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Frequency of thunderstorms
If I remember well my meteorology studies at the Air force, in average there are 20 millions
thunderstorms on the earth during one year, so in average 55,000 thunderstorms each day! We mean by
thunderstorm, the recording of at least one clap of the thunder (corresponding in the SYNOP weather
code to group 7, WW=17). Taking into account the duration of a thunderstorm (a few hours) we can say
that some 2600 thunderstorms rage on earth at each instant.
In general, the frequency of thunderstorms increases from the poles to the equator due to a progressive
increasing of the period of sunshine and moisture. In tempered European countries or in the northeastern
coast of the U.S.A. including New York, there are 4 to 7 thunderstorm days per year at spring, 9 to 14 in
summer, 2 to 5 in autumn and only one or none in winter. Reported on the year we observe 18
thunderstorm days per year on the seaside and 25 at a distance of about 300 km inlands. For your
information, the California coast records the less thunder events compared to all other states, with a
maximum of 5 thunderstorm days per year, when the central Florida supports up to 90 thunderstorm days
each year!
Without taking into account the influence of the latitude and moisture, being given the higher instability
of the atmosphere over lands in summer, the frequency of thunderstorms is usually higher than over the
ocean. At the seaside, thunderstorms mainly occur at night.
Crawlers, leader channels and CG lightning are three common appearances of lightning. Documents Chris
VenHaus, WPOD and Fiche W.L.
Driven up by the convective movements caused by a strong instability of the air, quite rapidly friction
occurs inside a thunderstorm cloud between droplets or ice particles. These sheerings and collisions lead
to charge the cloud of static electricity, the negatives values gathering at the lowest level as the ground is
charged positively, while positive particles gather on top of the cloud, near the famous anvil. When the
static charge reaches a threshold, a leader channel is created between the cloud base, searching to reach
the ground, and its counterpart in the ground, from which ions escape, searching the negative particles in
the cloud base. This channel contains ionized atoms, ions and free electrons; this is conductive plasma.
When both channels encounter at mid height, a huge discharge occurs in a few microseconds (typical
1.8 s). When the connection is established, the leader channel free its energy, reaching temperatures
exceeding 50,000 during one microsecond, compressing highly the surrounding air. This phenomenon
creates a huge explosion developing a shock wave that propagates a few kilometers away.
Now that a channel is created between the cloud and the ground, a discharge
can occur. These discharges can burst out either between the cloud and the ground
as in our example (CG lightning) or between the different parts of a same cloud
(CC lightning of Crawler), or at last between different clouds constituting a super
cell.
When the channel is triggered off, the lightning strikes the ground following the
path of least resistively, hence its path in zigzag. In the case of a CG lightning,
only the first return lightning displays a tree structure while the successive
discharges will always use the same channel, giving to the lightning the
impression of flashing like in the film displayed at left.
We can record up to 30 return discharges coming from the ground in a period of one to two seconds,
giving the feeling that the lightning is persistent and very bright. When the lightning stroke, the cloud
reload itself a few times depending its maturity and its activity. Some thunderstorms cells can generate
more than 100 lightning per minute while the less active emit only one lightning during all their life cycle,
so in a period of one hour.
These lightning find their origin in the high value of the local electrical field that can reach a potential
exceeding some thousands volts per centimeter just before the discharge! Discharge currents display a
peak energy ranging between 18 and 31 kA including short variations up to 24 kA/s. But they can also
reach more than 200 kA during a few microseconds! The conductor (a wire or a tower) is subject to huge
voltage too that can reach 750,000 V! Induction generated in electrical circuits of a house can generate
voltages exceeding 100,000 V!
A tower or any elevated structure is also a huge generator of voltage. The potential difference between
the top and the base of a 10m high (33 ft) tower is about 30,000 V during thunder weather. If this energy
is not dispersed away, the least object showing the lowest impedance will be seen as a perfect sink. If you
are just in contact with your equipment in such a circumstance, you will endure a severe strike although
all is well grounded, excepting you.
At last, a typical thunderstorm releases as much energy as 1 MT of TNT and up to day nobody has find
a mean to stock and exploit this energy yet. When one tells you that trying to resist to this energy is a lost
fight this has nothing exaggerated...
The bright lighting that we observe during a thunderstorm is accompanied by several huge impulses of
energy that spread in the electromagnetic spectrum 1[1]. During a lightning, most signals are pulsed DC
that are often preceded by the release of radio electrical energy (RF) during the first rise of the pulses. A
lightning strike lasting as short as 0.25 s radiates a radio electrical energy at 1 MHz audible on a
shortwave receiver. As the duration increases, the signal slowly drifts down in frequency. A 12 s impulse
for example radiates a RF signal at 20 kHz. Listen to a shortwave receiver during such events, these low
frequencies crackle for dozen of minutes as if there were spark in the air! And this is well what happens,
and much more...
These low frequencies radiations can be picked-up by a small LF antenna and directed to a computer
that will analyze the signal intensity and it is distance. Some manufacturer like Boltek provide a
"lightning detection tracker" (using a PCI card or the serial port of your PC completed with a software)
that warns you when the energy reaches a threshold.
If we are able to see and hear these lightning, due to their extremely high currents and voltages, there is
no doubt that they also produce undesired effects on equipments powered on the main that is a great
friend of dame Nature and Jupiter, famous for holding the lightnings in his hands. I have thus only one
recommendation to suggest you: protect you against their angry!
Thor's hammer...
This is the story of an amateur radio whose house
was stroke by a violent lightning during spring
months. He thought that he was well protected but
he wasn't... Indeed, the strike was such that the
shock was felt in a nearby house and the noise what
so loud that the OM thought that his pylon 15m high
collapsed. Hopefully the pylon was up but...
...all the electrical head exploded : all 64 amps fuses, the meter, the circuit
breaker, the relay, including the TV, the video recorder, the digital phone,
the computer screen and its video board, the modem, and last but not least,
the computer motherboard burnt, although all these devices where switched
off and linked to a lightning conductor that exploded too !
The VHF RTX that was switched off was stroke also and the fuse equipping
the HF RTX blew out. Its 30 Ah power supply was hit and the switch on/off
button was damaged. At last the motherboard of the small rotator AR-40
burnt also but as strange as it is all antennas were preserved and continue
working like usual !
The sole common point between all these devices is that all they were
linked to the same ground. In other words, the lightning went up by the
ground!
So the lesson is next: never say that a good ground can preserve you from
a direct strike. In such circumstances this accident confirms that a
difference of potential can always exist between two grounded objects and
damage your ham shack.
Youre only safe protection 100% sure is to unplug all your electrical
devices from the power line, switch off your devices, and get a good
insurance... Hope this helps!
After a first look at your material you will quickly discover that your ham shack is
invaded by dozen of devices and twice as much wire. To manage this installation
that can quickly become complex, you must draw this installation on paper in a
block diagram like the one displayed at right, including all peripherals, all I/O lines,
all ground lines from chassis, and power requirements. Now, whatever the
complexity of your installation, you have under the eyes a very simple
representation of all interconnections. The red box contains all devices that you
For this case study I took my own small ham shack as practical example. As you can see it exceeds
rapidly 20 gears and this one doesnt practically include any workshop equipment (no oscilloscope or any
other test or measurement device). This is really a very simple installation that most active amateurs know
probably very well. But how to remember all their I/O circuits, their gingival power requirements to
purchase the suited protectors? This is simple.
We are going to place all these equipments and their I/O lines in a block diagram. This drawing will
represent the electrical circuit that the lightning might potentially follow to destroy your equipment if
there is an entry point of less resistively. Therefore you must include in this diagram all devices to protect
and all electrical connections made between them. Represent each device by a rectangle and write its
name inside. Represent the wires by simple lines. Do not forget to draw a ground wire from the chassis of
each equipment. Even passive components, USB devices and the antenna coaxial switch must be included
in the diagram.
Knowing that a lightning can jump from one metal object to another within a radius of 1.2m (4 ft),
insert also in the diagram all metallic devices located within 1.2m around your radio equipment. That can
be a metallic frame, a metallic desk or a chair, a metallic bin, a telephone or even the case of your
computer. Don't forget any device because the lightning is very clever to find the least weak point of your
radio electrical installation and the path of least resistively.
Then project all I/O connections and feed lines, what we call the circuits, to one side of the diagram for
a better clarity. Align them along a bus as displayed above. In addition, on each feed line write the
maximum power sustained, the range of frequencies, the type of feeder, the type of connector and its
gender if required (i.e. Coax, PL-259, 1kW, HF). At last, circuits side and close to each I/O device write
the voltage and current requirements (i.e. 220 V, 2A). These indications will help you later to select the
appropriate protector.
When your diagram is complete, reflecting all electrical devices and I/O of your ham shack verify each
of them to check if you don't forget a connection or left a peripheral aside. Once done, take your largest
red pen and draw a large frame around all devices. All wires entering this frame must be protected!
In identifying all devices and I/O lines of your ham shack, you have already realized 1/4th of your
project. But we have still to protect each of these devices with a good system, then create a single ground
point and bind this "point" to a ground system located outdoor in order to dissipate the lightning energy
away from the house. Let's examine each step separately.
If the individual protector can be a simple electrical component like a shunt device, its sensitivity is of
the uttermost importance to protect your assets. Indeed, like you cannot block the water flowing in your
sink with a too small stopper, you cannot install any kind of protector on your devices.
The front-end stage of a transceiver for example consists in FET
transistors like the ones displayed at left from Zetex. These small
components are known to be very sensitive to overdrive (i.e. high
VSWR). They display in fact a maximum tolerance just a few volts
above the operating value. The I/O ports (serial, etc) of you computer
are also very sensitive and it happened that plugging simply the mouse
in its port, amateur short-circuited their mother board. That means that
the protector must be selected with a great attention to let pass through
the least energy as possible in respect with the specifications of your
device. Find the proper protector capable to limit the lightning
discharge is your first objective.
Manufacturers sold probably as many protectors as there are devices to protect, or almost. They come
in different shapes, several range of frequencies, suited for AC or DC power, Telco, IT network, in single
or multiple circuit lines. We must thus well define our scope. We can divide protectors in five major
categories:
- The coaxial surge protector
- The AC power protector (most devices powered on main)
- The Telco protector (for the telephone, modem, ADSL, etc)
- The circuit breaker (a shunt for all external devices, i.e. the antenna rotator or elevator)
- The ITW Linx surge protector and alike (for IT networks in UTP)
The coaxial surge protector
Sometimes called a lightning arrester, the coaxial surge protector is designed to join two segments of
coaxial cable. Inserted in-line on your feeder it protects your antenna. A quality product should not add to
system neither SWR (the worst display a VSWR 1.2:1), nor insertion loss, nor return loss and it must
operate in a wide range of frequencies and be compatible with your emitting power, match to the load and
using the right connector type (i.e. 1.5-50 MHz, 2 kW, 50 ohms, SO-239). Note however that some
models are not suited for transmitting or do not provide both genders M/F. Of course like most protectors
there are two sides, to not reverse if you want that your protection works properly!
At left a gas-tube protector with N-connectors from Nex Tek. At center and at right the
classic coaxial surge protectors equipped with UHF connectors and a bulkhead mounting
from respectively Industrial Communication Engineers and PolyPhaser.
Dipole fed with an open-wire must be protected in another way, using a shunt-type protector for
example instead of an in-line model. How that works? Use two identical gas-tube surge protectors and
install them at each leg of the feed line near the entry point (usually approximatly 10m below the dipole).
Most are capable to sustain a current peak of 40-50 kA (on 8/20 S IEEE standard) and voltage exceeding
1000V. They work in frequencies ranging from DC to 2 GHz; they provide a bi-directional protection and
are weatherproof.
Aside the HF, V/UHF or broadband surge protectors, there are models specialized for repeater duplexer
antennas, GPS, radio, TV, CCTV antennas, etc. They are usually available with a flange or a bulkhead
mounting like the model displayed above, allowing screwing it easily on the single point ground plate
(see below).
The AC power protector
This is a protector well know by amateurs and other handyman. Most devices of your shack are
probably powered on the main, 220V or 110V. Like the telephone outlet, the AC power outlet is specific
to each country due to the non-standardization of the connectors at worldwide scale. So you must buy it in
your country to prevent any hardware compatibility problem. But this is not enough. Many "AC
Lightning protector" are not what they claim to be but simple outlets protected against voltage surge,
sometimes coupled to an uninterrupted power supply or even simple multi adaptors equipped with a
power switch. If some use a safety ground wire, this latter is unable to carry away the surge of a lightning
strike. Even a ground wire made of #14 AWG is too inductive with respect to the short interval during
which the current intensity "explodes" in a strike. None of these products will ever protect your
equipment excepting against line noises.
A good AC power protector able to redirect the RF energy of a strike to the
ground must be placed in-line with your device and protected with a metallic
housing to avoid melting under the strike conditions. It must match your
voltage and current requirements. In my block diagram there are 7 devices
powered on 220V at 2A maximum, plus the transceiver and the amplifier that
draw each 220V at 16A maximum.
You can combine all small devices powered under 220V at 2A maximum on
a single AC power line protector. You can combine them up to the limit of the
circuit protector current limit (usually 15 or 20A in using a model similar to
the one displayed at right).
Once protected, the AC power can then be distributed to each of the equipment elements using a multi
adaptor optionally equipped with a switch. Drawing high current, I would recommend a separate protector
for the amplifier power feed (15A) and another similar protector for the transceiver. Some high-end
equipment might require a more powerful protector, up to 200A.
At last GPS, TV, CCTV and other repeater feed lines require also a dedicated AC or DC protector able
to separate the RF energy form the current and protect each device in respect to its requirements.
The Telco/datacom protector
Like the power outlet seen previously, the telephone line connector comes also in many types specific
to each country. There are also technical differences, to name the classic old POTS to the digital terminal
including a built-in answering machine or a video system. The oldest use a balanced line powered at -48V
DC while modern devices are powered either via the line or on the main. Depending the model, an in-line
DC protector (for POTS) or an in-line AC power protector (for devices powered on 220V AC) will be
effective.
This telephone line will be probably also used for the asynchronous
modem or your DSL connection. Most of the time these interfaces use
modular connectors RJ-11 or RJ-45. Using a plastic housing, from an
electrical point of view these connectors are very fragile and they cannot
sustain the surge energy of a lightning strike. In such occasions either the
connector is welding or is fusing.
At last, plugged in an interface card, in case of surge these connectors can
short-circuit, burn the printed circuit boards, and create arcs on equipments.
So, as long as you can, avoid using these connectors and select a telephone line protector accepting bare
wires like the model displayed above. This model protects also DSL connection or your UTP home
network. In case of technical problem, call your phone distributor for help.
The circuit breaker
All devices located outdoor must also be protected, beginning with the antenna rotator and maybe the
antenna elevator. The rotator of the antenna system can be driven by a relay, an electronic system or even
optical encoders in the most advanced systems. Each model requires an in-line shunt device appropriate to
the type of interface and voltage requirements.
Three lightning primary surge protectors. At left a device suited to a rotator controller with 8
lines, IS-RCT from PolyPhaser. At center a network protector ITW Linx category 5. At right an
ITW Linx protector category 6, one of the first models suited to a router.
For reaching this objective we need to create a "single point ground panel", SPGP for short. As its
name states, it will be the sole ground point in your ham shack. It is important that this ground displays
the lowest electrical potential of your room, what we already introduced when speaking about RFI and
equipotent.
To achieve this you need to buy a copper plate (some
use a copper pipe) large enough to lay down all your
surge protectors, say at least 50x50 cm (1.6x1.6 ft) if
your protectors are not numerous and not too large. I
displayed at left one of the models sold by PolyPhaser, a
US company represented worldwide. This plate comes
with a fiberboard back and it suited to small to medium
radio stations. Two copper straps 38 mm wide (1.5") and
their accessories are also provided, the first to make the
junction to the external grounding system, the second to
bind the chassis ground of all your equipment.
Of course for a large contest station you can bind
several plates together or use a wider copper strap (up to
15 cm wide or 6" at PolyPhaser).
We saw in the previous page that each of your equipment chassis had to be connected to the SPGP. To
make this possible in a small station you can run a bus bar along the back of the station desk and
connecting it to the SPGP second strap. The bus bar can be a piece of copper water pipe, a wide flat
copper braid or, better, a copper strap too. The width of this strap should be between 30 and 80 mm (1-3"),
the larger the best to keep the inductance as low as possible as the RF tends to travel on the outside of the
conductor (the famous "skin effect").
As you ham shack will probably grow with years, think to buy an oversized SPGP. You will maybe
install a second tower with its rotator in the future; get new gears powered on the main, new coaxial
cables, etc. So instead or having to rearrange all these devices on a plate became too short, it is wiser to
foresee now this expansion, and to leave some room left for an additional AC power protector, one or
several coaxial protectors and maybe one more rotator or line shunt device. The alternative is to foresee
now the place and connections for a second SPGP that will be linked to the first.
Do not add protector for your input devices like the microphone, the key, the headphone or the mouse
or any other device connected to a controller. Indeed these controllers, to name the transceiver or the
computer are already grounded to the SPGP through the ground strap and the input devices will be
automatically grounded to their chassis by design.
Last but not least, it is time to mount your surge protectors on the SPGP. Like on the above picture try
to separate the protected side of the SPGP (above center) from the unprotected one (below center). To
accomplish this, coaxial protectors and most other devices are provided with a label stating what side
must be connected to the "outside world" and which one must be connected to the equipment. For
example, on the coaxial protector is its labeled "Antenna on one side and "Equipment" on the other
one. For a telephone or a network protector, the label states "Lines" and "Equipment", thus there is
no risk either of inverting the device. At last for an AC power protector it is not always labeled, but the
power cord must be placed on the outside, "Antenna" side like on the above image as your multi-adaptor
cord will be plugged in the outlet(s), thus "Equipment side".
The spark-gap level
Security side, many installations create functional SPGP
but they forget to respect some basic security rules. For
example, in order that the SPGP works properly, you must
maintain a physical separation of approximatly 50 cm (1.5
ft) between the unprotected cabling (rotator cable, antenna
coax, incoming AC power, etc) and the protected wiring
of the same connections. Why? Because during the short
time that the voltage flows through an in-line protector,
there is a voltage difference when it crosses the input to
the output side of the protector. At 66% of the velocity of
light in using coaxial of low velocity factor, a duct 30 cm
long (1 ft) is crossed in about 1.7 nanoseconds. In this
This SPGP is not fully secure as it does not
short interval, any significant potential difference (if a
respect the "spark-gap level". Above left for
device is not grounded for example) or inductance
example the gray coaxial located on the
increasing can be a sink and thus experiment a lightning
unprotected side is bending down too close its
strike. This "spark-gap level" is established in respecting
protected counterpart. Idem with the two coaxial
this separation of 50 cm. If you attach your cables well in- marked in red below left. There are all chances
that the protectors failed due to a too short
line, thus in opposite direction, you prevent this problem.
spark-gap during an intense strike event.
In the same way, if you place the SPGP vertically, the
thick cables like the coaxial will have, due to the gravity, a
tendency to bend down and come close, and sometimes to
touch the wire on the unprotected side of the plate. If this
happens during the strike event, there is a chance for a
spark-gap breach of the protectors between the cables,
thus a failure of your protection plan.
This rule can be somehow pushed if your tower is located a few hundreds meters from your house.
Over 200 or 500m away for example, any strike will be dissipated to a large degree before it gets to the
house. That has some effect in reducing voltage at the SPGP, allowing attaching all cables near each other.
However the potential risk of an arc will remain. Remember Murphy's Law.
How to attach the surge protectors on the SPGP?
Usually protectors come with a flange or a bulkhead mounting. This latter allows to easily screwing the
foot in L-shape to the panel. Depending on the thickness of the panel metal and the characteristics of the
underlying support material (if any), it may be necessary or appropriate to drill a small pilot hole so that
the machine screw does not buckle the surface or raise the panel from the backing material (what might
happen using a fiberboard-backed copper panel). What is important here is that the protectors have a
consistent, clean, flat, low impedance connection with the SPGP. If the panel is located in a noncontrolled environment, say lock up in a box outdoor, then it may be appropriate to use a small amount of
conductive grease or simply Vaseline between the protector mounting bracket and the panel to ensure that
moisture does not deteriorate the connection.
When all devices are screwed or bolted in the SPGP, you still have to find a place in the ham shack to
attach it, after which you can screw and plug all your cables and wires in their respective surge protectors.
Ideally the SPGP should be placed within a few meters (1 to 10 ft) of the radio station equipment, inside
of an external wall, close to a window or mounted in a full-fledged through-wall entrance panel. It should
be placed between and inline with the entrance of the coax cables and the radio equipment. Assuming
that it is in a controlled environment, there is no need to have a protective cover or box. Most amateurs
mount the panel on the radio station wall midway between the coax entrance into the room and the
operating desk. This helps to achieve a cable path layout that minimizes the potential to mix protected and
unprotected cables. Creating the layout of the protectors on the panel will require some thought.
As displayed at left on the installation of Bill Otten, KC9CS, it is
not necessary to protect your SPGP with a cover or to place it in a
box. If it is well grounded and each of the chassis is connected to
the panel, there are no safety issues or problems since no current
must flow on its surface. If you place the SPGP outdoor with AC
protectors, of course in this case you must place it under cover, i.e.
inside an electrical weatherproof plastic box.
Then take all your ham shack cables and plug them in their
respective protected devices. From the outside do the same and
connect all your unprotected wire on the other side of the SPGP.
Attach also the ground wires of your chassis to the ground strap. If
necessary label each connector or identify each pair with a colored
strap if the protector is hidden. If the cables bend attach them with
mini-clamps or straps to respect the spark-gap level.
SPGP impedance
Theoretically to prevent any energy sink, all devices and conductors must display the same electrical
potential. As we have already told and will say again, if during a surge event the energy finds a path of
lower impedance than another, be sure that it will follow that conductor to the end, what is maybe not the
function of your ground system... So to be sure that your ground connection offers the lowest resistively,
all wires connections must run on the shortest distance, in straight line (with a minimum of bends in the
wire) and as wide as possible, hence the utility of installing a wide copper strap to the outside instead of
using a simple AWG wire, even of large diameter (at least #10 AWG). Due to its design this latter is
inadequate to disperse the energy quickly and safely.
The fact to run the copper strap ground from the SPGP in straight line to the external grounding system
is easier to say that to do. Indeed, most of the time the environment forces you to divert from the straight
line due to an obstruction, a wall, a door or even for esthetic considerations. So, knowing that, run the
strap... as straight as possible to the outside!
Be only aware that no conductor like to be compressed, what modify its impedance, nor change of
direction. In bending a conductor at 90 for example its inductance will increase of approximatly 0.15 H
on a distance less than 25 mm (1"). Repeated on a few meters this cumulative effect can significantly
increase the transmission line inductance. Then, due to the nature of the field components, a wide wire
like a strap as a lower inductance per length, compared to a rounded conductor, and has minimal
inductance for turns. The electromagnetic field doesn't like change direction neither. Each bend or turn
represents a large change in the field orientation over short distance. If the change is large enough, some
of the electrons traveling in the conductor can leave the wire and find by themselves a path to the ground:
there is an arc. Therefore if you desire that the grounding system works properly you need, here also, to
respect the laws set by Nature.
Whatever the size of the conductor, a wire has inductance. However larger is the wire size, lower is its
inductance. Then to reduce the skin effect, the fact that the RF energy travels near the surface of the wire
instead of using the central core, we should use oversized conductors to get the best path to the ground.
That means that a railroad bar should be the best connector; it is massive and offers a large surface.
Unfortunately this solution is not really conceivable as such a bar is first prohibitively expensive but also
extremely heavy and cumbersome. So we need to find a cheaper solution but offering similar
performances if possible.
To meet all these criteria at low cost but without
impacting the security, there is a solution, and very easy
to handle. It is using a copper strap in #26 AWG or 0.4
mm thick and at least 38 mm wide (1.5"). Displaying a
lower inductance than the big #4/0 AWG cable (16.4
mm), it is also much cheaper and lighter (14 kg/100m vs.
110 kg/100m). With its 38 mm wide, its cross sectional
area is similar to the #6 AWG wire (6.95 mm, over 9
kg/100m) and almost as light. If you install a Belden
9913 coaxial cable, its perimeter represents about 32 mm
or 1.27" of incoming conductor surface. Our wide copper
strap is still larger and its surface makes it ideal for
KC2TN's SPGP. Note above left the braid
conducting the strike's RF energy to the ground. Of
grounding all chassis and very below the large
course, if you use 2 or more such coax, you can purchase
copper strap going to the external grounding
a 10 cm wide (4") strap. For a 7/8" Hard-line (22 mm)
system.
a minimum strap width of 8 cm (3") is needed but 10 cm
(4") would be better. If you work with three Hard-lines,
triple these numbers.
To be sure to have the best path, inductance is calculated on the length of the connections between the
SPGP and the ground, as well as on the number and sharpness of the turns. In practice this is the
inductance of the coax cables between the antennas and the SPGP that you need to compare to the
calculated inductance of the ground conductor.
At last, to please dame Nature and present her a path of least resistively, we need to offer a ground path
larger than the total amount of coaxial surface area coming to the SPGP from the antennas. Why take the
coaxial for reference? Simply because since the most likely place for the surge current to originate is the
antenna, and the coax cables represent a relatively low inductance connection to the surge, it is important
that the connection to the earth ground be a more attractive (lower inductance) path than the path in any
other direction. The other wires (AC, telephone, etc.) are small and inductive in comparison to the
coaxial and can usually be ignored in figuring the width of the ground conductor. For that reason the use
of a copper strap larger that the perimeter of all coaxial is recommended.
We have now achieved our indoor installation. We have selected our surge protectors, learnt how to
mount them of the ground plate to get an effective protection against the lightning energy. Remain to bind
this ground to the external ground system.
2.4m or 8 ft long, copper clad. Each ground rod should have a cylindrical shape, sharp angles providing
area of potential arcs. You can also replace the rods by the ground steel frame that youd have sunk in the
concrete base of your tower. At last a cheap solution, but that we do not recommend, should be to connect
your copper strap to the grounded metal frame of a building or to the water-piping system, although an
external duct is far more secure.
All rods should have their connection with the copper strap exothermically bonded. Among the
manufacturers supplying the molds and fusing material, in the U.S.A. name Erico, Inc and Alltec Corp. If
you are not equipped for this operation, a locking system made of clamps could be used like lockers
provided by Tyco Electronics.
At left a way to bind a guy wire to the ground using a connector from Petuniaco. At
center, a standard roll of copper strap (2.2m x 38 mm or 75 ft x 1.5") sold by
PolyPhaser. At right if you cannot drive in the ground over 30 cm deep, the sole
alternative is to do for the best, driven for example a rod as deep as you can and
attach the strap just at ground level using a Tyco Electronics "Shear-Lok"
connector.
To disperse as much lightning energy as possible we need first to bind the domestic and the
shack/tower equipment grounds together creating a perimeter ground buried around the house and
interconnecting the utility ground with the panel/tower ground. This perimeter ground solves two
problems: it connects the otherwise separate utility and radio station grounds, and it minimizes the energy
potential beneath the house so that the structure is not forced to carry some of the strike energy.
Then you need to dissipate away the energy from the house and grounding your tower. To accomplish
this, ideally the tower should be separated from the house by 6 to 15m (20-50 ft) minimum. For security
reasons, if it can stand up independently of the house (self standing in the field or using guy-wires) the
tower must be erected 1.5 times its height away from any housing or public infrastructure as explained on
these pages dealing with this matter.
The fact to move the tower away from the house reduces also the magnetic energy flowing in the tower
that can couple with the wiring of the house. In addition you reduce the inductance of the coaxial line in
limiting the surge energy heading towards your equipment.
How to assembly the external grounding system? You need a lot of cooper straps, rods and either large
clamps or another means to connect the different parts together, good pliers and a hammer to drive rods
(and useful to fight against Thor's hammer.
metals can corrode the steel of the tower. Coat them with appropriate products like the one sold by
Anchor Guard.
I will survive
What about the lightest installations? I am aware that not all amateurs have a tower in their garden. If
this is of your concern, you will probably search for an external grounding system close to your house.
But do not select any kind of support. Do not use neither the electrical system, nor the metal building skin,
nor any pipe (metal cold water or stand pipe) to create your external ground. At worst use the building
steel but even this framework is not the best RF ground and is highly inductive compared to a true
external grounding system.
The purpose of the lightning grounding system is to survive to the lightning strike by ensuring that no
current will flow to your equipment using the I/O wires and cabling system. This is mainly accomplished
creating a single point ground panel to keep a same level of potential during a strike event independently
of how the SPGP is grounded.
Don't forget neither to leave the ham shack during a threat of a thunderstorm if you installed a SPGP.
Even if there is no current that flow between your equipments and on the SPGP, there are static because
you are placed above the ground level compared to the external grounding system. If you take the risk to
hold your metallic microphone in hand or to touch the chassis of a metallic gear during a strike event, for
dame Nature you will be the object displaying the lowest impedance. During the strike event there is no
doubt that the current will flow through you from all protected devices, including the chassis of your
transceiver to the ground.
Thunderstorms detectors being able to warn you when there is a lightning
activity within 15 km around your radio station, it is better to leave the room
as soon as you see or hear the thunder. As your equipment is grounded you
can leave them powered-on. This is a practice that follows all radio
broadcasters and equipments remotely operated like repeaters, which emitters
and amplifiers cannot be switched off at each strike event.
Of course like me you have probably heard many people telling that,
An Obo Bettermann
although they were protected, they were stroke by a direct lightning strike,
lightning
controller to place
and more than once coming back via the ground path. Sometimes there was
in your electricity
also either a coaxial or another device that was not protected... To reinforce
distribution panel.
your security, I suggest you to insert a second stage protection in placing
surge protectors in each single outlet system as well as lightning controller in
your main distribution panel.
By way of conclusion