[Elecraft] Unhook *ALL* connections before Lightning storm

[John K9UWA]

Do TV Stations and Radio Stations and Cellphone towers disconnect all 
their equipment everytime there is a storm in the area?

Obviously the answer is NO they don't disconnect and they don't even turn 
their equipment off. Yet is survives direct lightening hits on their towers and 
equipment.

In other words there are ways that you also can protect your equipment 
without disconnecting it. You need a well designed ground system. This 
means a single ground system for everything that is in your home or a part 
of your antenna system. During a direct strike on the tower 90% of the hit 
should be bled off directly to ground through the ground system made up of 
many ground rods all connected together by proper copper connection. This 
leaves around 10% of the hit left for all the "Devices" that are connected to 
all the metal anythings that come and go from your home. Includes incoming 
power lines Telco lines Cable TV lines as well as all your rotor control lines 
relay lines and coax cables from the antennas. Anything that is metal that 
comes and goes from the house needs a protection device on it. 

I have three towers the tallest has antennas up to 175 feet above ground. 
The tallest trees here are around 70 feet high. So the towers get hit many 
times. They have been up since 1988. During the summer of 1989 I had a 
major hit on the tall tower that destroyed nearly everything in the house. TV 
sets microwaves all radios all computers many coax cables and other wires. 
But I learned the hard way to protect my system. I was placed on High Risk 
Homeowners insurance and the company that was assigned my insurance 
said I had 30 days to either get a proper ground system installed of get 
those towers all on the ground. We installed 100 ground rods all connected 
together by 1200 feet of 3/8" ID copper tubing. We installed a single point 
ground window where all the cables coming and going to the towers enter 
the house. Every wire has some sort of protection device on it. The main 
power line coming to the house has a protector device on it. The towers and 
antennas have since then withstood many strikes by lightening. Many 
surges from hits down the road that come in on the power lines. All with 
ZERO DAMAGE to anything in the house or on the towers. I did get lots of 
help from the techs at Polyphaser regarding how to build the system and 
how to install it. Total cost of this grounding system in 1989 was around 
$3,000 for all of it. Zero Labor as I and a couple other local hams installed all 
of it. Today we operate the station remotely during part of the winter so no 
way to unhook and rehook any of it. 

So you too can be safe and not worry about blowing up your equipment. 

Polyphaser Turn Blitz into Bliss.

John k9uwa

John Goller, K9UWA & Jean Goller, N9PXF 
Antique Radio Restorations
k9uwa at arrl.net
Visit our Web Site at:
http://www.JohnJeanAntiqueRadio.com
4836 Ranch Road
Leo, IN 46765
USA
1-260-637-6426