[TowerTalk] Fwd: Re: Earthing a tower

[Jim Lux]

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Earthing a tower
Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2012 17:28:43 -0800
From: Jim Lux <jimlux at earthlink.net>
To: Jim <zl2bmh at xtra.co.nz>

On 12/26/12 3:14 PM, Jim wrote:
> Hello.
>
> I hope I have sent this correctly, as it's my first post.
>
> Is it necessary to earth a tower?


Yes..

If your tower is securely bolted to a concrete base with bolts and
there's a decent amount of rebar in the base, it's probably pretty well
grounded/earthed.

The concern is whether the bolts are in close contact with the concrete
with no tiny crack for water to get in and corrode the steel, or for the
water to create steam in the event of a lightning stroke.  Typically,
this is assured by keeping the top of the concrete above grade and
sloped so that water doesn't just sit on it.

If it's just sitting on the bare soil, you might want to do some more
grounding.


A bigger issue is whether the coax shields are bonded at the bottom of
the tower, or where they come into your house, etc.