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Info on Lightning Conductors

 

I am seeking information on lightning conductors for homes. I would appreciate if someone will tell me how these conductors work, how efficient they are, are they appropriate for installation on homes and where I can order for one in the United States

Thanks,

Hari Kaliath
- Malone, NY

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This site is about anodizing, plating, powder coating, and other facets of metal finishing--so it's probably not a promising place for you to post such an inquiry. But done is done and we'll see if anyone responds.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

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That depends.

Lots of old mansions had lightning rods. This is a pointy metal rod or rods on the highest part of the roof. The highest and metal would attract most of a strike. This was conducted to a copper rod in the ground by a heavy gage woven copper mesh wire or about 2 Ga solid copper. This took most of the power to the ground. Most, but not all.

Think of this like the golfer holding his club and takes a strike on the club, or the one that stands under the only tree in 500 yards. Kills quite a few in FL each year.

Search the internet for places that sell. Not many stores carry them any more.

If you are talking about the lightning protection for an old time TV antenna, see radio shack. Your TV will still be fried, but it might not blow up.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida

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A simple system over here in the UK consists of a air termination network normally aluminium tapes fitted to a 20m by 10m grid matrix along the ridge, eaves and gable ends, held in place by slate hold-fasts on top of the tiles. Then a down tape to earth is fitted ever 20m to include the corners of the struture. Then at the base of each down conductor a earth electrode is installed into the ground normally to a depth of 2.4m but this depends on what resistance to earth is required, over in this country the complete system has to be less than 10 ohms. The system can consist of copper or aluminium conductors but copper tape has to be laid in the ground. Hope this has been of some assistance to you.

Mick(lightning conductor engineer)

Mick Brealey
- UK