Will, et al, To agree with you in a backhand kind of way, I have, in fact, seen lightning hit a submarine while at sea in a rain storm in the North Atlantic, although the lightning in question came off of a line hanging from a Sea Stallion, and was VERY Impressive to a 20 year old ELT whose job it was to make sure the deck was radiologically clear prior to a med evac. To bring it back to topic, though... Having just gotten back into HAM radio after a 10 year absence, I have recently acquired some new and expensive toys. The "current" grounding set up is a 12 GA wire run from my station to the ground rod put in as part of the repaneling of my electrical into the house. The ground rod in question is an ~8 foot copper rod driven into the ground with about 6 inches showing above ground level. I bonded the 12 GA wire to the rod with a hose clamp. Do you all think that sufficient to protect my brand new ID-4100 and IC-7100?
Ron KE4DRF Judging by personal experience, the next public health crisis after COVID 19 is likely to be cirrhosis. Ron Bosch "..any man who may be asked what he did .. to make his life worthwhile, I think can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction" 'I served in the United States Navy." John F. Kennedy When I was young and bold and strong, Oh, right was right, and wrong was wrong! My plume on high, my flag unfurled, I rode away to right the world. ‘Come out, you dogs, and fight!’ said I, And wept there was but once to die. But I am old; and good and bad Are woven in a crazy plaid. Dorothy Parker "The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity" Wm Butler Yeats "Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should "make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof", thus building a wall of separation between church and State." Thomas Jefferson "Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a god; because, if there be one, he must more approve the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear." Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Peter Carr A Government founded upon justice, and recognizing the equal rights of all men; claiming no higher authority for existence, or sanction for its laws, than nature, reason, and the regularly ascertained will of the people; steadily refusing to put its sword and purse in the service of any religious creed or family, is a standing offense to most of the Governments of the world, and to some narrow and bigoted people among ourselves. Frederick Douglass On Wed, Apr 8, 2020 at 11:53 AM Will Gray via BVARC <[email protected]> wrote: > Lightning is interesting. The strike begins when the electrons that have > been scrubbed from the air by rain or snow are deposited on the ground > (generally). A negative charge builds where the earth acts like the plate > of a capacitor. With no other path the charge gets great enough to find > the path of least resistance back to the atmosphere overhead or nearby from > where the electrons were scrubbed by failing rain. If the area is well > grounded, the electrons are dissipated in the the earth, if insulated (why > lightning strikes concrete runways) the charge builds. If your house, > ground, trees, or anything is insulated allowing the charge to build, the > strike will occur when the charge is great enough. In my years at sea in > he Navy, I never saw a lightning strike hit the surface of the water or the > ship, no matter how heavy the rain. The salt water as a conductor > dissipated the charge. Aircraft flying in rain build up a charge and may > be struck, damaging them with burn marks and even scoring bearings in the > engines. Aircraft have static wicks to bleed off the charge just as trucks > have straps to bleed off the charge so the 7,000 gallons of gasoline in a > tanker truck doesn't go up in flames from a lightning strike or lesser > static discharge. > > Will Gray, KB&QL > > On Wed, Apr 8, 2020 at 11:38 AM Robert Polinski via BVARC <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> Much what is said is true, but I will add a few points. Forty some years >> ago I worked for a 2 way radio co. We had the Yellow Cab contract. I was at >> Yellow Cab on Hays street in north Houston. I was replacing 2 radios in the >> radio shack at the base of the 450ft tower that had been removed and taken >> to the shop for repair. As I got setup to replace the radios in the rack, >> there were 4 radios & 4 standby radios in the rack. They used 4 VHF >> channels at that time. There was a thunderstorm approaching outside. The >> radio shack was just a small 8x 12 building a the tower base. The radios >> were DC remote controlled from the dispatch office located 100 ft away. I >> waited for the storm to pass before installing the repaired radios, as I >> did not want the touch the rack a long as the storm was near. As I sat on >> the floor of the shack looking out the door, it was raining real hard. I >> then saw lightning strike the power lines behind the mechanic shop about >> 300ft away. It blew a AC receptacle on the wall behind me off the wall. >> Damaged 2 of the 4 radio power supplies, 1 DC remote. I had disconnected >> all the standby equipment before the storm to facilitate the installation >> of the replacement radios. To make a long story short (LOL) The lightning >> hit the power line 300ft away from a 450ft tower. No lightning came down >> the tower. So just being high in the air, does not necessarily make it a >> lightning rod. >> >> What is important is bonding everything together. If all equipment in >> your shack is at the same potential, the lightning current will not have >> anywhere to flow. I can charge the case of your K3 with 10,000v but if >> there is no current flow no damage will occur. If lightning hits the power >> line and the ground rod at your shack is a better path than the AC ground >> at your meter the current will travel thru your rig to get to the rod. If >> you bond the shack/antenna ground with the AC ground with a #6 wire. Since >> both are at the same potential, there will be no current flow & no damage. >> ( this bonding is required by the NEC) See Mike Holt on you tube to >> understand this. Robert KD5YVQ >> >> >> >> *From:* BVARC <[email protected]> *On Behalf Of *Eddie Runner via >> BVARC >> *Sent:* Wednesday, April 08, 2020 9:53 AM >> *To:* Mark Brantana via BVARC <[email protected]> >> *Cc:* Eddie Runner <[email protected]> >> *Subject:* Re: [BVARC] Antenna Mounting Options >> >> >> >> Mark, it is true, lightning does what it wants to do. >> >> >> >> I have had outside antennas of all types including towers , long wires, >> dipoles, cb antennas, shortwave, Ham of all kinds, over the past 50 years, >> I have had houses with ground rods and houses without ground rods and even >> when I had ground rods some antennas would sometimes not be grounded... >> (one house I had 19 antennas up at one time).. >> >> >> >> I have a rule, if there is a threat of lightning, I AM NOT GONNA TOUCH >> THAT COAX.. >> >> >> >> So that means I NEVER disconnect my coax when a storm comes.. >> NEVER...NEVER... >> >> >> >> As far as I can remember I have never had lightning damage on any radio >> gear.. >> >> >> >> Back in the 80s there was some speculation that lightning may have come >> in >> >> through the phone line and destroyed 2 modems ( I used to run BBS's).. >> >> >> >> I have seen a few times where lightning hit TOWERS or POWER PANELS on >> >> homes, some were hams and some were just people with no antennas... >> >> >> >> I have seen gear supposedly hit by lightning.. Maybe some was, maybe some >> just blew the finals >> >> cause the guy forgot to hook up the coax he unhooked the last time he >> heard thunder.. ha ha >> >> >> >> But even all the times we know about, it is still fairly unlikely.. and >> if the lightnng has your >> >> name on it.. ??? >> >> >> >> Good luck.. it is all VOODDOO..ha ha >> >> >> >> Eddie (NU5K) >> >> >> >> On Wednesday, April 8, 2020, 06:16:29 AM CDT, Mark Brantana via BVARC < >> [email protected]> wrote: >> >> >> >> >> >> Since folks are hunkered down anyways, here is a problem. I am improving >> my emergency radio capability by adding a 2-m radio to my home office. Who >> knows where this thing is going, and I think this is a good time to >> prepare. I would like your thoughts or experience with the following. >> >> >> >> I am looking to mount a 2-m antenna on my roof. Currently I have a TV >> antenna attached with a j-pole just below the chimney output. I have a >> single-story house. My plan has been to extend the j-pole about 4 ft >> higher to get better TV reception, and mount the antenna just above it. I >> do have to watch out for offending the HOA. >> >> >> >> My property has power lines running parallel with the back of the house, >> and these power lines are about 35 feet high and 35 feet laterally away >> from the chimney. >> >> >> >> I am concerned about a couple of things: >> >> 1. Some day I may want to start a fire in the fireplace, and I do not >> want the heat to get to the antennas. This is why I have the TV antenna >> mounted below the top of the chimney. >> 2. I would like to avoid arching or lightning strikes, though I think >> it is quite common for most of us to have power lines around to contend >> with. Two thoughts here: >> >> >> 1. Of course, I will ground it all. >> 2. I wonder if the power lines might protect the lower antennas >> since lightning may hit them first. I mention this since the first >> thought >> was that the power lines might add to the lightning risk, not detract. >> 3. That said, lightning does what it wants, and even a nearby >> lightning strike, as opposed to a direct strike, will do significant >> damage. >> >> >> >> On that last point, I will share a short story. When in Louisiana many >> years ago, we got into a discussion about how lightning had destroyed a lot >> of equipment in a member’s shack. This included, as I recall, about 3-5 >> computers, and about as many radios. This was all sitting on a metal >> table. Due to the lightning storm, the Ham had disconnected all of the >> antennas. Lightning hit his tower and made the 2” jump to the table. The >> rest was history. But, that was not the story I wanted to tell. That was >> the discussion we were having. Another Ham broke in and told us that he >> had a tower at one end of his house which was operational, and he had just >> that day mounted a short marine antenna at the other end of the house on >> his chimney. It was a dark and stormy night the previous evening, and the >> lightning passed the tower to hit the yet unconnected marine antenna. So, >> lightning does not follow the rules. >> >> >> >> OK, so I diverged. I really would like to know what experience and >> advice you can offer me on my project. The power lines make me nervous, >> and I really wish my best mounting option were not in the heat zone of the >> chimney. >> >> >> >> Mark >> >> N5PRD >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> ________________________________________________ >> Brazos Valley Amateur Radio Club >> >> BVARC mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org >> ________________________________________________ >> Brazos Valley Amateur Radio Club >> >> BVARC mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org >> > > > -- > 431 Forest Circle > Ruston, LA 71270-2642 > H:318-251-2219 > C:318-265-2976 (text) > [email protected] > > ________________________________________________ > Brazos Valley Amateur Radio Club > > BVARC mailing list > [email protected] > http://mail.bvarc.org/mailman/listinfo/bvarc_bvarc.org >
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