[time-nuts] GPS Antenna Grounding/Lightning protection.

[jimlux]

On 6/18/18 6:39 PM, Glenn Little WB4UIV wrote:

> 
> To do the grounding correctly, all connections exterior to the building 
> are to be welded.
> The cable to ground rod welds are to be 18 inches below grade.
> The exterior cable is to be number 2 copper or larger.
> To bond numerous ground systems together, a number 2 copper cable is to 
> be buried at 18 inches and welded to each ground system.
> If using eight foot ground rods, a ground rod is to be driven every 16 
> feet along the connecting cable and the cable welded to the rod.


It helps to know *why* some requirements exist - I suspect the 18" 
burial requirement is to avoid accidentally digging it up or damaging 
it. I can't think of an electrical reason for it.


> 
> A lot of work, but, cheaper, in the long run, than continuing to 
> repair/replace equipment.

It depends

Unless you're doing geodetic or precision timing work with a 2 or 3 band 
GPS, replacement GPS antennas are cheap.
I'd worry about the receiver and related equipment, but the antenna 
itself might be sacrificial.

As always, there's a risk/budget tradeoff