| Author |
Message |
Pat Bartlett (Muddog16)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 05, 2005 - 6:14 am: | |
I was reading the manual on my new inverter and i came across a section on lightening protection, and how to ground your inverter properly, soooooo.......my question is how many of you have been hit by lightening strikes, and what was the damaged caused? |
gillig-dan
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 05, 2005 - 9:03 am: | |
Never been hit by lightening but, a TV show I was watching the other night claimed one of the safest places to be in an electrical storm is in your car. The metal shell directs all the energy around the passenger compartment. The fact that you're on insulating tires has little to do with the protection a car gives.
Makes me wonder if I'm less safe in my Saturn with its plastic body panels.
Gillig-Dan |
Stan
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 05, 2005 - 11:31 am: | |
Lightning travels in compeletely unpredictable ways. I have done repairs to electrical and electronic items after a strike (also observed the damage to the building) and nobody can predict where it will go.
The electrical ground on an RV is not adequate for a lightening strike so it will arc at least one tire and it will blow out. One would expect the majority of the current to travel on the bus skin but you just can't be sure. In one building I saw where the lightning had hit the exterior light fixture, it traveled along the 14 gauge lighting wires on the second floor and then did a 180 and came back along the light wires on the first floor. At that point it exited by blowing the wood siding off the entire lower floor.
Voltages and currents are so extremely high that even a minute percentage of stray current can wipe out electronic equipment.
What this means is that you pay your money (for insurance) and play the odds (very few people get hit by lightening). |
Mike (Busone)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 05, 2005 - 12:59 pm: | |
I remember when I was a kid my mom always said not to use the microwave in a lightning storm. My dad would always tell her she was paranoid because the utilities were underground in our area. One stormy night she fired up the microwave even though she really did not feel comfortable. As soon as it started up we saw the brightest flash and BOOM. My dad ran over and unplugged the microwave and she was screaming. The next day I was on my way to school and noticed the neighbors lawn had bricks all over the place and the car parked in front of it was smashed to hell from the bricks. Turns out the lightning hit the neighbors chimney and blew the top 4' off. My mom still to this day will not use the microwave in a storm. |
Sojourner (Jjimage)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 05, 2005 - 2:04 pm: | |
Thanks for sharing the all mighty powerful strikes! And we NEVER forget the experience.
About Lightning Protection; “Do rubber tires have anything to do with protection from lightning?” (Also click on “MadSci Article 2”) http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/jul99/930682849.Ph.r.html
About inverter or any electronic appliances within metal shell such as most intercity coach are…they can only be damage thru outside source via power or signal wire that can be struck by lightning. Including roof top mounted antenna or wired accessory that not good grounded to metal roof.
Otherwise if connect to outside source is same as home residential building. You need a good surge suppressor or completely disconnect…with is NO OUTSIDE CABLE connected to coach while in electrical storm. A best surge suppressor is NO guaranty to fully protect electronic devises.
The best protection for intercity coaches with electronic devises is to not to depend on surge suppressors but be completely disconnect and far away from outside cable or loop.
Caution; awning with metal legs should be resting on top of dismount rubber tire w/plywood fasten (screws) on one side. Which to simulate insulation of coach’s rubber tires. Otherwise it good chance to burn a hole in roof and or damage awning’s arms & legs plus fire from combustibles material.
I have not but it may already have and someone else may have true report of awning grounding damage.
However there NO REASON WHY IT CAN’T HAPPEN!
For testimony, I was in cabin with metal roof with extended porch fasten to used wooden “power or telephone” pole. During lightning storm with me inside & computer hear this LOUD BANG & FLASH same time. Which mean very close strike right! After storm over & went outside to look. One of pole at one corner of metal roof was SHATTERED. I believe that pole was closest to lightning strike on metal roof or onto it…. WOW. …Praise the Lord to keep me awake of the all mighty powerful Lord is at your door step.
Oh by the way, I wear two hearing aids or you listen to am radio. Whenever I hear static or seen flash (lightning) I count seconds to find out how far it strike until sound of boom. Speed of sound at sea level = 1 116.43701 (or 1120) feet per second. So I counted to 3 or clock sec hand 3 it mean 3 times 1120 equal 3360 ft away for you. 1 mile is 5280 ft.
Protection against Electrostatic Discharges;
http://www.emc-consulting.de/emc-e5.htm
Transient impulse
http://www.pge.com/docs/pdfs/biz/power_quality/pq_home.pdf
Xantrex support; Ask them!
http://www.xantrex.com/support/support.asp
FWIW
Sojourn for Christ, Jerry |
Stan
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, April 05, 2005 - 8:34 pm: | |
I didn't want to start long stories about lightning strikes, I was just trying to convince you that nothing is safe because of the strange things that lightning does. The strangest one that I repaired was a TV set in a house that lightning had hit a nearby tree. The solder in the picture tube socket had melted and the socket blown off the tube. I put the socket back on the tube, resoldered the pins and the TV worked with no other damage. Strange but true. |
Pat Bartlett (Muddog16)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 06, 2005 - 7:23 am: | |
The reason i asked this question was, in the manual, Trace recommends one common ground and only one commom ground for your system to prevent numerous grounds and difference of potentials developing between individual grounds, on different systems, grid, gen, or inverter if struck by lightening, also there was a topic about induced loads on battery cables, sizes and length of conductors from inverter and battery bank, i've read many techincal manuals, but i was impressed with this Trace manual and the information shared. |
Stan
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 06, 2005 - 8:09 am: | |
Following the Trace instructions may give you some protection but you will never get a warranty claim if you have a lightning strike. |
Chuck Newman (Chuck_newman)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, April 06, 2005 - 9:40 pm: | |
After 40 years dealing with communications equipment and tall towers, I have found one fact about lightning that is consistent, in that it is like cancer. You can do all the right things to avoid being struck, but you still may be struck. And if it hits you, it may kill you or you may walk away from it -- or anything in between. But it will leave it's mark.
Pat, keep in mind the vast majority of blown electronic (and non-electronic) equipment comes from high voltage surges and very high voltage transient pulses that come down the AC line from the utility. Most people don't realize a sizable number of them originate from motors and contactors within their building. They also can originate on the utility's line due to lightning strikes miles away. The line acts like a long receiving antenna.
Good quality transient suppressor and noise filtering protection cannot be overstated. They won't protect you from a direct lightning hit, but they will protect your electronics from the hundreds of spikes on the lines that occur daily.
Chuck Newman
Oroville, CA |
FAST FRED
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, April 07, 2005 - 6:02 am: | |
Look up BRICKWALL , they work for most camper problems.
FAST FRED |
TWODOGS (Twodogs)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, April 09, 2005 - 10:08 pm: | |
My dad made me a lightning rod for my safety when I was a kid...after I got a little older I realized it was just an ordinary 20 foot piece of re-bar |
John that newguy
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, April 09, 2005 - 11:44 pm: | |
A 20' ground rod? Holy carp!
In my days, a "re-bar" is where you went after the date... |