[Elecraft] Avoiding costly lightning damage to your radios gear

Tue Oct 30 14:45:04 EDT 2018

This is key.  I spent most of my professional life as Director of 
Engineering in TV stations.  Our towers were hit in nearly every
thunderstorm (1000 - 1600 foot towers are targets) but never had
any lightning damage to towers, antennas or equipment because the
towers were properly grounded, all the feedlines were bonded to
the tower, ground system and building and the buildings had a
complete perimeter ground.

The same holds true for amateur installations ... install a proper
lightning ground on the tower(s), bond the feedlines to the towers
at the top, bottom and every 100 +/- feet.  Install a complete
perimeter ground for the house; bond it to the power line entrance
ground *and* bond the feedlines to the perimeter ground ring where
they cross it.  Bond all the equipment chassis together *INCLUDING*
all computers, network switches, routers, telephone equipment, etc.

If you decide you can't afford to install proper bonding and grounding,
be prepared to replace all the electronic equipment in your home and
shack when your number comes up.

73,

    ... Joe, W4TV

On 2018-10-30 12:17 PM, John K9UWA wrote:
> In the fall of 1988 I installed a 160 foot tower. I already had a 120 foot tower and
> an 88 foot tower In the spring of 1989 the tall tower was hit by a direct hit and it
> was about 10K to repair all the damage. My homeowners insurance company was
> not at all impressed. I was given Assigned Risk Homeowners insurance and they
> also told me. You have 30 days to either get all those antennas and towers on the
> ground or else install a "Commercial Grounding System" or else your insurance is
> cancelled. At that time I am sure the mortgage company woudn't have been at all
> impressed.
> 
> During the summer of 1989 I installed. 100 Ground Rods some in a radial pattern
> away from the towers and some in a perimeter ground around the house. The
> Radial pattern from the towers is in excess of 1/3rd the total height of the tall
> tower. ground rods are all 16 feet apart. All are connected by 3/8" inside diameter
> copper tubing silver soldered to the ground rods. A total of about 1200 feet of
> copper tubing.  I installed many Polyphaser protection devices on coax cable lines
> Rotors 5 of them on the three towers relay boxes to switch the 30 some yagi
> antennas on the towers and wire low band antennas. Hundreds of wires
> connecting all the relay switchboxes that select whatever antenna configuration
> you might want. In addition to all of the above we have Whole House Protection
> device on the main breaker box. And an additional one on a Sub Breaker box that
> is in the hamshack room. All devices in the hamshack have their own grounding
> strap that is connected directly to the ground strap a 2 inch wide copper strap
> along the backside of the table that has the equipment on it. As a last line of
> defense each Band Coax that enters the hamshack room has one of MFJ's Arc
> Plug switches and I have never blown any of the arc plugs. Because I am in
> Florida for 6 months of the year and the station is in Northern Indiana I operate it
> remotely while in Florida.
> 
>   I am the lightning rod for the entire neighborhood. I am within a few feet of being
> the highest point in the county.
> 
> The tall tower has had MANY direct hits since installing the commercial style
> ground system in 1989. I had a Hit Counter on the tower for a few years until I
> broke it one day while climbing on the tower. I think the counter had over 100 hits
> registered. To Date ZERO DAMAGE to anything in the house or on the towers.
> That is ZERO DAMAGE. A great big THANK YOU to the guys at Polyphaser for
> all the advice as to what to install and where to install it.
> 
> I do have to retract one portion of the above statement. Once after a major hit the
> whole house protector on the main breaker box was smoking after the hit. Wife
> came into the shack and said that box on the breaker box is smoking. I told Jean
> that the box wasn't old enough to smoke. She didn't see the humor in that one. I
> called Polyphaser on the phone and the nice lady asked me one question. Was
> anything in the house damaged other than the whole house protector? I answered
> NO everything in the house and on the towers is all OK. I then asked her to
> overnite me a replacement box since it was at that time over 10 years old and
> finally gave its little life to allow the rest of the house ZERO DAMAGE. We were
> into our normal major spring time storm season. New Whole House protector
> arrived and was installed the next day.
> 
> And to date Twenty Nine years later
> ZERO DAMAGE Again a big thank you to Polyphaser Turn BLITZ into BLISS.
> 
> So YES a Tower can be protected from damage. When the TV stations and Radio
> station towers get hit they don't even go off air. Neither does my Ham Station.
> 
> Copy the URL below into your favorite browser for a you tube video of my  QTH.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXvRrummVFY
> 
> The Video was made while we were installing a new low band receive antenna at
> 150 foot level on the tower. Drone and GoPro headband cameras. Yes that crane
> would do 275 feet from it's base. Yes that is ME in the Man Cage along with Dan
> one of the Fruchey Iron workers. I wearing the GoPro headband camera and my
> friend Dino Raptis KR9V operating his Drone. Thanks to Dino KR9V as all the
> video equipment is his and his editing to produce the You Tube Video
> 
> 73
> 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
> 
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