How to make a lightning rod: lightning protection design, installation in a private house lightning rod and useful tips

Lightning protection mesh will be a metal wire structure with a diameter of six meters, which is made by welding. It should be placed on the roof and connected to the ground circuit with several power outlets.

This mesh is suitable for non-metallic roofs to protect one building, as other structures are located below the level. Also, the grid can be laid on the roof at the stage of construction of the house.

Protective wire can be made as follows:

1. Pull the cable on the insulators between two supports made of metal or wood.
2. Installation is performed at height 0,25 m on the conic.
3. The diameter of the wire must be at least 6 mm

You need to make a loop around the wire pipe and connect it to the lightning rod by soldering or welding. The drain is made of the same wire. As a result, we get a shack-like protection zone, which is suitable for roofs of any material, except metal.

A pin lightning rod is a pin with the following parameters:

• the cross-sectional shape may be round, rectangular or square;
• pin length at least 0,25 m;
• cross-sectional area 100 square mm.

It is the pin that takes on the key lightning strike, therefore, it must be able to withstand maximum loads of dynamic and temperature nature.

The material for the pin is selected as follows, so that he was not afraid of oxidation, it can be galvanized steel or copper, therefore it is impossible to paint such lightning protection. The cross-sectional diameter of the rod or pipe should be a minimum 12 mm. The end of the hollow pipe must be welded. The structure should be installed on the ridge of the roof on the mast of the required length.

Such protection is suitable for metal roofs, remember this, that the roof itself is also subject to grounding.

Grounding for lightning rod

A grounding conductor is required to discharge lightning current to the ground, it has a small fraction of electrical resistance. Grounding should be laid away from the porch of the house and the paths next to it, desirable, at a distance of about five meters.

If the soil is moist, and groundwater is less than one and a half meters, then you need to use a horizontal ground. It can be made with your own hands as follows:

1. Along the house, dig a ditch about six meters wide and about a meter deep..
2. Drill three galvanized water pipes with a diameter of up to 20 m and a length of up to 2 m at the bottom of the ditch every three meters. Leave about on the surface 5 div.
3. Take a wire with a diameter of at least 8 mm and weld to the pipes. You still need to weld the drain to the middle pipe. Bolts can also be welded to the pipes, to connect them with a copper cable.
4. Lubricate the bolts with solid oil, and bury the pipes.

If the soil is dry, and groundwater is quite deep, then make a vertical ground:

• take two rods on 2-3 m in length;
• kill them in the ground to a depth of about half a meter and at a distance of three meters from each other;
• connect them with a jumper with a cross section in 100 sq. m.

Such grounding can be used to protect electrical appliances and shields. Remember, that during a thunderstorm to be within a radius of four meters from the ground is extremely dangerous, otherwise there is a risk of getting under step voltage.

Lightning protection can also be placed on a tree, if it is above the house together with the antenna more than twice and is at a distance from the dwelling in 3-10 meters. In this case, lightning protection is made of wire with a diameter of about 5 mm, with one-way descent and one ground in the form of a loop.

If you put lightning protection against a linear type of lightning, that it will be ineffective when struck by ball lightning. In this case, so that the ball lightning does not hit the house, close all windows tightly, door, chimneys, and check, that the ventilation units were equipped with copper or steel mesh wire with cells close 3 cm and reliable grounding.

Expert advice for lightning protection of the house

Keep these tips and tricks in mind when installing and caring for lightning protection:

• To ground a metal roof, you can use storm drains as a drain.
• For the convenience of clogging the pipe, you can make scaffolding.
• The size of the protection zone can be determined using a right isosceles triangle. The leg should be located parallel to the ground.
• Do not place drains near the door.
• Do not forget to ground all metal roof structures.
• Joints on the protective structure are best welded.
• Before the start of the storm season, carefully inspect all parts of the structure and mounting locations each year. If something is wrong, should be replaced or painted in advance.
• The connection should be checked every three years for serviceability, clean the contacts and tighten loose connections or replace them with new ones.
• Once every five years, open the ground electrodes and check their connection and corrosion depth. If the rusty section is reduced by a third or more, it needs to be replaced with a new one.
• For greater reliability, you can install two outlets and clean regularly.

Remember, so that the lightning protection of your private country house can serve you properly for many years and protect in cloudy stormy weather, it must be properly installed and regularly maintained.