KE5MMJZ wrote:
As a new ham, I am considering erecting a tower for
my antenna(s). As part of my research, I've been
reading about lightning protection, and now feel
I have a fair understanding of what I need to do
in order to protect both my radio gear and my home.
However, the thought occurred to me that if I
ercted a tower it would probably increase the odds
of lightning striking either it or a nearby object,
and while my house might be protected (or at least
I would be the one choosing to take the risk), what
about the neighbors? Even if the strike would be
directly on my tower, from what I've read there
could be enough induced voltage/current to damage
the 'unprotected' appliances of my neighbors, and
they might blame me for their losses (or even if
it doesn't hit the tower, they may still see it
as the cause of a nearby strike).
Has anyone heard of any such cases or am I
just worrying about the highly improbable?

I haven't heard of it. Just make sure that everything is grounded
according to the National Electric Code (NEC). There are sections
devoted especially for towers at residences.

I say this as one who works in an industrial environment with large
free-standing towers. Our gear must stay online with five nines of
reliability. We routinely take direct hits on our microwave gear and
nothing happens. It goes to ground. We may not notice a thing except
for a few connections which have been welded together ;-)

73,

Jake Brodsky, AB3A