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After all this discussion, I went on a field trip around the house,
garage and attic to note the grounding points.� <br>
<br>
There is no intersystem grounding block, per se.� There is a #6
ground wire from the AC Service breaker box to a ground rod located
at the back of the garage.� When AT&T installed our cable, they
ran a second #6 wire to a clamp they added to the same ground rod.�
So they are, in effect, grounded to the same point.<br>
<br>
There is a clamp on an exterior cold water pipe near the kitchen,
but I cannot figure out where that wire goes.� This is a very heavy
stranded copper cable in this clamp, probably 3/8" in diameter.<br>
<br>
The service ground is on the back of the garage.� My shack is on the
diagonal corner of the property, probably 150-160' away in a
straight line across the yard, the patio, and around the garage.� I
have no idea what the right way to connect them would be... if I
wanted to run a wire from my station ground to the service ground,
It would probably be close to 200' long, taking into account the
things I need to go around.� Is that a low impedance connection?<br>
<br>
I was hoping that I could locate that very heavy line up in the
attic somewhere with all our utility equipment.� Hoping that it,
too, is connected to the service ground, it would be easier to
connect my station ground to that, but no luck.� I don't know how to
proceed.<br>
<br>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 5/27/21 2:25 PM, Robert Polinski via
BVARC wrote:<br>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Most lightning damage done in a house is�
due to a poor grounding system on the AC service. All service
panels should have at least 1 8ft ground rod with a min of #6
ground wire going to the panel board. The size of this
conductor is dependent on the size of the service. In many
cases, this ground is missing, the clamp has rusted off, or is
just making a poor connection. In many areas, the copper
thieves have cut the pole grounds, making your rod the last
defense before the surge hits your home. Ground rods need to
have an impedance of lest than 25 ohms, sometimes more than 1
rod is needed to get this. Warning, before you do any checking
or service on your grounding system, turn off your main
breaker & test your ground wire with a clamp on amp meter.
If it indicates any current, it is a sign that the power co.
ground is bad & working on it could cause electrocution.
Call an electrician. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">����The second issue is the failure to bond
all grounds together. Newer electrical services are required
by code to have a intersystem bonding block. On this block it
has terminals for bonding CATV phone & any other systems
to the service ground. You ham station grounding system MUST
be bonded (connected) to this system with a #6 ground wire.
This is a NEC code requirement and a must to prevent station
damage �& possibly a fire. If you do not connect the 2
systems together, and a strike hits the power line, the
lightning will seek the lowest impedance �path to ground. If
your station ground is lower than the service ground, it will
pass thru your equipment to find it. Bonding the ground
together eliminates this problem. Robert KD5YVQ <o:p></o:p></p>
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<pre class="moz-quote-pre" wrap="">________________________________________________
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<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Wes Clavey, W5WMC</pre>
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