On 3/29/2011 5:12 AM, Phil Townsend wrote: > As a matter of fact during the lightning season I disconnect the antennas > from my gear when it looks like the Wx is gonna go south. A good idea, but the cables still enter your shack. Potentials that can create a "spark" a mile long won't be fazed by a gap a few feet long. :-) > If I understand correctly, I should also bond this ground rod #2 to the the > AC mains ground rod as well???? If there was no connection between your antenna system and equipment in your home, you wouldn't need to, but of course, there *is* a connection to your radio equipment inside so, "yes," you should bond the grounds together. > But if I do that then those antennas will be connected to the grounds in the > house via the AC mains ground rod????? > This seems counterintuitive? I mean... now there will be the very real > possibility of lightning in the house wiring??? Power utilities work on HV lines while they're hot. They can do this so long as the worker(s) and all their equipment and apparatus are at the same potential. It's a difference in potential that causes current to flow, and it's the current that creates the safety hazard. The goal of the electrical codes is to assure that a fault in the electrical system, or something outside like lightning, cannot force a difference in potential between the grounds. We can't keep lightning from "going" where it wants to, but we can take steps to assure that everything conductive ends up at close to the same potential.
None of this discussion really applies to a direct lightning strike. A direct strike to your antenna will likely vaporize it, your coax, any wire you use to bond grounds together, and probably set fire to anything flammable in the vicinity. The lightning problems we can deal with are currents induced in conductors from the impulse of near-by strikes. 73, Fred K6DGW Auburn CA ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
