electrical bubble around the building and will allow the electrostatic energy that is building and being stored in the atmosphere to safely drain off. My source for this is from a old communications manual.

 

[Alan L.]

I have a 50' TV tower next to my house. I "think" the bottom section is in contact with the ground (concrete in a about a 3' diameter hole and about 4' deep). It has a TV antenna on top, I wonder if this would serve as a lightening rod for the house?

 

[eepete]

Insert all disclaimers that keep me from being sued here -> [ ]

The tower would have that 30 degree "cone of protection", but remember that the cone works about 90 percent of the time, so the formal answer is "No, this will not serve as a lightning rod for the house". But it has a higher probability of being struck than the house for any given strike that would hit in that area.

If it gets a strike, it can also arc over from the tower to the house, another reason for a "Sorry, no" answer.

The lead in wire from that TV antenna on the tower needs _real_ good lightning protection. Not the little F connector block from Radio Shack (Americas Technology Store, and doesn't that explain a lot :laughing. You need a protector with a gas tube in it, and it needs a couple of ground rounds in the ground.

You see the towers at power substations with big tall rods going up in the air. They are doing the "cone of protection" thing there. And it works _most_ of the time.

Unfortunately, the "probability of a strike" things makes matters clear as mud. But lightning rods and the associated ground wires on your roof are the best protection you can get. Bottom line is you need a way to get a strike on the roof to the ground. No 100% guarantee, but far better than nothing at all if your house is going to be hit.

There have been lots of studies on the "Does lightning rods/protection increase the chance of being hit or decrease it?" There is no simple way to go into all that, it's just :confused2:. All I'll say is my roof is protected :thumbsup:.

Pete

 

[Danno1]

........ and will allow the electrostatic energy that is building and being stored in the atmosphere to safely drain off.............

Also, see post #16.


Look at this video. I can't say at what time into it bec I don't have time to watch it right now. Bit somewhere in there, you'll see rods w spiked balls on them sticking out around the top of the tower. This is to drain off the charge bef it arcs.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhtgsAXmz7U




.

 

[Danno1]

........ and will allow the electrostatic energy that is building and being stored in the atmosphere to safely drain off.............

Also, see post #16.


Look at this video. I can't say at what time into it bec I don't have time to watch it right now. But somewhere in there, you'll see rods w spiked balls on them sticking out around the top of the tower. This is to drain off the charge bef it arcs to the clouds.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhtgsAXmz7U




.

 

[J_J]

Some people will believe anything. Lightning will strike where it wants to, Metal roof by a golf course, golfer out golfing, lightening strikes golfer, why. Do you really think you are directing the lightning to a specific area, or warding off lightning. Does the lighten strike up or down? How many metal roof buildings in the US? How many cars have been struck by lightning? They have rubber tires. Go figure. How come lightning strikes church steeples, metal or wood? That is the good lords house of worship. Why, Why Why

There doesn't seem to be any logic where lightning will strike.

Somebody in those pictures had a bad day.

Lightning rods seem to draw attention, like saying, pick me, pick me. l

I have been in aircraft struck by lightning. The plane just got in the path of the charge. It did knock out a few things, and burned holes in the radar housing. .

 

[Putter]

Glad I did a search before starting a new thread.
Sorry to resurrect such an old one but good info.
Ironically we have our first tornado warnings of the year in Central Alberta as I was researching this.
Tis the season. LOL

Most of what I was wondering has been covered.

I am building in a clearing of 80-100' poplars, and think putting lightning rods on the house will be attracting attention. I think I have my own 30* cone naturally. I will stick with the type of rods Obed is using (nice pic). Got lots of them. Probably more likely to burn the house down in the ensuing forest fire. Opting for fire protection over copper wire.

 

[Redneck in training]

Here are few pictures of storm taken from my porch at night. All pictures were taken in about 30 minutes. Each exposure was 30 sec. The power line got hit and all electronic dimmers in our house were damaged.

 

[ultrarunner]

It's code in much of Europe to ground copper gutters and roofs with a heavy copper wire to earth.

Also, most modern panels there have good surge protectors for the whole house because lightning is frequent in some areas.

Near my Grandparents Dairy Farm was a neighbor farm that had burn to the ground twice in lightning storms...

The last time it was rebuilt they went all out on protections... the rod has been hit several times and one time it fused some of the copper... and it is still standing.

Here in CA when I was in grade school we were at recess and all of a sudden a big wind came in the sky got really dark... saw lightning strike the flag pole, burn the flag and knock out a chunk of concrete with cement block... that was many years ago and the damage is still evident.

75' from me the pine was hit and the entire top glowed orange... no visible flames. The tree survives to this day, but only the bottom 2/3 is green.

 

[whiskywizard]

There seem to be many here who believe lightning rods and their cables and grounds are meant to safely conduct the current from the lightning strike to the ground. This belief is not correct, but it is very common.

As many of you have said above, a lightning strike presents far too much current for any reasonable cable to handle.

Lightning protection systems are there to ground the structure and maintain it at the same potential as the surrounding landscape. In laymen's term, this sort of "flattens" the structure, reducing its electrical presence.

A good example - look at sailboats. Every single sailboat has its mast grounded to the vessel's bonding system, and the bonding system is 'connected' with the water. When sailboats do get hit, they generally lose all their electronics and they often have a hole blown through the hull where the bonding system is in contact with the water. The grounds can't conduct the lightning away. Instead, the grounds reduce the charge on the boat, keeping it at the same potential as the surrounding water, essentially "hiding" it instead of making it an attractor.