[TenTec] Protect your rigs.

[Steve Ellington]

The WX report called for heavy thunderstorms so before rushing off to work,
I ripped off the 450 ohm feeder from the back of the tuner, went outside and
yanked the feeder through the wall and left it laying on the wooden deck.
When I got home that evening the 200ft CF zepp was gone. Only some spreads
of insulation remained. Lightning had hit the ant. jumped to the outside ac
outlet and gone inside the house. Here's what I lost.
1. Garage door opener..went nuts, opened door, tore up chain, burned relays.
2. Furnace relays
3. All phones and inside wiring.
4. Stereo
5. TV
6. some ac outlets
7. some circuit breakers.
8. Zepp antenna

The ham gear was unhurt even though still plugged into the ac power.
Lesson learned:
Don't just unplug that antenna.
Ground it!
Some say grounding your antenna helps prevent lightning strikes.
Center fed Zepps are really dangerous unless grounded. My tuner would arc
from storms 10 miles away. Since then I've used loops which are always at
ground potential. The tuneris now silent but I still unhook and ground it
with a big knife switch every evening.


Steve Ellington N4LQ.
Hollow state radios are tougher.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dale L Martin" <kg5u@hal-pc.org>
To: <tentec@contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, March 13, 2002 7:58 PM
Subject: RE: [TenTec] Protect your rigs.


>
> >
> > Stuart has it correct.  PLEASE never leave antennas connected when you
are
> > away from the station or when there's a storm within a few miles.
> >
> >
> > 73
> > Bob K4TAX
> >
>
> I can attest to that.
>
> Picture yourself driving up the freeway after work watching the dark
clouds
> ahead drop rain and cast down (up?) the occasional lightning bolt.
>
> Then, there's a bolt just about where you figure your house is about a
mile
> or so in the distance.
>
> You get home and find:
>
> Main House circuit breakers tripped.
> Garage door opener no longer working
> Stereo no longer working
> A/C-Heating controller no longer working
> Telephone answering machine no longer working
> TV no longer working
> 2m radio #1 no longer working -- front end fried and still warm
> 2m radio #2 no longer working
> TNC1 and TNC2 no longer working
> Terminal no longer working
> Homebrew Rotator controller (single knob point-and-rotate type) no longer
> working
> PC no longer working
>
> THEN the insurance adjuster has the gall to tell me I can go ahead and get
> it all fixed -- no replacement!  Well, almost all...she let me buy a new
> answering machine and a/c-heater controller.  The rest, I had to send off
to
> get repaired.  I have since learned to press for replacement.
>
> Oh, yes...my Triton IV, TS-930S and Alpha 76A were untouched.
>
> Apparently, the TR-7950 (2m radio 1) took the brunt of it as the RF deck
was
> disintegrated.
>
> Only the TR-7950 (DX PacketCluster radio) was connected to an antenna.
>
> A year or so later, when I took down my Cushcraft A3S triband beam for
some
> maintenance work, I found a 3/8" diameter hole burned in the reflector
> element tip section.
>
> Antennas and rotator control cables are now disconnected when the radios
are
> not actually on.
>
> 73 and good luck to all,
>
> dale, kg5u
>
>
>
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