For lighting rods in rocky soil, do not attempt to drive into the ground! Instead, dig a 18 to 24 " deep trench the length of the rod and bury with about 200 lb of bentonite. The bentonite is non corrosive and draws moisture from the surrounding soil, maintaining continuity. Also, water occasionally to maintain the conductive properties in that area.
I inquired directly with MFJ, and their engineer recommended #14 wire as being adequate with respect to a ground wire size for the MFJ-270. It would seem to me that a larger wire, #6 or #8 wire size, might be better, but #14 wire was MFJ's recommendation. Also, the ground rod must be bonded to the home's electrical system, which would be the outside ground rod where the electric panel is grounded, in order to avoid creating a "ground loop" through the coax connection at the rig by using additional independent ground rods that are not bonded to the homes main electrical system ground rod. The bonding of all ground rods is also required by code (NEC).
Most important parameter of GDT (core of arrestor) is Max Current of light.impact discharge, in kiloAmps. Usually 2, 5, 10 or 20 kAmp. Missing of this info mean that this arrestors core is a piece of china sheet.... Right solution: immideatly exchange the china GDT to good GDT 20kA from EPCOS or TDK. 🖐
hello! I saw your video a little late. I started amateur radio. I am also considering purchasing this lightning protector. I have seen some models on the internet, but will this device you are using be sufficient to do my job? I will make an experimental handmade double-layer flower pot antenna and I will use rg58 cable. Since I am planning to design a handmade antenna, I need to somehow handle the grounding, that is, shock protection. The radio I will connect is the Baofeng uv82x model. Due to the region I live in, it rains on average twice a week. (It's okay in summer, but in bad condition in winter.) So is this a good idea to prevent my handheld radio from breaking? Finally, can I mount this device anywhere I want on the cable? Or does it need to be close to the antenna? I don't know enough English to listen, but I can understand what you wrote. Thanks in advance.
Since this grounds the shield on your coax what this means for a dipole antenna is half of your antenna is grounded and probably will not radiate very much
driving a second grounding rod is no where to be found in modern (2021) electrical code. NEC 810.21 specifies lightning protection for outdoor antennas, and in your case that bit of metal electrical conduit already outside would have been a better ground point per code. by driving another copper rod into the ground and NOT bonding it to the building's main ground, you have a created a possible difference in ground potential for any equipment (like a transceiver) that is both plugged into the building's wiring and the antenna. transient currents could now pass through your equipment looking for a low resistance ground instead of staying outside.
Yes people do some screwy things... like you said, adding grounding rods and connecting them to an existing grounded system is simply adding more 'paths' for current to follow. The current is looking for ground and you may very well be adding routes for the current to take and thus increase the likelihood of damage from a surge. In my opinion, the best thing that you can do is increase the size of your ground wire to give the least resistance to get to the ground. Yall Take Care and be safe, John
Hey Grumpy Kent, best practice, as I'm sure you know, is to ground your equipment including your antennas to the common ground at your home where your electrical panel is located. Sometimes this can be difficult. Dave Casler has a great video on this where he recently discussed how to extend your grounding further away from your panel. Having said that, if your radio is isolated from your home's electrical, there's no reason not to install a grounding rod near where your radio and antenna are located. I do this as my 2M station is not where most of my equipment is in the basement, but in my office for convenience. I run off of a battery most of the time. I use the Guardian Angel as surge protector and lightning did strike about 70 feet away just recently. It did the trick as advertised. Thanks for watching
I have the poly phasers on each line coming in that goes to a copper ground plate. Then that goes via copper wire to a ground rod that is also bonded to the house ground rod.
That's the correct way to do it, all ground rods bonded. I have the MFJ-270, and I wish I had the quality of either a Polyphaser or a Alpha Delta lightning protector. But, I guess the MFJ is better than nothing, and hopefully it'll be reliable.
Hello Operator Riff Raff Radio 231 From Fort Lauderdale Fla Waven a big ole five yo way !!!GREAT VIDEO !!! i only do 11 meters and i transmit with a RCI 2950cd radio and work it with an amp , and i would like to know how to properly ground and bond my radio to two mixers and one compressor for the BEST no noise and no squealing for when i key up. also my amp and power supply are grounded to one ground rod and my mast and equopment are grounded to another 8ft ground rod. so far so good but maby you have a better technique... 73ws, im on the standy by, !!!
Do you really want to have the surge protector right next to your house? Even though you have the surge protector grounded the lightning can travel in unpredictable direction when it comes to the tight 90 degree turn at the surge protector. It may decide to come through your window and light your life! I would put the surge protector at the base of the antenna mast and ground it there. But that's me.
What have you done to protect your equipment from lightning or electrical surges?
For lighting rods in rocky soil, do not attempt to drive into the ground! Instead, dig a 18 to 24 " deep trench the length of the rod and bury with about 200 lb of bentonite. The bentonite is non corrosive and draws moisture from the surrounding soil, maintaining continuity. Also, water occasionally to maintain the conductive properties in that area.
I inquired directly with MFJ, and their engineer recommended #14 wire as being adequate with respect to a ground wire size for the MFJ-270. It would seem to me that a larger wire, #6 or #8 wire size, might be better, but #14 wire was MFJ's recommendation. Also, the ground rod must be bonded to the home's electrical system, which would be the outside ground rod where the electric panel is grounded, in order to avoid creating a "ground loop" through the coax connection at the rig by using additional independent ground rods that are not bonded to the homes main electrical system ground rod. The bonding of all ground rods is also required by code (NEC).
NEC 810.21 specifies conductor sizes, and #8 is correct for grounding masts and coax, and #6 to bond to the building's ground
Most important parameter of GDT (core of arrestor) is Max Current of light.impact discharge, in kiloAmps. Usually 2, 5, 10 or 20 kAmp. Missing of this info mean that this arrestors core is a piece of china sheet.... Right solution: immideatly exchange the china GDT to good GDT 20kA from EPCOS or TDK. 🖐
Thank You!
Welcome!
9:35 LOL..."at least that's the theory..."
Thank you for the information!
Our pleasure!
The length of wire depends on the length. If you are close to the ground rod no need for heavy duty wire.
Great tutorial, thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
hello!
I saw your video a little late. I started amateur radio. I am also considering purchasing this lightning protector. I have seen some models on the internet, but will this device you are using be sufficient to do my job? I will make an experimental handmade double-layer flower pot antenna and I will use rg58 cable. Since I am planning to design a handmade antenna, I need to somehow handle the grounding, that is, shock protection. The radio I will connect is the Baofeng uv82x model. Due to the region I live in, it rains on average twice a week. (It's okay in summer, but in bad condition in winter.) So is this a good idea to prevent my handheld radio from breaking? Finally, can I mount this device anywhere I want on the cable? Or does it need to be close to the antenna? I don't know enough English to listen, but I can understand what you wrote. Thanks in advance.
Nice................
Thanks
I put mine in 8’ per electrical code. That way the bottom of the rod is in soil where it’s moist. Just saying.
😉👍
Since this grounds the shield on your coax what this means for a dipole antenna is half of your antenna is grounded and probably will not radiate very much
@david barlow - this one used on a Comet GP-3 vertical antenna. Works great! Thanks for watching!
David, please elaborate more. Thanks, John
I have the Diamond SP1000. It's not marked like your for antenna side. The instructions do not show you either.
driving a second grounding rod is no where to be found in modern (2021) electrical code. NEC 810.21 specifies lightning protection for outdoor antennas, and in your case that bit of metal electrical conduit already outside would have been a better ground point per code. by driving another copper rod into the ground and NOT bonding it to the building's main ground, you have a created a possible difference in ground potential for any equipment (like a transceiver) that is both plugged into the building's wiring and the antenna. transient currents could now pass through your equipment looking for a low resistance ground instead of staying outside.
Yes people do some screwy things... like you said, adding grounding rods and connecting them to an existing grounded system is simply adding more 'paths' for current to follow. The current is looking for ground and you may very well be adding routes for the current to take and thus increase the likelihood of damage from a surge.
In my opinion, the best thing that you can do is increase the size of your ground wire to give the least resistance to get to the ground.
Yall Take Care and be safe, John
Hey Grumpy Kent, best practice, as I'm sure you know, is to ground your equipment including your antennas to the common ground at your home where your electrical panel is located. Sometimes this can be difficult. Dave Casler has a great video on this where he recently discussed how to extend your grounding further away from your panel. Having said that, if your radio is isolated from your home's electrical, there's no reason not to install a grounding rod near where your radio and antenna are located. I do this as my 2M station is not where most of my equipment is in the basement, but in my office for convenience. I run off of a battery most of the time. I use the Guardian Angel as surge protector and lightning did strike about 70 feet away just recently. It did the trick as advertised. Thanks for watching
I have the poly phasers on each line coming in that goes to a copper ground plate. Then that goes via copper wire to a ground rod that is also bonded to the house ground rod.
That's a great setup!
That's the correct way to do it, all ground rods bonded. I have the MFJ-270, and I wish I had the quality of either a Polyphaser or a Alpha Delta lightning protector. But, I guess the MFJ is better than nothing, and hopefully it'll be reliable.
Hello Operator Riff Raff Radio 231 From Fort Lauderdale Fla Waven a big ole five yo way !!!GREAT VIDEO !!! i only do 11 meters and i transmit with a RCI 2950cd radio and work it with an amp , and i would like to know how to properly ground and bond my radio to two mixers and one compressor for the BEST no noise and no squealing for when i key up. also my amp and power supply are grounded to one ground rod and my mast and equopment are grounded to another 8ft ground rod. so far so good but maby you have a better technique... 73ws, im on the standy by, !!!
Do you really want to have the surge protector right next to your house? Even though you have the surge protector grounded the lightning can travel in unpredictable direction when it comes to the tight 90 degree turn at the surge protector. It may decide to come through your window and light your life!
I would put the surge protector at the base of the antenna mast and ground it there. But that's me.
Great job.
Thanks!
Which coax are you using?
@Gustavo Gonzalez - RG8X. Thanks for watching!
Thanks !!! Greetings
Good video, although you really should use a minimum of 6AWG for grounding. KC8SCS
You need more pixels and frames.
DONT GROUND TO A WATER PIPE, BAD IDEA
No it isn't. Many houses use the fresh water pipe to the street as the main ground.
@@jeffkardosjr.3825 no they dont, because they would electrify another house, and now days most pipes are pex, non conductive
@@abecoulter8550
That's not how it works.