On 18 Nov 2006 22:44:48 -0800, "RHF"
wrote:



On Nov 18, 6:23 am, David wrote:
On 17 Nov 2006 20:17:55 -0800, "RHF"
wrote:







- I ground my masts and bond the co-ax shields to the masts.

1 - Grounded Masts - Good Idea.
Ground Rod placed right at the base of the Mast
and very short and heavy Ground Wire attached
right at the base of the Mast.
* Creates a primary {potential} Lightning Strike Point that
is well grounded and away from the House / Building.
- - - "The Remote Ground" -and- First-Strike-Point

2 - Bonding the Outer-Shield of the Coax Cable to the Mast
creates 'unity' between the two and provides a Path-to-Ground
via the Coax Cable to the Mast and "The Remote Ground"
-and- the First-Strike-Point

NOTE - Burying the Coax Cable between the Mast and the
House is also a Good Idea. Short Four Foot (4') "L" Shaped
'Ground Tubes' at the Mast and the House can also help.
WHAT-IS-AN - "L" Shaped 'Ground Tube'
Four Foot piece of 1/2" Copper Pipe bent into an "L" Shape
* Gental bend with a 6" Radius
* Short-Side-of-the-L = 12"-16"
* Long-Side-of-the-L = 32"-36"
* Run the Coax Cable through the Copper Pipes.
* Bury the Long-Side laying flat in the ground with
the Short-Side-End about 2"-4" above ground level.
* Bond {Connect} the Ground Tubes to the respective
Grounds at the Mast and the House.

- I use the IEC grounds at the indoor end.

David -Question- What is/are the "IEC" Grounds ?
- - - I.E.C = ? ? ?

- We don't have lightning here, but if it were to threaten
- I'd just unplug everything and throw the wires outside..

That works - But walking the Coax Cable back out to
the Mast is usually consider to be the better option.
Note-to-Self - This is tough to do if the Coax Cable is Buried ;-)

IEC = 3 conductor detachable power cable

The cables are on the roof and come in through the windows. My house
is not air tight. We don't have extreme weather here, except when the
hills catch fire or turn to mudslides.

I bond shields to the masts because the masts are the shortest path to
ground. This is for friction static caused by the wind. The IECs
theoretically complete a ground loop, but that hasn't manifested
itself as an issue.

My house is stucco on metal lath and nothing penetrates the walls
except the neighbors' light dimmers, which come in on the mains.