ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
On Wed, 27 Jun 2007 11:41:02 -0600, "Barrie Smith"
<barrie@centric.net> wrote:
>My question is: Would several square feet of copper, buried a foot deep, be
>an effective ground system?
------------ REPLY FOLLOWS ------------
That would only be effective for lightning protection, not for AC
mains or RF grounding.
For AC mains, follow the local code requirements. Most likely it
requires a ground rod at the service entrance. In your shack, just use
the "third wire" on the AC plug. No separate connection is required
nor desirable. Having multiple AC mains grounds can lead to ground
loop currents and induced hum in your equipment. This is especially
noticeable if your rig and computer are connected to separate ground
points and you are using one of the digital soundcard modes.
For RF grounding, I strongly recommend NOT using anything resembling
dirt. The earth is a lousy conductor of RF and will turn your precious
RF energy into heat. A copper sheet buried underground is effectively
in series with the earth for those couple of feet. Placed on top of
the ground, and in sufficient size, it would be very effective
although expensive. Radial wires are the best overall, IMO. Use lots
of them.
Bill W6WRT
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