[TenTec] RF Ground

[Jim Brown]

Re: the tower 350 ft from the house. I would bond the ground rods at the 
tower to the service entrance ground. I would bond the coax to the 
ground rods at the base of the tower, put a big ferrite choke on the 
coax at the base of the tower (between the shack and the ground point), 
and another before it comes into the shack. I would also have a bond 
between the shack and the service entrance. . I would also have 
Polyphasers on each coax at the shack to protect the front ends of the 
radios.

What this does is start with everything at the same DC potential, and 
keep it there when voltage gradually builds in a storm. In the case of a 
strike, the ground electrodes are all tied together, but with 
considerable inductance between the tower and the house. The chokes 
minimize the voltage and current that goes to the shack for strikes of 
moderate size. In the case of a strike, the inductance will cause some 
gradient between the tower and the house, but the current that equalizes 
that gradient is far less likely to go through your ham shack

And, your installation meets NEC, which could be an issue if you have 
real damage.


73,

Jim Brown