Overview
Residential and Light Commercial Lightning Protection Systems
There are usually five protection elements for a residential building or a light commercial structure. These elements generally apply for buildings under Class 1 or those that are less than 75’ tall.
Air Terminals
These sit at the uppermost point of the system. Also referred to as points or lightning rods, they are located at the point of contact between the system and a lightning strike. For this reason, electrical designers place them on points that are susceptible to strikes. These include chimneys, dormers, flat roof edges, ridges and any mechanical projections.
Conductors
These are copper or aluminum lightning cables that attach all terminals and then direct strikes of lightning to the ground.
Bonding
To avert side flashes, bonding is installed to connect electrical, plumbing and mechanical systems. These sit between the residential lightning protection systems and the other preexisting systems of an ordinary house.
Grounding
This refers to steel rods with copper cladding. As they act as the strike discharge points into the ground, electrical designers drive them ten feet into the earth. Buried cables and flat plates can be utilized as electrodes in some soil types.
Surge Arresters
This refers to electrical apparatus positioned on the entrance to telephone, electric and video/data services. The purpose is to keep away any harmful over-voltage that is likely to be experienced in the above residential services and areas. While preventing damage to these installations, surge arrestors guarantee a long shelf life to these services.
Special Items
Residential structures can have special items on the roof and surrounding areas, just as their commercial counterparts do. These include antennas, trees, flag posts, weather vanes, ornaments, and other elevated objects in the adjacent space and surrounding.
The fact that Class 1 structures need less complex residential lightning protection systems is not a justification for electrical designers to take them for granted. In fact, they should observe more care as families spend more time at home and therefore need maximum protection.