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Originally Posted by jrref
For some factual information on Lightning and Surge Protection see this link Nextdoor |
There was an article in the other online news source here this morning, seemingly using PR from the lightning rod association, that said there had been ten lightning strikes in The Villages in the past twelve months, but it was actually over this summer and last summer, so really two years, not one year. That makes the problem seem twice as bad. I think the article said there have been four strikes here this year, which would mean six last year.
One thing the article stressed is that lightning rod installers are not licensed, so there are a LOT of scam artists out there. You would do well to use Angie’s List to get a reference to a company that has done a lot of them with high ratings.
A copper or copper-clad ground rod for a lightning system is supposed to be driven into the soil at least eight feet deep. In sandy soil, it usually needs to be deeper, or there need to be more rods. I saw one ground rod here a couple years ago that seemed to be about two feet long. Hey! With 60,000 or so houses here, your chance of getting hit is tiny, so if the rod is too short, chances are you’ll never know, and if you are struck by lightning, you may have a hard time finding your installer, right?