To all retired electricians and electrical engineers. Do Lightning Rods work?

[graciegirl]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

[retiredguy123]

They work, but they are not worth the cost. Your homeowners insurance will cover lightning damage.

[John41]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

The POA had a series on lightning rods a couple of years ago with expert input. The result was they can be effective IF properly installed by a certified tech.

[MrFlorida]

Yes they work, but if lightning hits one, everything electronic in your house will be toast anyway.

[Bill14564]

No first-hand knowledge but the consensus seems to be that they work.

Insurance will cover much of your damage, and maybe all. What insurance will not cover is the hassle to deal with the damage and damage to any irreplaceable items.

There are a lot of houses in the Villages that have never been hit by lightning so chances are good you won't have a problem. I have never won the lottery but I keep on trying because there's always the chance that next time it will be me.

[Neils]

Most of the time they work. However the electrical strike must dissipate somewhere, usually in the long steel ground rods alongside your house. The near-strike can still fry electronics, appliances, AC units.

Bottom line, recommend buying good homeowners insurance

[retiredguy123]

You may get a small discount on your insurance, maybe 3 percent.

[GrumpyOldMan]

If your next-door neighbor has one high enough and on your side of their house you are already protected.

if they don't have one already, I would drop them a hint about how much THEY need one.

Lightning looks for the least resistant path to the ground (lightning rod) and the one that is closest to where the lightning is coming from - high lightning rods are very yummy to lightning.

For the most part, they are not worth it, good homeowners insurance will cover damage less expensively than the lightning rod.

[gatorbill1]

Best to buy one for your neighbor

[Chellybean]

I will regret posting this BUT!
If your house gets hit by lightning, start play the lottery! The odds of a lightning hitting your house is in the millions.
Furthermore why would you want to attract lightning to your home with lightning rods on your roof!
Its a personal preference and a waste of money!
Being all sand in Florida the conductivity to ground is minimum!
Furthermore your footer in your home has rebar around throughout your footer that your main electrical panel home ground rod is hooked too.
Now if you get a direct hit you would be electrifying your home electrical system.
Either way Bye Bye to all your electrical equipment.
Just be sure your insurance on the home is well covering your expensive electrical equipment and invest in a main panel surge suppressor and APC on your electrical Equipment.
I will not answer or elaborate further, there are to many know it all here and will debate this!
This is coming from 42 years in the business with electrical engineering background.
Let the negativity start LOL

[golfing eagles]

I will regret posting this BUT!
If your house gets hit by lightning, start play the lottery! The odds of a lightning hitting your house is in the millions.
Furthermore why would you want to attract lightning to your home with lightning rods on your roof!
Its a personal preference and a waste of money!
Being all sand in Florida the conductivity to ground is minimum!
Furthermore your footer in your home has rebar around throughout your footer that your main electrical panel home ground rod is hooked too.
Now if you get a direct hit you would be electrifying your home electrical system.
Either way Bye Bye to all your electrical equipment.
Just be sure your insurance on the home is well covering your expensive electrical equipment and invest in a main panel surge suppressor and APC on your electrical Equipment.
I will not answer or elaborate further, there are to many know it all here and will debate this!
This is coming from 42 years in the business with electrical engineering background.
Let the negativity start LOL

OMG! On this site that is like inviting a vampire into your home:1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[DAVES]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

Check my information. People installing lightening rods do not need to be licensed so the work done may not be proper. Installers should be listed with UL-underwriters laboratory-passed tests etc.

Cost depending on size of home etc is about 3,000. It should be inspected. regularly.
Surely a new roof, a paint job etc may mess it up.

Does not make sense to me but, I thought I knew that lightening will take the easiest path to ground. Yet, they directly said being next to a water tower for example that are high and have lightening rods on them does not protect you-nor does your neighbor having lightening rods.

Those serge protectors, the ones that you plug your TV into and cost like $20 or $30 do have some value. Mistake that most people make, INCLUDING ME, for your computer, TV etc you want to buy one that also protects the coaxial signal cable.

Things we all think we know. Lightening can and does strike in the same place. Just cause you home was hit once, the odds of being hit a second time are exactly the same.
A car is not likely to be struck but, truth I did not understand this, it has nothing to do with rubber tires and insulation. A bike, this is Florida lightening capital, you are a prime target for a lightening strike. As I often ride my bike, I've been often caught in the rain.
Golfers-you are prime targets. Old trick. You can hear lightening coming on an AM radio,does not work on FM.































am
Florida is not number one for lightening strikes in the US.
Somewhere in the Midwest has beat us for number one. Nebraska? It is close. Should we try harder?

[b0bd0herty]

I will regret posting this BUT!
If your house gets hit by lightning, start play the lottery! The odds of a lightning hitting your house is in the millions.
Furthermore why would you want to attract lightning to your home with lightning rods on your roof!
Its a personal preference and a waste of money!
Being all sand in Florida the conductivity to ground is minimum!
Furthermore your footer in your home has rebar around throughout your footer that your main electrical panel home ground rod is hooked too.
Now if you get a direct hit you would be electrifying your home electrical system.
Either way Bye Bye to all your electrical equipment.
Just be sure your insurance on the home is well covering your expensive electrical equipment and invest in a main panel surge suppressor and APC on your electrical Equipment.
I will not answer or elaborate further, there are to many know it all here and will debate this!
This is coming from 42 years in the business with electrical engineering background.
Let the negativity start LOL

According to the National Weather Service, a person has a 1-in-15,300 chance of getting struck by lightning in their lifetime, defined as an 80-year span. That makes your odds of getting struck by lightning nearly 20,000 times higher than hitting the winning numbers for this week's jackpot.Jan 14, 2021

[Ritagoyer]

Even if you get lighting rods I think it has to be tested every so often to make sure we are working. Not just one and done

[chenault55]

Check my information. People installing lightening rods do not need to be licensed so the work done may not be proper. Installers should be listed with UL-underwriters laboratory-passed tests etc.

Cost depending on size of home etc is about 3,000. It should be inspected. regularly.
Surely a new roof, a paint job etc may mess it up.

Does not make sense to me but, I thought I knew that lightening will take the easiest path to ground. Yet, they directly said being next to a water tower for example that are high and have lightening rods on them does not protect you-nor does your neighbor having lightening rods.

Those serge protectors, the ones that you plug your TV into and cost like $20 or $30 do have some value. Mistake that most people make, INCLUDING ME, for your computer, TV etc you want to buy one that also protects the coaxial signal cable.

Things we all think we know. Lightening can and does strike in the same place. Just cause you home was hit once, the odds of being hit a second time are exactly the same.
A car is not likely to be struck but, truth I did not understand this, it has nothing to do with rubber tires and insulation. A bike, this is Florida lightening capital, you are a prime target for a lightening strike. As I often ride my bike, I've been often caught in the rain.
Golfers-you are prime targets. Old trick. You can hear lightening coming on an AM radio,does not work on FM.































am
Florida is not number one for lightening strikes in the US.
Somewhere in the Midwest has beat us for number one. Nebraska? It is close. Should we try harder?

Oklahoma

[eeroger]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

Yes they work. My house was hit a couple of years ago & we didn't even know it until someone mentioned that one of our rods was crooked. We called the installer who checked the rod and confirmed the lightning strike. Insurance doesn't help, if your house burns down or is so damaged that it is uninhabitable.

Indirect lightning strikes are another story. That is why you should have a 3 prong protection: lightning protection system on the house; SECO or panel surge protection; & in-home surge protection on each valuable electronic devise.

[sentry]

In my opinion when you live in a group of houses close to each other, that you are attracting the lighting to your house.

[riley2011]

I will regret posting this BUT!
If your house gets hit by lightning, start play the lottery! The odds of a lightning hitting your house is in the millions.
Furthermore why would you want to attract lightning to your home with lightning rods on your roof!
Its a personal preference and a waste of money!
Being all sand in Florida the conductivity to ground is minimum!
Furthermore your footer in your home has rebar around throughout your footer that your main electrical panel home ground rod is hooked too.
Now if you get a direct hit you would be electrifying your home electrical system.
Either way Bye Bye to all your electrical equipment.
Just be sure your insurance on the home is well covering your expensive electrical equipment and invest in a main panel surge suppressor and APC on your electrical Equipment.
I will not answer or elaborate further, there are to many know it all here and will debate this!
This is coming from 42 years in the business with electrical engineering background.
Let the negativity start LOL

My home has been hit three times. Seems the odds are against me.

[riley2011]

I will regret posting this BUT!
If your house gets hit by lightning, start play the lottery! The odds of a lightning hitting your house is in the millions.
Furthermore why would you want to attract lightning to your home with lightning rods on your roof!
Its a personal preference and a waste of money!
Being all sand in Florida the conductivity to ground is minimum!
Furthermore your footer in your home has rebar around throughout your footer that your main electrical panel home ground rod is hooked too.
Now if you get a direct hit you would be electrifying your home electrical system.
Either way Bye Bye to all your electrical equipment.
Just be sure your insurance on the home is well covering your expensive electrical equipment and invest in a main panel surge suppressor and APC on your electrical Equipment.
I will not answer or elaborate further, there are to many know it all here and will debate this!
This is coming from 42 years in the business with electrical engineering background.
Let the negativity start LOL

My home has been hit three times. Seems the odds are against me.

[Oneiric]

Our lightning rod system was put in by A-1 with a good surge protector on the electrical box. We also have small individual surge protectors on all of our electronics and appliances. Had a strike several years ago and had no damage to anything. Although we have a grounded gas line running through the attic, we felt the cost was worth avoiding any hassle/and or fire.
Our outdoor pool control box though, was toasted once by a ground strike near a neighbor, so make sure your pool electronics has its own separate grounding.

[Altavia]

Yes they work. My house was hit a couple of years ago & we didn't even know it until someone mentioned that one of our rods was crooked. We called the installer who checked the rod and confirmed the lightning strike. Insurance doesn't help, if your house burns down or is so damaged that it is uninhabitable.

Indirect lightning strikes are another story. That is why you should have a 3 prong protection: lightning protection system on the house; SECO or panel surge protection; & in-home surge protection on each valuable electronic devise.

Agree, similar experience here. They are a risk reduction. Replacing the major appliances in your home is not fun. Especially now with most everything on bacj order.

Google Len Hathaways articles in the V-N online news for good info.

Aware of at least three lightening strikes In The Villages the past two month.

Several have hit the metallic gas lines which run through the attic.

. . .

Firefighters declare ‘miracle’ after Villager escapes injury in lightning strike
By
Meta Minton
June 20, 2021
A Village of Monarch Grove man said firefighters told him it was a miracle that he and his home survived a lightning strike.

Owen Steele was at home at 12:45 p.m. June 14 when his home took a direct hit.

“It cooked my gas line,” said Steele, who bought the home on Sarakinis Path in 2019.

The lightning strike left a hole in the roof of his garage about the size of a bowling ball. Steele’s 28-year-old son, a U.S. Marine who has served in hotspots around the globe and was staying with his father on the day of the strike, couldn’t believe the sound.

The Villages Public Safety Department arrived on the scene to secure the home and survey the damage.

“They said it was nothing short of a miracle the whole house didn’t blow,” said Steele, who has been a longtime renter in The Villages and whose parents moved here many years ago.

...

After the firefighters cleared the scene, Steele began an inventory of the damage and started to try to make sense of what had happened.

The electrical wiring and tankless water heater were among the long list of damages.

“The gas meter itself outside had to be removed and replaced that day. It was fried from the lightning traveling through it. Obviously, the heat alone melted the tracer wire on the pipe where it meets the ground,” Steele said.

Heat melted the tracer wire that connects to the gas line
Heat melted the tracer wire that connects to the gas line.

He obtained a report that showed there had been 22 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes within one mile of his front door. The most powerful of the strikes hit his home.

“There were seven simultaneous strikes at 12:44:55 pm totaling more than 300,000 amps peak current that possibly caused the damage,” said Frank Criste of LightningProtectionTheVillages.com, who assisted Steele in analyzing the data.

Up to 30 of Steele’s neighbors’ homes also sustained damage. Many have had to replace cable boxes, modems and garage door openers.

In the week since the lightning strike, Steele has vigorously absorbed everything he could learn about lightning. He said he would like to save his fellow residents a similar fate.

“The only thing I want to convey personally is that had I known the reasonably priced safety measures that I could’ve taken before this incident, I wouldn’t have hesitated,” Steele said.

He said he could have had a lightning protection system installed for about $1,800.

...

[golfing eagles]

Even if you get lighting rods I think it has to be tested every so often to make sure we are working. Not just one and done

And recharged as well :1rotfl::1rotfl::1rotfl:

[biker1]

I don't think the odds are "in the millions". I would ballpark it at 1 in 20,000 each year. I would base this on the 3 or so lightning strikes on homes that I hear about in The Villages each year and the fact that there are about 65,000 homes in The Villages.

I will regret posting this BUT!
If your house gets hit by lightning, start play the lottery! The odds of a lightning hitting your house is in the millions.
Furthermore why would you want to attract lightning to your home with lightning rods on your roof!
Its a personal preference and a waste of money!
Being all sand in Florida the conductivity to ground is minimum!
Furthermore your footer in your home has rebar around throughout your footer that your main electrical panel home ground rod is hooked too.
Now if you get a direct hit you would be electrifying your home electrical system.
Either way Bye Bye to all your electrical equipment.
Just be sure your insurance on the home is well covering your expensive electrical equipment and invest in a main panel surge suppressor and APC on your electrical Equipment.
I will not answer or elaborate further, there are to many know it all here and will debate this!
This is coming from 42 years in the business with electrical engineering background.
Let the negativity start LOL

[Ptmckiou]

We called our power company and they came out and put in a whole house surge protector at the meter. It will cover all our appliances and electronics. $12 a month seems cheap to not experience the hassle of frying everything in your house.

[TC_Arch]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

Get a metal flag pole. Works just as good and is not attached to your house.

[larbud]

For 3 grand I’d say scam..

[Astotz]

I wish I have had the money the lottery gives out for as many times as my house has been hit by lightning in Florida.

[bluecenturian]

That is FALSE. My sister in law lives in the villages and had her rods hit twice and the only damage was once to the low voltage transformer to her landscaping lights and that was because it wasn’t grounded to the system.

[bluecenturian]

Yes they work, but if lightning hits one, everything electronic in your house will be toast anyway.
That is FALSE. My sister in law lives in the villages and had her rods hit twice and the only damage was once to the low voltage transformer to her landscaping lights and that was because it wasn’t grounded to the system.

[jbrown132]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?
I do not know if this is a scam but I do believe they are not effective. In order to be effective the have to be tall enough to provide a cone of protection to your house. For example if you want a 60 degree cone of protection the lightning rod would have to be installed on the highest point of your home and be tall enough that if hit at the top would provide 60 degrees of protection for every thing under and within that cone of protection. One foot lightning rods do not provide any type of a cone of protection. If you can find access to the FAA document FAA-019B this will give you a better understanding of lightning protection. This document may have been updated since I retired 10 years ago, but it will provide you with a better understanding of how lightning strikes.

[bluecenturian]

If your next-door neighbor has one high enough and on your side of their house you are already protected.

if they don't have one already, I would drop them a hint about how much THEY need one.

Lightning looks for the least resistant path to the ground (lightning rod) and the one that is closest to where the lightning is coming from - high lightning rods are very yummy to lightning.

For the most part, they are not worth it, good homeowners insurance will cover damage less expensively than the lightning rod.
This is FALSE. Your neighbors house does NOT attract the lightening. The rods by physics produce a negative electric charge, similar to static electricity. If a lighten bolt come within the proximity of the charge it will attract to the rod. There is no way it will attract to your neighbors house.

[Bella6368]

Yes they work, but if lightning hits one, everything electronic in your house will be toast anyway.

Isn't your response somewhat of a contradiction? If they work, then how does everything in your house electronic become toast? I'm sure you understand it better than I, but just seems like a confusing response.

[Luggage]

Get a few very tall palm trees as I've seen several being hit in my neighborhood and starting on fire. And by the way yes a few years ago I had a neighbor whose house was hit it went through the bathroom vent and did cause a lot of damage

[Bay Kid]

If they were only cool looking as the ones Grandma had on her house.

I have them on mine. Just a one time insurance policy.

[bluecenturian]

Research the info from more informed and credible sources then the “next door” experts.

Lightning Rods (https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-rods)

FAQ - Lightning Protection Institute (https://lightning.org/faq/)

[NoMo50]

Here's some sage advice for golfers:

"If you're ever caught in a thunderstorm, and worry about lightning, hold up a one iron. Not even God can hit a one iron."

---- Lee Trevino

[golfing eagles]

This is FALSE. Your neighbors house does NOT attract the lightening. The rods by physics produce a negative electric charge, similar to static electricity. If a lighten bolt come within the proximity of the charge it will attract to the rod. There is no way it will attract to your neighbors house.

Does this post seem like a contradiction to anyone?????

[Laschott]

Lightning rod, The question is if lightning rods attract lightning then why would you want to put them on your house. Would you walk around the golf course in a lightning storm with a steel shaft a golf club in the air. You’re asking lightning to hit the steel shaft and kill you. So if you have lightning rods on your house are you asking lightning to hit your house?

[Ashimp]

There's websites that explain how a lightening rod works, here's one Demonstration of How Lightning Rods Work (Van De Graaff) - YouTube (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wGc3q4dVOS0)

[dewilson58]

Lightning rod, The question is if lightning rods attract lightning then why would you want to put them on your house. Would you walk around the golf course in a lightning storm with a steel shaft a golf club in the air. You’re asking lightning to hit the steel shaft and kill you. So if you have lightning rods on your house are you asking lightning to hit your house?

Needing some education. :blahblahblah:

[Lightning]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?
Lightning Protection Systems (LPS) commonly called lightning rods have been credited with saving lives and property since they were invented by Ben Franklin in 1752. However, the installation of LPS is a specialty offered by firms that are listed by UL and employ craftsmen that are qualified as Master Installer by four closed book proctored exams offered by the Lightning Protection Institute. Typically, electrical engineers and electricians are skilled in the National Electrical Code and the safe use of electricity in your home and other structures and that does NOT include lightning. Please note the wide use of lightning rods around The Villages - all buildings around the square at Sumter Landing, all pumping stations, fire department headquarters, nearly all churches, hotels, and in some neighborhoods as much as 15% of the homes. For more information research recent issues of the VHA Voice, POA Bulletin, **************.com, and University of Florida's Dr. Martin Uman's book at the Belvedere Library, The Art and Science of Lightning Protection. Beware of myths and misunderstandings found elsewhere on this subject.

[GrumpyOldMan]

This is FALSE. Your neighbors house does NOT attract the lightening. The rods by physics produce a negative electric charge, similar to static electricity. If a lighten bolt come within the proximity of the charge it will attract to the rod. There is no way it will attract to your neighbors house.

I was correct.

IF your NEXTDOOR neighbor has a lightning rod and it is high enough, the lightning WILL be attracted to it (for the reasons you gave - sort of) and not your bland tasteless roof. If you have something that is tastier (conductor with a low resistance to ground) on your house like a tall antenna, then it hits you.

You can stand in a field next to a power transmission line holding a golf club over your head, and you will never get hit by lightning. Because the transmission line is closer to the source of the lightning (higher), and it has a GOOD lightning rod built-in. with a very low resistance to ground.

If on the other hand you are out on a golf course and are hundreds of feet/yards from the any structure, and you hold your golf club up to swing - you become the tastiest thing in the area and can be hit by lightning.

Are you an electrical engineer?

[DAVES]

Our lightning rod system was put in by A-1 with a good surge protector on the electrical box. We also have small individual surge protectors on all of our electronics and appliances. Had a strike several years ago and had no damage to anything. Although we have a grounded gas line running through the attic, we felt the cost was worth avoiding any hassle/and or fire.
Our outdoor pool control box though, was toasted once by a ground strike near a neighbor, so make sure your pool electronics has its own separate grounding.

As stated, I am no expert. We do not have gas. I am not against gas, I prefer it for cooking, and water heating. However since we do not have basements. Since apparently it above your head in the attic. Add to that lightening. ?????????

[GrumpyOldMan]

Does this post seem like a contradiction to anyone?????

It isn't a contradiction, it just isn't clear. If a lightning strike hits a lightning rod it goes into the ground (most of the time). But that induces a very large current flowing through the rod. That current produces an EMP (sort of) a pulse of magnetism that flies out from the rod and passes through anything electronic nearby - where it induces a current and "fries" the electronics. That is basically the same thing that happens when a Nuke is exploded and a very large EMP destroys all the electronics in the region.

This is part of the consideration when installing a Lightning rod - don't put it too close to any expensive sensitive electronics. Or the magnetic pulse it produces (which is harmless - we think - to humans) will probably destroy the electronics. It doesn't have to be a LONG way away, but not close.

:pray:

[DAVES]

Does this post seem like a contradiction to anyone?????

Most everything is full of contradictions. Every issue we expect simple, perfect, solutions.
REALITY, they do not exist.

[MrFlorida]

Isn't your response somewhat of a contradiction? If they work, then how does everything in your house electronic become toast? I'm sure you understand it better than I, but just seems like a confusing response.

No, not at all. , when a strike happens to hit a lightning rod, the voltage goes to ground, but the EMP (the energy that flows around the voltage) will travel through the air and all of your sensitive electronics will be fried.

[airstreamingypsy]

First hand experience, my horse barn in SC had lightning rods and they took a direct hit. The horses, and the ex husband who was standing in it, were not hurt. I can't speak for Florida, but there's no question that they worked that day. No electrical damage inside the barn too.

[GrumpyOldMan]

This is FALSE. Your neighbors house does NOT attract the lightening. The rods by physics produce a negative electric charge, similar to static electricity. If a lighten bolt come within the proximity of the charge it will attract to the rod. There is no way it will attract to your neighbors house.

I have to correct the other point.

Lightning rods do not "produce" anything especially NOT a positive charge. Electricity (lightning) is always trying to find the shortest lowest resistance path back to its source (normally the ground).

Pine trees are notorious for being really good lightning rods, because of the core of conductive (low resistance) sap.

When a lightning rod is struck by lightning the current (lots and lots of it) flowing through the rod (or whatever it hit) generates an Electromagnetic Pulse that will "electrocute" electronic devices nearby. Or it will "induce" a current into any conductors nearby - conductors are things like house wiring, steel or copper pipes, chainlink fences, golf clubs, etc. etc., etc. If you happened to be holding onto one of those when a lightning bolt strikes near by your could have your hair stand up on end, or you could be toasted. It all depends.

[GrumpyOldMan]

First hand experience, my horse barn in SC had lightning rods and they took a direct hit. The horses, and the ex husband who was standing in it, were not hurt. I can't speak for Florida, but there's no question that they worked that day. No electrical damage inside the barn too.

Thank you, they DO work.

[crash]

Even if you get lighting rods I think it has to be tested every so often to make sure we are working. Not just one and done

Costs $100 for the inspection and should be done every 3 years.

[GrumpyOldMan]

Most everything is full of contradictions. Every issue we expect simple, perfect, solutions.
REALITY, they do not exist.

Ain't it the truth. If only anything were simple!

[GrumpyOldMan]

Costs $100 for the inspection and should be done every 3 years.

This is pretty much what is done for the $100 - some other things can be included, like spark gap testing, etc. But, the main points are these:


The resistance to earth of each local earth electrode and, where practical, the resistance to earth of the complete earth termination system.

The results of a visual check of all conductors, bonds, and joints or their measured electrical continuity.

[OhioBuckeye]

Lighting Rods work but not if your house takes a direct hit, then you better call your Insurance Company!

[GrumpyOldMan]

No, not at all. I've been a power company lineman for 42 years, and when a strike happens to hit a lightning rod, the voltage goes to ground, but the EMF (the energy that flows around the voltage) will travel through the air and all of your sensitive electronics will be fried.

LOL!

Nice way to put it.

My neighbor (1/2 mile away) where we previously lived in the country put in their own lightning rod. It went up about 6 feet above their roof. It was about ten feet away from a pine tree that went up 30 feet higher.

That lightning rod was perfectly safe! Lightning was almost guaranteed to hit the tree and not the rod. I am sure a lineman you saw many cases of pines hit by lightning while the transmission line next to it had a lightning rod. Although, power companies are getting better about clearing out any trees too close the the transmission lines.

[caroljspears]

Several years ago three homes in The Villages burned to the ground from lightning strikes. It's not just an electronics hazard. Fires follow lighting strikes by the energy following the pipes in your homes to a combustable spot. Especially a hazard if you use gas for heat or cooking. And what about your personal, especially memory items and pets in your home if your house burns? Insurance won't take care of all of that. Right after the third house burned I had lightning rods put in from Triangle Lightning Protection, which is one of the companies that the POA recommended. Peace of mind was well worth the cost, which to me is not that much of a cost.

[GrumpyOldMan]

Lighting Rods work but not if your house takes a direct hit, then you better call your Insurance Company!

The odds of your house or you being hit by lightning are very low.

VERY LOW.

If you have a properly designed, installed, and maintained lightning control system, the odds of a direct hit on your house are pretty close to zero. Well, actually ZERO for most purposes.

[SacDQ]

I love the next door neighbor approach.

[graciegirl]

I received a very useful P.M. from Robbie...and for some reason or another the system is not allowing me to reply by P.M.

Please, can you tell us the system you had installed and I am guessing that you installed it. Many thanks to your helpful answer.

[DonnaNi4os]

I’m no electrician but it seems to me that the height of a lightning rod would make you more susceptible to a strike. It’s like carrying an umbrella in a thunderstorm, your risk increases as opposed to wearing a raincoat. I had SECO put a whole house surge protector when I purchased my home but soon learned that was just the beginning. Despite a surge protector on my TVs I recently lost my flat screen after a storm. I learned that the cable line also needed a surge protector at the point of entry. Now I have a surge protector on everything including my garage door opener, microwave, garbage disposal, etc, anything powered by electricity. SunKool was here a week ago for my regular maintenance and told me that I should have a surge protector on my ac unit so I agreed. Truth be told, you can attempt to avoid costly surges but if lightning strikes anywhere near your home you can still have your appliances toasted. My prayer is that I don’t get the kind of strike that would burn down my house. I do not intend to get lightning rods installed and I am not a gambler.

[GrumpyOldMan]

I’m no electrician but it seems to me that the height of a lightning rod would make you more susceptible to a strike. It’s like carrying an umbrella in a thunderstorm, your risk increases as opposed to wearing a raincoat. I had SECO put a whole house surge protector when I purchased my home but soon learned that was just the beginning. Despite a surge protector on my TVs I recently lost my flat screen after a storm. I learned that the cable line also needed a surge protector at the point of entry. Now I have a surge protector on everything including my garage door opener, microwave, garbage disposal, etc, anything powered by electricity. SunKool was here a week ago for my regular maintenance and told me that I should have a surge protector on my ac unit so I agreed. Truth be told, you can attempt to avoid costly surges but if lightning strikes anywhere near your home you can still have your appliances toasted. My prayer is that I don’t get the kind of strike that would burn down my house. I do not intend to get lightning rods installed and I am not a gambler.

True, but that is the point of the lightning rod, to "take the hit". It is intended to be the most likely thing to be hit and too shunt that current down into the ground into LONG rods that are driven into the ground.

If your house gets hit and not the lightning rod, then either you won the lottery or you got taken by an incompetent installer.

[fpmoravcik]

So I need to understand what you are saying. Don't spend the money for rods if you have insurance? Wow.!

[fpmoravcik]

They work, but they are not worth the cost. Your homeowners insurance will cover lightning damage.
So I need to understand what you are saying. Don't spend the money for rods if you have insurance? Wow.!

[GrumpyOldMan]

So I need to understand what you are saying. Don't spend the money for rods if you have insurance? Wow.!

They are saying it is not cost-effective in many (most?) situations.

If it were cost-effective every home would come with them built-in

On the other hand, you could think of Lightning rods as a form of prevention - sort of like vaccinations...

(ducks and runs)

[Boilerman]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

Yes they work. The real protection they provide is to prevent your house catching fire and burning to the ground. Insurance may cover your loss but not the aggravation or loss of irreplaceable items.

No, they don’t attract lightening to your house.

Yes they need to be installed by a reputable contractor. If they are, they are not a scam.

The odds are getting hit in the Villages are probably about 1 in 15,000 to 20,000 each year. That’s based on about 3 to 4 houses getting hit every summer here.

Because they are expensive and the odds are in your favor of never getting hit, it’s probably not a good investment. Others like the piece of mind knowing they are protected.

I think of a direct lighting strike similar to sinkholes. It can happen, probably won’t, have insurance in case it does and know the odds are overwhelming in my favor. Therefore, we don’t have a lightening protection system.

[dewilson58]

Yes they work. .

Maybe.

[GrumpyOldMan]

Yes they work. The real protection they provide is to prevent your house catching fire and burning to the ground. Insurance may cover your loss but not the aggravation or loss of irreplaceable items.

No, they don’t attract lightening to your house.

Yes they need to be installed by a reputable contractor. If they are, they are not a scam.

The odds are getting hit in the Villages are probably about 1 in 15,000 to 20,000 each year. That’s based on about 3 to 4 houses getting hit every summer here.

Because they are expensive and the odds are in your favor of never getting hit, it’s probably not a good investment. Others like the piece of mind knowing they are protected.

I think of a direct lighting strike similar to sinkholes. It can happen, probably won’t, have insurance in case it does and know the odds are overwhelming in my favor. Therefore, we don’t have a lightening protection system.

Very good and clear answer - thank you

[montysl]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

Lightening is, as most have noted, opportunistic. If the opportunity exists for it to take your gas pipeline (often located in your attic), it will do so. This is a source of many fires in TV and, typically, much more destructive than a “standard” lightening strike. Rods might be effective in routing the strike away from these gas components.

[Marcojb]

Do Lightning rods, properly installed, safely direct lightning strikes that hit your home down into the earth near your home?

Or is this a scam?

As a Massachusetts electrician, we are required to install 2 ground rods for all new electrical services. Lighting comes into the house through the power lines ( underground or overhead) so we also install surge supressors at the main electrical panel. In Florida they install ground faults at the electric meters so yes its worth it to protect your expensive electronics

[retiredguy123]

So I need to understand what you are saying. Don't spend the money for rods if you have insurance? Wow.!
Yes, the potential benefit is not worth the cost. It is a simple benefit/cost calculation. That is why very few houses have lightning protection systems. And, if you are concerned about your personal safety, then move out of central Florida, because when lightning strikes, you may not even be in your house.

[butlerism]

Yes and no.

Yes they do work, but some knowledge is required.

The integrity of the ground stab and how well it is "earthed" is the primary concern.

If the ground spike is not properly conducting to Earth.
Your Lightning Rods will be useless.
Like a bird on a wire, no current will flow.

[OhioBuckeye]

The odds of your house or you being hit by lightning are very low.

VERY LOW.

If you have a properly designed, installed, and maintained lightning control system, the odds of a direct hit on your house are pretty close to zero. Well, actually ZERO for most purposes.

You’re exactly right but the first yr. we lived there we saw a house that took a direct hit & it was severely damaged before the Fire Dept. got there. Also your chances of having Lighting Rods put on your house & getting hit by lighting is also close to zero. Everything you said is true, but I was just answering the question about Lighting Rods. They’re expensive for the odds of your chances of getting hit. Thanks for your opinion!

[snbrafford]

They work, but they are not worth the cost. Your homeowners insurance will cover lightning damage.

I did not find the cost all that prohibitive and you may be able to get a discount on your home owners insurance but need the right installer (certified). Lightning may cause a fire and a TOTAL loss of your home and possessions - some of which money can't replace. Remember there is a deductible on insurance which would go a long way in covering the cost of lightning rods. The one thing to remember is that once installed - there will me additional costs in the future IF roof needed replaced as the rods will have to be properly removed and reinstalled - preferably by a certified "rod" guy and not by some roofer that just says he can do it. I used A1 that is certified and had some large corporate contracts.

[Quixote]

Our lightning rod system was put in by A-1 with a good surge protector on the electrical box. We also have small individual surge protectors on all of our electronics and appliances. Had a strike several years ago and had no damage to anything. Although we have a grounded gas line running through the attic, we felt the cost was worth avoiding any hassle/and or fire.
Our outdoor pool control box though, was toasted once by a ground strike near a neighbor, so make sure your pool electronics has its own separate grounding.

We could have written this; I'm in complete agreement. Our system was put in by A-1 as well at a cost of $1,200 (which included an additional $100 for grounding our bird cage). For us, this is a nominal amount for the protection we are convinced that it brings.

However, the primary reason we put the system in was because we have natural gas with the distribution lines in the attic, as has been mentioned already. The gas lines are relatively insubstantial when compared with the black pipe that was a requirement for gas lines—at least where we were—up north. The gas distribution panel has its own heavy grounding wire.

We also rent a whole house surge suppressor on our electric meter which is owned by SECO, as well as additional small ones in appropriate places in the house. We have had lightning strikes so close that we can feel the Earth shake (as well as the house...) and have NEVER had any damage. That's good enough for us!

[flsteve]

Lightning Protection Systems (LPS) commonly called lightning rods have been credited with saving lives and property since they were invented by Ben Franklin in 1752. However, the installation of LPS is a specialty offered by firms that are listed by UL and employ craftsmen that are qualified as Master Installer by four closed book proctored exams offered by the Lightning Protection Institute. Typically, electrical engineers and electricians are skilled in the National Electrical Code and the safe use of electricity in your home and other structures and that does NOT include lightning. Please note the wide use of lightning rods around The Villages - all buildings around the square at Sumter Landing, all pumping stations, fire department headquarters, nearly all churches, hotels, and in some neighborhoods as much as 15% of the homes. For more information research recent issues of the VHA Voice, POA Bulletin, **************.com, and University of Florida's Dr. Martin Uman's book at the Belvedere Library, The Art and Science of Lightning Protection. Beware of myths and misunderstandings found elsewhere on this subject.

Most accurate post here yet!

They DO work. However, they MUST be inspected after installation to verify that the bonding between all components and then the final grounding to earth. These verifications should be re-performed probably annually as a minimum. Without the proper minimum resistance to earth, your LPS is useless. NFPA 780 lists lightning mitigation requirements to be followed, kind of like NFPA 70 known as the National Electrical Code does.

IF you are looking to have a system installed, know that you should have a certified DESIGNER as well as a certified INSTALLER. Having a UL inspection on the completed installation is a good idea. This is the proper way to do it. I agree that LPI is very much recommended as a source to START from in choosing local representatives.