Lightning [RE-wrenches]

[James Lamb, Middle Fork Engineering]

Note When you disconnect AC, DC and telephone, Lightning will jump the
diconnection gap. Therefore you must have a very large gap so the lightning
goes somewhere else. I know of a person who pulled the electric meter out to
disconnect a windmill and then saw lightning jump over the gaps of the meter
base. Lightning protection will make this more unlikely. It depends on the
power of the lightning (direct hit, side flash or Hot or Cold Lightning).
Don't get caught making a diconnection at the same time there is a strike.  

> ----------
> From: 	Chuck Heath, SunPower[SMTP:sunpwr at jps.net]
> Reply To: 	RE-wrenches at topica.com
> Sent: 	Monday, July 10, 2000 5:56 PM
> To: 	RE-wrenches at topica.com
> Subject: 	Re: comments to TRACE [RE-wrenches]
> 
> Mark Downing <solarman4 at yahoo.com> said...
> >Since I started using Delta lightning
> >arrestors we are having much better luck, but still a
> >handful of lightning related failures per year.
> 
> I've always used them at the combiner box of the PV array(s) but not on 
> the AC side. Are you using them similarly, or on both the AC and DC sides?
> 
> The last big downstrike here fried the built-in monitor speakers, one of 
> 3 working telephone lines, the 2-line telephone instrument, the answering 
> machine and the modem, but left the inverter untouched (whew!). BTW, all 
> 50 pairs of phone lines here are buried for at least 2 miles. The hit was 
> on my 130 ft. self-supporting commercial radio tower which has an 
> extensive grounding system, and is just 15 ft. from the telephone network 
> interface box.
> Moral: Disconnect both AC and telephone when lightning is nearby. 
> 
> Chuck Heath "Plugging into Sunshine since 1989"
> Big Oak Flat CA
> 
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