[TowerTalk] A unique and difficult grounding problem

[Jim Brown]

Hi Peter,

I suggest that you study this. http://k9yc.com/GroundingAndAudio.pdf

Also, the chapter on grounding in K7LXC's excellent "Up The Tower."

73, Jim K9YC

On Fri,6/5/2015 11:01 AM, Peter Dougherty (W2IRT) wrote:
> Once again, hello all.
>
> For 10 years I've wondered about the best way to ground my station. If I
> just had one tower it would be easy. Likewise if all my feedlines entered at
> the same place. But here this is not the case. I have two towers-a main
> 70-footer for HF and a 35 footer for 6m (and maybe someday a 10m Yagi as
> well). The main tower is grounded via three 2" copper straps (and stainless
> steel clamps) connected to 8' copper-clad steel ground rods at the tower's
> base, and 4AWG solid bare copper wire Cadwelded to the rods and then out to
> a ground radial field. The small tower will soon be connected to one end of
> the ground field via strapping or braid.
>
> *See the following images (an overall grounding plan and photos of both
> cable entrance points):
> http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll290/W2IRT/Ground%20Plan.jpg
> http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll290/W2IRT/6m%20tower%20and%20inlet.jpg
>
> http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll290/W2IRT/back-house1.jpg
>
>
> The main tower's coaxes all connect to an Ameritron RCS-12L (8 ports,
> equipped with lightning protection gas discharge tubes). The coaxes and
> control lines enter the house via a 4-foot high crawlspace situated under
> the radio room, traverse about 25' of carpeted floor then rise up to the
> radio desk. The secondary tower's coax enters the house via an inlet box
> above floor level in the shack, about 30 feet away from the main tower's
> inlet, and on the other side of the shack's floor.
>
> There *is* a Cadwelded, bonded ground line between the main tower, the inlet
> box and the secondary tower but the problem I'm facing, and the question I'm
> asking, is where the heck do I put the single-point ground panel? Bonding
> everything so a lightning strike's rise and fall would occur simultaneously
> is something.
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------
> Peter, W2IRT
>
> www.facebook.com/W2IRT
>
>   
>
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