Lightning Protection Systems (LPS) commonly called lightning rods have been credited with saving lives and property since they were invented by Ben Franklin in 1752. However, the installation of LPS is a specialty offered by firms that are listed by UL and employ craftsmen that are qualified as Master Installer by four closed book proctored exams offered by the Lightning Protection Institute. Typically, electrical engineers and electricians are skilled in the National Electrical Code and the safe use of electricity in your home and other structures and that does NOT include lightning. Please note the wide use of lightning rods around The Villages - all buildings around the square at Sumter Landing, all pumping stations, fire department headquarters, nearly all churches, hotels, and in some neighborhoods as much as 15% of the homes. For more information research recent issues of the VHA Voice, POA Bulletin, **************.com, and University of Florida's Dr. Martin Uman's book at the Belvedere Library, The Art and Science of Lightning Protection. Beware of myths and misunderstandings found elsewhere on this subject.

I was correct.

IF your NEXTDOOR neighbor has a lightning rod and it is high enough, the lightning WILL be attracted to it (for the reasons you gave - sort of) and not your bland tasteless roof. If you have something that is tastier (conductor with a low resistance to ground) on your house like a tall antenna, then it hits you.

You can stand in a field next to a power transmission line holding a golf club over your head, and you will never get hit by lightning. Because the transmission line is closer to the source of the lightning (higher), and it has a GOOD lightning rod built-in. with a very low resistance to ground.

If on the other hand you are out on a golf course and are hundreds of feet/yards from the any structure, and you hold your golf club up to swing - you become the tastiest thing in the area and can be hit by lightning.

Are you an electrical engineer?

As stated, I am no expert. We do not have gas. I am not against gas, I prefer it for cooking, and water heating. However since we do not have basements. Since apparently it above your head in the attic. Add to that lightening. ?????????

It isn't a contradiction, it just isn't clear. If a lightning strike hits a lightning rod it goes into the ground (most of the time). But that induces a very large current flowing through the rod. That current produces an EMP (sort of) a pulse of magnetism that flies out from the rod and passes through anything electronic nearby - where it induces a current and "fries" the electronics. That is basically the same thing that happens when a Nuke is exploded and a very large EMP destroys all the electronics in the region.

This is part of the consideration when installing a Lightning rod - don't put it too close to any expensive sensitive electronics. Or the magnetic pulse it produces (which is harmless - we think - to humans) will probably destroy the electronics. It doesn't have to be a LONG way away, but not close.

:pray:

Most everything is full of contradictions. Every issue we expect simple, perfect, solutions.
REALITY, they do not exist.

No, not at all. , when a strike happens to hit a lightning rod, the voltage goes to ground, but the EMP (the energy that flows around the voltage) will travel through the air and all of your sensitive electronics will be fried.

First hand experience, my horse barn in SC had lightning rods and they took a direct hit. The horses, and the ex husband who was standing in it, were not hurt. I can't speak for Florida, but there's no question that they worked that day. No electrical damage inside the barn too.

I have to correct the other point.

Lightning rods do not "produce" anything especially NOT a positive charge. Electricity (lightning) is always trying to find the shortest lowest resistance path back to its source (normally the ground).

Pine trees are notorious for being really good lightning rods, because of the core of conductive (low resistance) sap.

When a lightning rod is struck by lightning the current (lots and lots of it) flowing through the rod (or whatever it hit) generates an Electromagnetic Pulse that will "electrocute" electronic devices nearby. Or it will "induce" a current into any conductors nearby - conductors are things like house wiring, steel or copper pipes, chainlink fences, golf clubs, etc. etc., etc. If you happened to be holding onto one of those when a lightning bolt strikes near by your could have your hair stand up on end, or you could be toasted. It all depends.

Thank you, they DO work.

Costs $100 for the inspection and should be done every 3 years.

Ain't it the truth. If only anything were simple!

This is pretty much what is done for the $100 - some other things can be included, like spark gap testing, etc. But, the main points are these:

[*]The resistance to earth of each local earth electrode and, where practical, the resistance to earth of the complete earth termination system.
[*]The results of a visual check of all conductors, bonds, and joints or their measured electrical continuity.

Ohiobuckeye
 

Lighting Rods work but not if your house takes a direct hit, then you better call your Insurance Company!

LOL!

Nice way to put it.

My neighbor (1/2 mile away) where we previously lived in the country put in their own lightning rod. It went up about 6 feet above their roof. It was about ten feet away from a pine tree that went up 30 feet higher.

That lightning rod was perfectly safe! Lightning was almost guaranteed to hit the tree and not the rod. I am sure a lineman you saw many cases of pines hit by lightning while the transmission line next to it had a lightning rod. Although, power companies are getting better about clearing out any trees too close the the transmission lines.

Several years ago three homes in The Villages burned to the ground from lightning strikes. It's not just an electronics hazard. Fires follow lighting strikes by the energy following the pipes in your homes to a combustable spot. Especially a hazard if you use gas for heat or cooking. And what about your personal, especially memory items and pets in your home if your house burns? Insurance won't take care of all of that. Right after the third house burned I had lightning rods put in from Triangle Lightning Protection, which is one of the companies that the POA recommended. Peace of mind was well worth the cost, which to me is not that much of a cost.

The odds of your house or you being hit by lightning are very low.

VERY LOW.

If you have a properly designed, installed, and maintained lightning control system, the odds of a direct hit on your house are pretty close to zero. Well, actually ZERO for most purposes.

I love the next door neighbor approach.

I received a very useful P.M. from Robbie...and for some reason or another the system is not allowing me to reply by P.M.

Please, can you tell us the system you had installed and I am guessing that you installed it. Many thanks to your helpful answer.

I’m no electrician but it seems to me that the height of a lightning rod would make you more susceptible to a strike. It’s like carrying an umbrella in a thunderstorm, your risk increases as opposed to wearing a raincoat. I had SECO put a whole house surge protector when I purchased my home but soon learned that was just the beginning. Despite a surge protector on my TVs I recently lost my flat screen after a storm. I learned that the cable line also needed a surge protector at the point of entry. Now I have a surge protector on everything including my garage door opener, microwave, garbage disposal, etc, anything powered by electricity. SunKool was here a week ago for my regular maintenance and told me that I should have a surge protector on my ac unit so I agreed. Truth be told, you can attempt to avoid costly surges but if lightning strikes anywhere near your home you can still have your appliances toasted. My prayer is that I don’t get the kind of strike that would burn down my house. I do not intend to get lightning rods installed and I am not a gambler.

True, but that is the point of the lightning rod, to "take the hit". It is intended to be the most likely thing to be hit and too shunt that current down into the ground into LONG rods that are driven into the ground.

If your house gets hit and not the lightning rod, then either you won the lottery or you got taken by an incompetent installer.

So I need to understand what you are saying. Don't spend the money for rods if you have insurance? Wow.!

So I need to understand what you are saying. Don't spend the money for rods if you have insurance? Wow.!

They are saying it is not cost-effective in many (most?) situations.

If it were cost-effective every home would come with them built-in

On the other hand, you could think of Lightning rods as a form of prevention - sort of like vaccinations...

(ducks and runs)

Yes they work. The real protection they provide is to prevent your house catching fire and burning to the ground. Insurance may cover your loss but not the aggravation or loss of irreplaceable items.

No, they don’t attract lightening to your house.

Yes they need to be installed by a reputable contractor. If they are, they are not a scam.

The odds are getting hit in the Villages are probably about 1 in 15,000 to 20,000 each year. That’s based on about 3 to 4 houses getting hit every summer here.

Because they are expensive and the odds are in your favor of never getting hit, it’s probably not a good investment. Others like the piece of mind knowing they are protected.

I think of a direct lighting strike similar to sinkholes. It can happen, probably won’t, have insurance in case it does and know the odds are overwhelming in my favor. Therefore, we don’t have a lightening protection system.

Maybe.

Very good and clear answer - thank you

There MIGHT be value
 

Lightening is, as most have noted, opportunistic. If the opportunity exists for it to take your gas pipeline (often located in your attic), it will do so. This is a source of many fires in TV and, typically, much more destructive than a “standard” lightening strike. Rods might be effective in routing the strike away from these gas components.

Its worth the protection
 

As a Massachusetts electrician, we are required to install 2 ground rods for all new electrical services. Lighting comes into the house through the power lines ( underground or overhead) so we also install surge supressors at the main electrical panel. In Florida they install ground faults at the electric meters so yes its worth it to protect your expensive electronics

Yes, the potential benefit is not worth the cost. It is a simple benefit/cost calculation. That is why very few houses have lightning protection systems. And, if you are concerned about your personal safety, then move out of central Florida, because when lightning strikes, you may not even be in your house.

Yes and no.

Yes they do work, but some knowledge is required.

The integrity of the ground stab and how well it is "earthed" is the primary concern.

If the ground spike is not properly conducting to Earth.
Your Lightning Rods will be useless.
Like a bird on a wire, no current will flow.

Ohiobuckeye
 

You’re exactly right but the first yr. we lived there we saw a house that took a direct hit & it was severely damaged before the Fire Dept. got there. Also your chances of having Lighting Rods put on your house & getting hit by lighting is also close to zero. Everything you said is true, but I was just answering the question about Lighting Rods. They’re expensive for the odds of your chances of getting hit. Thanks for your opinion!

Insurance coverage on lightning strikes
 

I did not find the cost all that prohibitive and you may be able to get a discount on your home owners insurance but need the right installer (certified). Lightning may cause a fire and a TOTAL loss of your home and possessions - some of which money can't replace. Remember there is a deductible on insurance which would go a long way in covering the cost of lightning rods. The one thing to remember is that once installed - there will me additional costs in the future IF roof needed replaced as the rods will have to be properly removed and reinstalled - preferably by a certified "rod" guy and not by some roofer that just says he can do it. I used A1 that is certified and had some large corporate contracts.

We could have written this; I'm in complete agreement. Our system was put in by A-1 as well at a cost of $1,200 (which included an additional $100 for grounding our bird cage). For us, this is a nominal amount for the protection we are convinced that it brings.

However, the primary reason we put the system in was because we have natural gas with the distribution lines in the attic, as has been mentioned already. The gas lines are relatively insubstantial when compared with the black pipe that was a requirement for gas lines—at least where we were—up north. The gas distribution panel has its own heavy grounding wire.

We also rent a whole house surge suppressor on our electric meter which is owned by SECO, as well as additional small ones in appropriate places in the house. We have had lightning strikes so close that we can feel the Earth shake (as well as the house...) and have NEVER had any damage. That's good enough for us!

Most accurate post here yet!

They DO work. However, they MUST be inspected after installation to verify that the bonding between all components and then the final grounding to earth. These verifications should be re-performed probably annually as a minimum. Without the proper minimum resistance to earth, your LPS is useless. NFPA 780 lists lightning mitigation requirements to be followed, kind of like NFPA 70 known as the National Electrical Code does.

IF you are looking to have a system installed, know that you should have a certified DESIGNER as well as a certified INSTALLER. Having a UL inspection on the completed installation is a good idea. This is the proper way to do it. I agree that LPI is very much recommended as a source to START from in choosing local representatives.