Hello Dave! I just want you to know that of all the voices on RUclips, you put together some of the best information, in a way that works with the way I learn. As an aspiring operator(I test January 12th) the grounding of a home station is my first concern above anything else. I live on the crest of a ridgeline about 1000' above the surrounding terrain. We have had multiple nearby strikes over the nearly 17 years that we've lived here, and the threat has always been in the back of mind. Now I'll flash back to last July 7th. A typically hot, humid evening ripe for thunderstorms, I was finishing up some chores in my firewood yard, and with dark clouds and thunder to the east, and visible lightning striking a mountain and associated radio tower 3.5 miles away, I thought it time to head for the house. Upon unlacing my boots a mere minute or two later, came a clap of thunder like I had never heard before. It shook my entire house like an earthquake. My son came to me, white as a sheet, asking: 'What was that!?' Later, when the weather threat had passed, I looked out a back window on the house, and noticed a burn mark on the end post of our chain link fence closest to the house. As I walked my property to assess any damage, I noticed that the lightning had traveled approximately 375 feet along the chain link fence, jumped across via a roughly 1 foot wide, 6 inch deep trench that it had blown out of the ground, to a storage shed. At the shed, the lightning jumped to the metal drip edge, blew a hole through the roof of the shed, and traveled the length of the drip edge to a woodshed addition on the other side. There, it decided to travel back to earth via a set of large tractor tire chains hanging on the main support beam, which was turned to splinters. From that point, the lightning dug another substantial trench approximately 40 feet, finally finding the roots of a 30 foot pine, splitting and killing the tree. Upon returning inside after my exterior inspection, it was found that every GFI outlet in the house had activated, and our washing machine as well as a dehumidifier had been destroyed. At a later date, when I was mowing, I happened to notice a scorch mark on the vinyl siding of the house near where the burned fence post had been found. Finding it curious, I took a deeper look. What I found was a piece of coaxial cable, with the connector cut off, and tucked underneath the siding. It was an old satellite TV coax and had been left there by a cable technician when we made the switch from one service to the other. He left the satellite coax connected to the house(including the main ground) and had invited in the lightning. I wish RUclips had the ability to share pictures, as it makes the story I described very much more real. My first concern when building my shack will be the grounding. Everything else will be secondary. It's not worth it to be unsafe about it. I appreciate everything you do for this hobby sir, and look forward to the next video! Have a great day!
Great advice as usual Dave. While I followed your advice from the start, one of the guys in our club installed a ground rod outside his shack this summer and was surprised how much his noise level improved. Cheers from Moose Jaw and good luck to you and the wife with fighting off Covid. Tim VE5THF
Never been hit, but I've seen some radios that have been. Some have no visible damage, just plain fried inside something. I disconnect every time I'm done even though my antenna is indoors as is the short coax. It's like belts and suspenders, if one fails, your pants don't fall, and the coax/power disconnect protects everything valuable. TU de KA8VLW, Ken, Michigan
Remember……lightning is always attracted to ground…I only got struck because my Maco was on the side of my tower The lighting passed my yagi and another ground plane on very top up to hit ground tower but Maco ground plane was in wrong spot wrong time. Again always disconnect at a barrel connector outside and move coax leading inside to radios If you do get struck by chance it will only destroy that antenna and coax down to barrel connection point If you leave live coax coming inside your putting your life and anyone else life at risk of being killed I almost was if I had gotten home 5mins sooner that day Trust me RG8 will bring a very violent lightning bolt into that room!!
I’ve been hit Direct strike to a Maco ground plane mounted on the side of my tower on a stand off mast I was in the front yard just got out of my truck and BOOM! Blew up everything in my room EVERYTHING!!! Power cords was disintegrated only the prongs inside outlets was left to any radio stereo alarm clock even my brass bed was struck left blue marks like a torch was held on the brass! Yeah I know what it’s like Please disconnect outside don’t trust lightning arrestors!! Never leave live coax coming into the house!
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Hello Dave! I just want you to know that of all the voices on RUclips, you put together some of the best information, in a way that works with the way I learn. As an aspiring operator(I test January 12th) the grounding of a home station is my first concern above anything else. I live on the crest of a ridgeline about 1000' above the surrounding terrain. We have had multiple nearby strikes over the nearly 17 years that we've lived here, and the threat has always been in the back of mind.
Now I'll flash back to last July 7th. A typically hot, humid evening ripe for thunderstorms, I was finishing up some chores in my firewood yard, and with dark clouds and thunder to the east, and visible lightning striking a mountain and associated radio tower 3.5 miles away, I thought it time to head for the house. Upon unlacing my boots a mere minute or two later, came a clap of thunder like I had never heard before. It shook my entire house like an earthquake. My son came to me, white as a sheet, asking: 'What was that!?'
Later, when the weather threat had passed, I looked out a back window on the house, and noticed a burn mark on the end post of our chain link fence closest to the house. As I walked my property to assess any damage, I noticed that the lightning had traveled approximately 375 feet along the chain link fence, jumped across via a roughly 1 foot wide, 6 inch deep trench that it had blown out of the ground, to a storage shed. At the shed, the lightning jumped to the metal drip edge, blew a hole through the roof of the shed, and traveled the length of the drip edge to a woodshed addition on the other side. There, it decided to travel back to earth via a set of large tractor tire chains hanging on the main support beam, which was turned to splinters. From that point, the lightning dug another substantial trench approximately 40 feet, finally finding the roots of a 30 foot pine, splitting and killing the tree.
Upon returning inside after my exterior inspection, it was found that every GFI outlet in the house had activated, and our washing machine as well as a dehumidifier had been destroyed.
At a later date, when I was mowing, I happened to notice a scorch mark on the vinyl siding of the house near where the burned fence post had been found. Finding it curious, I took a deeper look. What I found was a piece of coaxial cable, with the connector cut off, and tucked underneath the siding. It was an old satellite TV coax and had been left there by a cable technician when we made the switch from one service to the other. He left the satellite coax connected to the house(including the main ground) and had invited in the lightning.
I wish RUclips had the ability to share pictures, as it makes the story I described very much more real. My first concern when building my shack will be the grounding. Everything else will be secondary. It's not worth it to be unsafe about it.
I appreciate everything you do for this hobby sir, and look forward to the next video! Have a great day!
Thanks again Dave!
Thank you, Dave. N0QFT
Great advice as usual Dave. While I followed your advice from the start, one of the guys in our club installed a ground rod outside his shack this summer and was surprised how much his noise level improved. Cheers from Moose Jaw and good luck to you and the wife with fighting off Covid.
Tim VE5THF
Grounding fiberglass? Id have googled that before asking Dave😂
Never been hit, but I've seen some radios that have been. Some have no visible damage, just plain fried inside something. I disconnect every time I'm done even though my antenna is indoors as is the short coax. It's like belts and suspenders, if one fails, your pants don't fall, and the coax/power disconnect protects everything valuable. TU de KA8VLW, Ken, Michigan
Remember……lightning is always attracted to ground…I only got struck because my Maco was on the side of my tower
The lighting passed my yagi and another ground plane on very top up to hit ground tower but Maco ground plane was in wrong spot wrong time.
Again always disconnect at a barrel connector outside and move coax leading inside to radios
If you do get struck by chance it will only destroy that antenna and coax down to barrel connection point
If you leave live coax coming inside your putting your life and anyone else life at risk of being killed
I almost was if I had gotten home 5mins sooner that day
Trust me RG8 will bring a very violent lightning bolt into that room!!
Okay does anyone remember people disconnecting the coax and putting the end into a glass jar.
Yes. My grandpa always did that with coax from his CB antenna
I’ve been hit
Direct strike to a Maco ground plane mounted on the side of my tower on a stand off mast
I was in the front yard just got out of my truck and BOOM!
Blew up everything in my room EVERYTHING!!!
Power cords was disintegrated only the prongs inside outlets was left to any radio stereo alarm clock even my brass bed was struck left blue marks like a torch was held on the brass!
Yeah I know what it’s like
Please disconnect outside don’t trust lightning arrestors!!
Never leave live coax coming into the house!
did you completely disconnect the RG8 from your radio gear? sounds like you did not?
I am planning to erect a comet cha on top of a 40 foot medal telescopic What do i need? Thanks
her indoors