W
w_tom
Guest
Leonard Caillouet wrote:
properly installed. For example, graphite veins run
underneath homes in one part of town. If home's central earth
ground is on side away from those graphite veins, then a
transient will cross the building to obtain earth via those
graphite veins. Homes built atop changing geological
conditions (different earths beneath a building) require
better earthing systems so that central earth ground IS the
best earthing system. Just another reason why homes should be
built using existing Ufer grounding - now that transistors
exists.
Should an earthing system be insufficient or should an
interior earthing wire be bundled with other wires (which is
the case with Panamax protectors), then transients can enter a
building. An appliance already has sufficient protection -
internally - if the transient was earthed before entering a
building. But some plug-in protectors can even shunt a
transient, destructively, through other appliances. Concept
is called induced transients. Point remains, once a transient
is inside the building, then transient will find earth ground,
destructively if necessary, no matter how many overpriced
Panamax devices are installed.
Early installations of AT&T's first electronic switching
computers (ESS-1) exposed a problem. Some switching stations
suffered damage from lightning. Not acceptable. What did
they do? Buy more Panamax type devices? Of course not. They
corrected the earthing system. They made sure a transient was
earthed before entering the building. They corrected a human
error - a problem with the earthing system. Concepts also
demonstrated by professionals in these figures:
http://www.erico.com/erico_public/pdf/fep/TechNotes/Tncr002.pdf
http://www.cinergy.com/surge/ttip08.htm
http://www.xantrex.com/support/docserve.asp?id=337
http://www.polyphaser.com/ppc_PEN1002.asp
If permitted inside a building, then surges will find many
'strange' paths to earth ground - such as through that
undersized (and therefore damaged) Panamax protector. No
reason for transients that severe to be inside any building -
other than a human failure to install sufficient earthing.
Earthing so important that everyone from Sun Microsystem's
planning guide for the server room, to commercial
broadcasters, to properly trained telco and cable installers,
to pre-WWII amateur radio hobbyists, to long distance electric
transmission lines, to pre-WWII GE and Westinghouse research
papers, to serious surge protector manufacturers discuss
earthing as THE most critical protector. Even the term
counterpoise was invented because better earthing was
required.
Appliances already have plenty of protection internally.
Protection that is predicated on transients being earthed
before entering the building. In most cases, a single eight
foot earth ground rod is sufficient. In some cases (such as
homes built in FL sand), a deeper and superior earthing system
is necessary - maybe into deeper, underlying limestone. But
when internal damage results, professionals fix the earthing
system. They don't buy magic plug-in devices.
One FL couple had multiple direct strikes to a bathroom
wall. Franklin air terminals (lightning rods) were
installed. Bathroom wall was struck again. Why? Because
those lightning rods were only earthed in sand. IOW those
lightning rods were all but not earthed. CG lightning seeks
earth ground. Lightning entered a building to obtain bathroom
pipes as the better path to earth. Protection is about better
earthing - and not some magic plug-in device.
Many installers will drive an earthing rod only into sand
and call that ground. One 'trained' cable installer even
connected an earthing wire a flower box on the porch.
Nonsense. Then when damage occurs, they will loudly proclaim
that earthing is not effective. If transients are not being
earthed by that central earth ground, as in those 1960 AT&T
installations, the human corrects his defective earth ground.
Anything those Panamax things will accomplish is already
inside the appliance. If the Panamax is damaged, then a
transient was not earthed before entering a building - and the
Panamax was also undersized. Solution is to fix the earthing
system - not enrich Panamax. Protection only as effective as
the earth ground - as too many professional figures and
lectures bluntly proclaim. If the ground is not the low side,
then a human must fix his defective earthing system - not
spend big bucks on ineffective Panamax products.
Those planning a new home - take special note of Ufer
grounding before footings are even poured. Better protection
systems are installed because a protection system is only as
effective as its earth ground. There is no magical plug-in
solution. In essence, protection is an effective virtual
Faraday cage. Earth beneath the building becomes
equipotential. Earth ground becomes "the low side of a
system".
If a destructive transient enters on CATV shield or other
wire, then the human knows he must fix a weak or missing
earthing system, or 'whole house' protector connections to
that system. Earthing is how professional make surges
irrelevant.
Described is what happens when a central earth ground is not
properly installed. For example, graphite veins run
underneath homes in one part of town. If home's central earth
ground is on side away from those graphite veins, then a
transient will cross the building to obtain earth via those
graphite veins. Homes built atop changing geological
conditions (different earths beneath a building) require
better earthing systems so that central earth ground IS the
best earthing system. Just another reason why homes should be
built using existing Ufer grounding - now that transistors
exists.
Should an earthing system be insufficient or should an
interior earthing wire be bundled with other wires (which is
the case with Panamax protectors), then transients can enter a
building. An appliance already has sufficient protection -
internally - if the transient was earthed before entering a
building. But some plug-in protectors can even shunt a
transient, destructively, through other appliances. Concept
is called induced transients. Point remains, once a transient
is inside the building, then transient will find earth ground,
destructively if necessary, no matter how many overpriced
Panamax devices are installed.
Early installations of AT&T's first electronic switching
computers (ESS-1) exposed a problem. Some switching stations
suffered damage from lightning. Not acceptable. What did
they do? Buy more Panamax type devices? Of course not. They
corrected the earthing system. They made sure a transient was
earthed before entering the building. They corrected a human
error - a problem with the earthing system. Concepts also
demonstrated by professionals in these figures:
http://www.erico.com/erico_public/pdf/fep/TechNotes/Tncr002.pdf
http://www.cinergy.com/surge/ttip08.htm
http://www.xantrex.com/support/docserve.asp?id=337
http://www.polyphaser.com/ppc_PEN1002.asp
If permitted inside a building, then surges will find many
'strange' paths to earth ground - such as through that
undersized (and therefore damaged) Panamax protector. No
reason for transients that severe to be inside any building -
other than a human failure to install sufficient earthing.
Earthing so important that everyone from Sun Microsystem's
planning guide for the server room, to commercial
broadcasters, to properly trained telco and cable installers,
to pre-WWII amateur radio hobbyists, to long distance electric
transmission lines, to pre-WWII GE and Westinghouse research
papers, to serious surge protector manufacturers discuss
earthing as THE most critical protector. Even the term
counterpoise was invented because better earthing was
required.
Appliances already have plenty of protection internally.
Protection that is predicated on transients being earthed
before entering the building. In most cases, a single eight
foot earth ground rod is sufficient. In some cases (such as
homes built in FL sand), a deeper and superior earthing system
is necessary - maybe into deeper, underlying limestone. But
when internal damage results, professionals fix the earthing
system. They don't buy magic plug-in devices.
One FL couple had multiple direct strikes to a bathroom
wall. Franklin air terminals (lightning rods) were
installed. Bathroom wall was struck again. Why? Because
those lightning rods were only earthed in sand. IOW those
lightning rods were all but not earthed. CG lightning seeks
earth ground. Lightning entered a building to obtain bathroom
pipes as the better path to earth. Protection is about better
earthing - and not some magic plug-in device.
Many installers will drive an earthing rod only into sand
and call that ground. One 'trained' cable installer even
connected an earthing wire a flower box on the porch.
Nonsense. Then when damage occurs, they will loudly proclaim
that earthing is not effective. If transients are not being
earthed by that central earth ground, as in those 1960 AT&T
installations, the human corrects his defective earth ground.
Anything those Panamax things will accomplish is already
inside the appliance. If the Panamax is damaged, then a
transient was not earthed before entering a building - and the
Panamax was also undersized. Solution is to fix the earthing
system - not enrich Panamax. Protection only as effective as
the earth ground - as too many professional figures and
lectures bluntly proclaim. If the ground is not the low side,
then a human must fix his defective earthing system - not
spend big bucks on ineffective Panamax products.
Those planning a new home - take special note of Ufer
grounding before footings are even poured. Better protection
systems are installed because a protection system is only as
effective as its earth ground. There is no magical plug-in
solution. In essence, protection is an effective virtual
Faraday cage. Earth beneath the building becomes
equipotential. Earth ground becomes "the low side of a
system".
If a destructive transient enters on CATV shield or other
wire, then the human knows he must fix a weak or missing
earthing system, or 'whole house' protector connections to
that system. Earthing is how professional make surges
irrelevant.