[TowerTalk] Grounding towers

[K8RI]

On 3/24/2012 10:32 AM, Jim Lux wrote:
> On 3/24/12 6:43 AM, Gregg Seidl wrote:
>    I recently built a
>> new shack in my basement and redid the grounding of it. I have 4
>> ground rods pounded into the ground about 7 feet and have my station
>> ground connected to them. I have the ground rods connected in series
>> and then I connected my station ground to the line running between
>> them. At the end of the ground chain sits one of my towers, 85 feet
>> of Rohn 45. This tower is connected to ground via a ground rod. I
>> thought I'd run the ground line further and connect my station ground
>> to that tower as well. Then I got to thinking if it would help to
>> connect the other towers as well. Is it practice to connect them in
>> series?
> You're presumably talking about "electrical safety ground" (as opposed
> to an RF ground..) and to a lesser extent a lightning dissipation
> ground.   Yes, you want them bonded, and whether series or star doesn't
> make much difference at 60Hz or DC.
>
>    That would require less wire then paralel (sp). Also can one
>> connect the power feed ground to this same ground?
> Yes. bond it.  the usual NEC Art 250 stuff.. AWG 6 wire, listed
> compression clamps or exothermic bonding.
>
>
>    I don't want to
>> have a better ground then the Public Service and have all those
>> issues like we did when I had a dairy farm and had some issues with
>> stray voltage.
> That's a different issue, and you still need to have all grounds in a
> given structure bonded together.

I don't know how much lightning you get but I tie just about everything 
to everything not completely because it's not practical, but I do have 
33 ground rods, CadWelded to over 600 feet of bare #2.

Distance does make a difference even for lightning because of the fast 
rise time.

For some years the tower was getting hit several times each summer but 
after 17 times it hasn't been hit since.
The more iron you put out there they better you want it grounded.

73

Roger (K8RI)