My fence is wooden and yes the antenna crosses metal gutter in two locations.. However this wire is just looped over the metal furnace vent and a couple of roof ventalators so the wire is actually lower than those parts and the peak of the roof. Not the best installation I have ever put up but will have to do until better weather. Ron ----- Original Message ----- From: Spiro To: [email protected] Sent: Friday, January 02, 2009 1:47 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] antenna question
You said you also had it attached to a fence? Is it aluminum? If so, as I am picturing my chain link fence, isn't that a more attractive ground? Does your wire cross any gutter or such metal? When you detach it from your radio, are you then making that line to fence a lightning rod of sorts? I am very curious and could learn something about this important safety issue. On Wed, 31 Dec 2008, Ron Yearns wrote: > One thing I learned over thirty years in the electrical field is that lightening does what ever it wants to. Grounded, ungrounded anything is possible to be hit. Now there are some things we can to minimize hits. In our case with the antenna. In the case with mine laying on the roof and yours on top of a fence the antenna itself is just a hunk of wire laying on the insulator, roof and fence. Now when we in practise hook it to ground through the radio we make it more attractive to lightening. Kind of like raising up a small mountian up. Ground potential raised up. Granted it isn't raised very high but this equipment is expensive. So all things considered I hope I remember to remove the antenna from the radio during storms. > Ron > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Bill Stephan > To: [email protected] > Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2008 11:11 AM > Subject: RE: [BlindHandyMan] antenna question > > > I'm really curious about this. I've heard lightning warnings from a lot of sources, and yes we do have some really spectacular storms, we Saturday morning with serious lightning, 80 mph winds then a dramatic drop in temps and snow and freezing rain. Is a wire antenna more attractive to lightning than say your barbecue grill? I'm just asking here, and fortunately I did have the radio disconnected during the storm. > > Bill Stephan, > Kansas City MO > Email: [email protected] > Phone: (816)803-2469 > > -original message- > Subject: [BlindHandyMan] antenna question > From: cheetah <[email protected]> > Date: 12/31/2008 10:51 > > hi well now you have your new radio running and your new long wire out there on the fence. > remember > you need to unhook that wire come spring time when ever a storm is in the area. > believe me you do not want to see the lightning in your house. > it is loud, smoky and tends to throw little pieces of radio or in my case computer all over the room. > it majorly sucks > Jim > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
