For the past few days we had rain and lighting. Prior to any rain
hitting my antennas the steeady background noise hissing came up.

The noise came up first on my high dipoles, two regular dipoles at
150-160 feet. One was bare #14 copperweld, the other is insulated #10.
they were both equal as near as I could tell.

It came up the same but later in time on my three low 80 meter dipole
antennas at about the same rate. Two were bare wire and one was a
coaxial double bazooka. All are at about 35-40 feet high.

I have a 1/4 wl shorted stub I use as a second harmonic trap on 80
meters. It switches in and out with a relay on an RCS-8V switch that
selects trunk lines to antennas. I pulled the relay wire off, and the
80 meter dipoles had then same steady noise as with the stub in. The dc
path had no effect at all on steady noise, but on the high dipoles,
both the insulated one and bare one, there was a popping noise about
once every second or two that went away with the dipoles center
conductor grounded. I could hear this popping noise on any antenna near
the dipoles.

I added a 470K resistor to the 80M feedlines and the popping noise
quit. I removed it and added a choke and the popping noise quit. When
lightning would hit the popping noise would quit for a while, and then
come back.

As the storm got worse the noise got worse. When the rain was very
heavy and lightning very close, I stopped for a while. At that point
the noise was terrible on all antennas, but definately worse in level
on the high antennas. It was no better and no worse on any antenna at
the same height.

All through this my IAC double bazooka was no quieter than a regular
dipole made from #16 bare copper located 100 feet away at the same
height.

This test was with all antennas in place at the same time on the same
day in the same weather.

73 Tom