w_tom wrote:
bud-- wrote:

Finally, as a ham, then appreciate this figure from industry
professionals:
http://www.erico.com/public/library/...es/tncr002.pdf

w_ has a fetish about 200+ ft lightning rods, aka tower antennas. The
rest of us do not expect our equipment to survive a direct lightning
hit to our house.


AC electric wires above the street are 'antennas' connected directly
to every AC appliance inside a house. What is struck more often?
Highest wires connect lightning directly to household electronics. We
expect lightning to strike that wire - a direct strike to the house -
resulting in zero appliance damage. Lightning striking that wire is a
direct strike to AC appliances IF surge is not properly earthed by one
well proven 'whole house' protector.

Bud does "not expect our equipment to survive a direct lightning
strike" because Bud recommends plug-in protectors with no earthing.
Direct lightning strikes to household appliances means equipment still
survives. It means protection inside all appliances is not
overwhelmed. No damage from direct lightning strikes was proven about
25 times annually atop the Empire State Building even in the 1930.
Technology has been that well proven for that long.

A protector is only as effective as its earth ground which plug-in
solutions must ignore to sell grossly undersized and overpriced plug-in
protectors. No wonder plug-in protectors avoid earthing discussions.
Names such APC, Tripplite, Isobar, Belkin, and Monster Cable were not
in that list of responsible protector manufacturers. How do you know?
Where is their dedicated earthing wire? Earthing wire does not exist
on ineffective protectors.

Direct lightning strikes to household appliances via something
similar to an antenna (utility wires) means no damage if one properly
earthing 'whole house' protector is installed. That's one dollar per
protected appliance verses $25 or $100 per appliance for ineffective
plug-in solutions. Learn from the industry professional at:
http://www.erico.com/public/library/...es/tncr002.pdf

No earth ground means no effective protection. Necessary for DSL
modems. Telco installs a properly earthed 'whole house' protector on
phone lines - for free. But homeowner must install same on AC electric
to protect a DSL modem - and computer.

You dumb cluck. Every house is grounded at the entrance (meter) plus
every power pole has a ground discharge, a copper wire running the
length of the pole into the ground. Where do you live, in Antartica or
what?

John