[TowerTalk] tower & antenna project questions

[jimlux]

Gene Smar wrote:
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "jimlux" <jimlux at earthlink.net>
> To: "Tower and HF antenna construction topics." <towertalk at contesting.com>
> Sent: Friday, March 12, 2010 1:43 AM
> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] tower & antenna project questions
> 
> 
>>
>> Put your copper wire into the foundation and end it there.  It should
>> only penetrate the air/concrete boundary above grade.  If you want to
>> put ground rods in, too, put them into the soil outside the concrete.
>>
>> But concrete is a pretty good conductor, and has a LOT more surface area
>> than a 1/2" diameter rod.  When you're talking dissipating lightning
>> energy, you want to spread it out.
>>
> 
> TT:
> 
>       You shouldn't need to use a wire from the tower to the concrete.  The 
> base legs, or the base anchor bolts, will provide electrical connection into 
> this massive Ufer ground. 


You're right.
But.. on a lot of service entrance panel applications, for convenience, 
a lot of people put the 20 foot wire into the concrete, because it's 
easier to take that wire up and connect it to the grounding lug than it 
is to have several bolted/clamped joints.  No worries about corrosion at 
the joints, etc., and it's easier to route a wire than a hunk of rebar 
sticking up (which is another popular way to get the "ground" out of the 
Ufer/CEGR.)


For a galvanized tower and big galvanized bolts, there's probably not a 
heck of a lot of difference, practically.