SDS100/SDS200: In case you didn't know, protect your LAN port

[HiddenLefty]

Had a close lightning strike come down my fiber line into the house. It got the SDS200 on the only thing that wasn't protected, the LAN cable. Deemed unrepairable by Uniden and confirmed this is exactly what happened in the notes and where the frying of it came from so it looks like $1000 in the drain right now. Entire internals got zapped starting at the LAN port all the way to the CPU. The literal one thing that wasn't protected killed it, and to add to that frustration, some irony is that I found out my UPS had protection for that not 5 minutes after it fried. Now I know, but I still feel slightly sick from when I heard probably the loudest pop ever right next to me ending its life suddenly. Protect your LAN cables because I doubt I'm the only one who neglected to think about it.

 

[Enforcer52]

Never heard of lightning traveling over glass! Glass is an insulator.

 

[HiddenLefty]

Never heard of lightning traveling over glass! Glass is an insulator.

I thought so too, but it's the only thing that wasn't protected to about the nth degree and also what they actually confirmed to occur as the point of entry. The cable to the scanner itself melted as well to the point the outer plastic is clearly degraded to the touch and now sticky. Electricity is a weird thing.

 

[mmckenna]

You might have "fiber to the home", but at some point, usually outside the house, or at the pole/curb, it switches to copper. Even without a direct lightning strike, there can be enough energy induced onto the wiring to do a hell of a lot of damage. Proper protection may or may not have helped. Sometimes Zeus just likes to remind you that you're a mortal.

 

[nessnet]

As others have already said, fiber optic (glass) does not conduct electricity.
That said, those darn electrons got in somehow.
See below - many FIOS drops actually have a ground wire in them.
There is your probably lightning conduit.


Did your ONT and/or router/switches survive?
Since those pesky electrons traveled over Ethernet to fry your radio, one would think they would have been fried also.

 

[KevinC]

Did it enter through the LAN port or exit through the LAN port?

 

[KevinC]

As others have already said, fiber optic (glass) does not conduct electricity.
That said, those darn electrons got in somehow.
See below - many FIOS drops actually have a ground wire in them.
There is your probably lightning conduit.
View attachment 162310

Did your ONT and/or router/switches survive?
Since those pesky electrons traveled over Ethernet to fry your radio, one would think they would have been fried also.

Is that a ground wire or a messenger wire?

 

[nessnet]

Is that a ground wire or a messenger wire?

Fiber optics - the data itself is carried by (laser) light.
The wire is for physical reinforcement of the cable (glass breaks when bent) and as a ground between the last system splitter and your ONT

 

[nessnet]

Did it enter through the LAN port or exit through the LAN port?

In through the ground and out the RJ-45 - certainly plausible.

 

[HiddenLefty]

As others have already said, fiber optic (glass) does not conduct electricity.
That said, those darn electrons got in somehow.
See below - many FIOS drops actually have a ground wire in them.
There is your probably lightning conduit.
View attachment 162310

Did your ONT and/or router/switches survive?
Since those pesky electrons traveled over Ethernet to fry your radio, one would think they would have been fried also.

Surprise to everyone the router it passed through is still working, but technically so is the melty cable in regards to if it passes data appropriately (but I'm not going to use that in that state) and this is all very confusing to me because that cable definitely melted and the scanner definitely fried, and I'm being told this is how which based on the evidence at hand I am inclined to believe.

Did it enter through the LAN port or exit through the LAN port?

It entered in through there is what I was told by Uniden and that's what I had thought also as it was one of the first things I noticed was out of wack when the lights there were stuck on immediately after.

 

[nessnet]

Out of curiosity - outside antenna - or one 'attached' to the radio?

Thinking more about this - Uniden is most likely wrong.
If this 'spike' indeed came over the Ethernet, I would think anything that was in it's path would have also been fried.

 

[BillC]

I had my Qnap NAS wrecked twice by close strikes. It fried only the Ethernet adapter on the NAS motherboard and a cheap Ethernet switch. The second time, I had Ethernet surge protection on every Ethernet cable involved. Still killed it. The second strike was a tree 100 yards from the house.

 

[HiddenLefty]

Out of curiosity - outside antenna - or one 'attached' to the radio?

Thinking more about this - Uniden is most likely wrong.
If this 'spike' indeed came over the Ethernet, I would think anything that was in it's path would have also been fried.

Outside antennas with grounds and lightning arrestors but all is well there and other things connected are fine too. Every other line had multiple points of protection except for the one they're saying appears to have done it in. I'm trying to make sure they didn't use armored fiber and not ground that right now actually, because that would be in the realm of these people.

 

[KevinC]

Fiber optics - the data itself is carried by (laser) light.
The wire is for physical reinforcement of the cable (glass breaks when bent) and as a ground between the last system splitter and your ONT

Hmm...pretty sure you shouldn't use a messenger wire as a "ground"....but I could be wrong.

 

[mmckenna]

Hmm...pretty sure you shouldn't use a messenger wire as a "ground"....but I could be wrong.

It's usually grounded, but not a replacement for a proper ground.
If the power utility wires drop and hit it on the way down, it'll light up nicely:

 

[nessnet]

Hmm...pretty sure you shouldn't use a messenger wire as a "ground"....but I could be wrong.

The picture I sent earlier is the typical direct bury FIOS cable that is used.
The OP didn't specify if aerial or UG (underground).
If aerial, then yes, there probably is a "messenger wire" if the drop was done correctly.

But, the wire I pictured is not a messenger wire.
That is a (UG) ground.

 

[buddrousa]

My vote came in from ungrounded antenna and found groud at network

 

[nessnet]

"they didn't use armored fiber and not ground that right now actually, because that would be in the realm of these people.

I referred to "UG" (underground) in my reply to KevinC just now.
So, this was a UG FIOS drop?
The cable I pictured was probably used then.

Where did the lightning hit - and how close to that drop did it hit?

 

[KevinC]

Getting outside the scope of this thread (unless the OP's install was done incorrectly), but fiber optic cable shouldn't be "grounded" unless it's armored and in that case you bond the armor sheath not the messenger wire. And the messenger wire shouldn't enter the premises so I don't see the need to bond it. But this isn't a R56 or NEC forum so I'm probably done. And I'm not looking to argue, just thinking out loud more or less.

 

[donc13]

Turn in the SDS and everything that was fried to your insurance company. A $500 deductible (typical amount) is less than the cost of a new SDS.