What gauge & type of wire or grounding wire do I need or is recommended?

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CorwinScansNM

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I just ordered & received a 50 Ohm in-line Lightning Arrester to install between my outdoor Scanner Antenna & my Scanners Coax Cable that runs from my Antenna to my Scanner. However, I am in need of & trying to figure out exactly what type & gauge of Wire I need install & use with it to then run its wire down to my 8-foot Copper Ground Rod? Please see my attached image of the exact Lighting Arrester that I am looking for help with finding & purchasing correct type & gauge of wire for.

Thanks Radio Reference Members.

Lightning Arrester Ground Wire Connection.jpg
 

mmckenna

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6 gauge.

But this discussion is going to open a whole can of worms. So sit back, get yourself a cold one, and wait for the stuff to hit the fan. You'll likely get a bunch of unsolicited (yet valid and important advice).
 

W5lz

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What size wire would fit in the supplied connector? It would appear that it could be #14, maybe?
There are a couple of things about this type of 'protection' device you should be aware of. One of those things is that it's dang near worthless for heavy surges. The second thing is that for an actual lightening strike, or near one, it is absolutely worthless. Why's that? Because it only "grounds" the braid of coax, not the center conductor. It only provides "half" protection.
If it's so worthless why is it even made? Because it was requested, people asked for it and 'they' made it. 'They' weren't asked to provide a really valid/working lightning -arrestor-. If 'they' had been asked for such a thingy they would laugh at the request. Or, they would have made such a thing and the average person could never have afforded it.
Think about that for a few minutes...
 

prcguy

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The National Electrical Code first requires you to bond any additional ground rods to you house main electrical entry point ground with no less than 6ga copper wire. And there are length restrictions on that where you may have to upsize that wire.

Then the NEC requires a minimum of 10ga copper wire from the house electrical entry point ground to your lightning arrestor and there is about a 30ft limit on that then you have to upsize the wire. This is all from NEC, Article 810 that deals specifically with antenna grounding.

Here is a good overview on the subject. https://www.mikeholt.com/download.php?file=PDF/Radio_and_Television_2014NEC.pdf
 

CorwinScansNM

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What size wire would fit in the supplied connector? It would appear that it could be #14, maybe?
There are a couple of things about this type of 'protection' device you should be aware of. One of those things is that it's dang near worthless for heavy surges. The second thing is that for an actual lightening strike, or near one, it is absolutely worthless. Why's that? Because it only "grounds" the braid of coax, not the center conductor. It only provides "half" protection.
If it's so worthless why is it even made? Because it was requested, people asked for it and 'they' made it. 'They' weren't asked to provide a really valid/working lightning -arrestor-. If 'they' had been asked for such a thingy they would laugh at the request. Or, they would have made such a thing and the average person could never have afforded it.
Think about that for a few minutes...

Wow, that makes me wonder if I should even go through all of the troubles of installing & using this just purchased in-line Lightning Arrester... Good info & teaching though W5lz.
 

CorwinScansNM

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The National Electrical Code first requires you to bond any additional ground rods to you house main electrical entry point ground with no less than 6ga copper wire. And there are length restrictions on that where you may have to upsize that wire.

Then the NEC requires a minimum of 10ga copper wire from the house electrical entry point ground to your lightning arrestor and there is about a 30ft limit on that then you have to upsize the wire. This is all from NEC, Article 810 that deals specifically with antenna grounding.

Here is a good overview on the subject. https://www.mikeholt.com/download.php?file=PDF/Radio_and_Television_2014NEC.pdf

Thanks for that info & PDF link.
 

mmckenna

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Wow, that makes me wonder if I should even go through all of the troubles of installing & using this just purchased in-line Lightning Arrester... Good info & teaching though W5lz.

It looks like a gas tube type protector. Under the screw fitting on the side is the gas tube that will ground the center conductor in a strike or nearby strike.

If you are concerned about the quality of that one, you can always get a Polyphaser. Those are the ones that are used at professional sites and you can get versions with many different connectors, male, female, different frequencies, different power levels, and ones that will pass DC for tower top amplifiers, GPS antennas, etc.
 

CorwinScansNM

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It looks like a gas tube type protector. Under the screw fitting on the side is the gas tube that will ground the center conductor in a strike or nearby strike.

If you are concerned about the quality of that one, you can always get a Polyphaser. Those are the ones that are used at professional sites and you can get versions with many different connectors, male, female, different frequencies, different power levels, and ones that will pass DC for tower top amplifiers, GPS antennas, etc.

OK, will definitely look at & consider them over the cheap Lightning Arrester that I just purchased for $11.99. The Polyphasers are definitely in big jump/spike in price as I am seeing on their website for in-line Surge Protectors.
 

mmckenna

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OK, will definitely look at & consider them over the cheap Lightning Arrester that I just purchased for $11.99. The Polyphasers are definitely in big jump/spike in price as I am seeing on their website for in-line Surge Protectors.

Consult your own budget...

They are more expensive, but I'd be wary about using a no-name Chinese product for something like that. Polyphasers are universally accepted as a reliable product from a reliable company.

If this is for your own hobby use, then it would be up to you to judge what you should do and how much you can afford. Don't let a couple of strangers on the internets decide that for you. But there is a good reason to use known name brand stuff when it comes to protection type products. I'd never install (or risk my reputation) on a cheap Chinese knock off product like this. However, for hobby use, it's something you need to decide.
 

CorwinScansNM

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You can find new in box Polyphasers on Ebay for good prices now and then.

I sure did just a little while ago. One being the PolyPhaser IS-B50HN-C2-MA for only $29.99 & free Shipping on eBay. The other one that I am considering is the PolyPhaser IS-NEMP-C2-MA which is not on eBay but found to be the cheapest from The Antenna Farm at $89.95 + $8.50 S&H making it 3 times the price of the IS-B50HN-C2-MA at just $29.99 on eBay. Still looking at & taking some spare time to think about & consider one of the 2 of them.
 

CorwinScansNM

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Consult your own budget...

They are more expensive, but I'd be wary about using a no-name Chinese product for something like that. Polyphasers are universally accepted as a reliable product from a reliable company.

If this is for your own hobby use, then it would be up to you to judge what you should do and how much you can afford. Don't let a couple of strangers on the internets decide that for you. But there is a good reason to use known name brand stuff when it comes to protection type products. I'd never install (or risk my reputation) on a cheap Chinese knock off product like this. However, for hobby use, it's something you need to decide.

For sure & well understood. I am more than likely going to take the better route & buy a Polyphaser instead of what I already purchased that has no name brand anywhere on it. I also like the 10 Year Warranty that comes with the Polyphasers.
 

w2xq

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FWIW you can also have damage via the ground throughout the house. I had a strike on a tree near the electrical panel entrance; it didn't touch any antenna. Entered via the ground rod and took out power supplies, confused a JRC NRD-525 receiver and a 144/440 transceiver, and small things to the tune of 4 figures. Fortunately the 50 and 20 amp Astron power supplies were fine. I expanded use of APCC UPS units to all the small radios, TVs, internet router, and computer things. Just food for thought. HTH a bit.
 

prcguy

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Yes on this and my best advice is to resign to the fact that whatever you do at an amateur level for grounding or lightning protection will probably not protect you from a direct hit, or maybe even a nearby hit. If your not at a commercial site designed from the ground up to survive a hit, disconnect antennas and unplug anything you want to see working again if you get hit.



FWIW you can also have damage via the ground throughout the house. I had a strike on a tree near the electrical panel entrance; it didn't touch any antenna. Entered via the ground rod and took out power supplies, confused a JRC NRD-525 receiver and a 144/440 transceiver, and small things to the tune of 4 figures. Fortunately the 50 and 20 amp Astron power supplies were fine. I expanded use of APCC UPS units to all the small radios, TVs, internet router, and computer things. Just food for thought. HTH a bit.
 

k9wkj

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this poor PolyPhaser gave its life and saved all the attached equipment
0k9aZBy.jpg

I was surprised to see the melted (missing) aluminum
this one was screwed to the back plane of a old cable headend building
you buys your ticket and takes your chances
 
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