Proper grounding of the roof of a private house
What is the danger
What are the consequences of the raging elements? This can be a failure of electrical appliances, electric shock to people who are in a private house, and even the fire of floors. In order to secure your home, the roof must be grounded.
The roof of metal and lightweight roll materials is especially at risk. Their grounding is best done first. This is due to the following reasons: metal is able to attract an electric charge, and soft materials easily ignite in the event of a spark. The consequences of the lack of lightning protection are visible in the photo:
Therefore, the installation of a lightning rod is a necessary procedure for any building, especially a wooden house. But before proceeding with the installation of the system, it is necessary to study all the nuances. After all, the grounding itself depends on the shelter material.
Varieties of protection
According to RD 34.21.122-87 p 1.1, the need for lightning protection and its category is determined by the purpose of buildings and structures. The type of protection zone when using rod and cable lightning rods is determined according to the same instruction in table 1, depending on the average annual duration of thunderstorms at the location of a building or structure, as well as on the expected number of lightning strikes per year. A lightning protection device is mandatory while fulfilling the conditions recorded in columns 3 and 4 of Table 1.
You can ground the roof of a residential building in several ways:
- The natural way. It consists of metal parts of the building structure. They are located in the ground and act as down conductors. For example, it can be a reinforced concrete foundation or water supply pipes. But this method is practically not used, since modern polymer materials are used when laying communications.
- Artificial way. It is used purposefully when it is necessary to ground the roof, in order to defuse static electricity. A roof that has grounding will protect a person’s life in the event of a thunderstorm.
About, how to ground a private houseread in our article!
Installation Steps
Metal roof
One-story and two-story houses under a metal roof are very popular, as it is durable and practical. They use metal as the final coating of industrial and office buildings. Roofs made of metal and profiled sheets are considered popular. Grounding them is necessary because of their design features.
On both sides, metal sheets are coated with polymer, which makes them look like a capacitor. When the roof is installed, they become isolated from the ground. During a thunderstorm, such sheets are able to accumulate an electric charge in themselves. If grounding is installed, the charge is diverted to the ground and the building is protected.
If the roof is metal, then grounding should be carried out along the entire perimeter. How to do it yourself? During installation it is necessary to firmly connect the cladding sheets to each other and to all structural elements that are made of metal (these are antennas, chimneys, ventilation pipes). Then, the roof is connected by a down conductor to a grounding device, which is located in the ground. In more detail about the nuances of installation we talked about in the article: how to make a lightning rod do it yourself.
It should be noted that if the roof is metal, then this design is necessary not only in case of protection from atmospheric electricity that occurs in a thunderstorm. In dry weather, dust particles rub against the roofing material, thereby creating an even greater charge. Since electrical voltage requires discharge, in order to avoid serious consequences it is necessary to install a similar device on the roof of the house.
Soft roof
Roofs made from soft roofing materials are also popular. After all, they are convenient for installation, have a long service life and stand out for their appearance. But, like metal coatings, they need protection.
Soft roofing requires grounding with a grid that is installed around the entire perimeter of the slopes of the coating. Using a down conductor, the grid is connected to the grounding device. As a rule, this installation is done in conjunction with the installation of a roofing.
In the case when the roof is already ready, it will be more difficult to make grounding. Indeed, in this case, it is necessary to violate the integrity of the lining. The production of steel wire produces in rolls, it must be installed on slopes.
Of course, there are products that are made by rods, but their maximum length is 6 meters. To install them, you will need special connecting elements. This incurs additional costs. And walking on the roof during installation will not bring anything good.
When carrying out work, it should be remembered that the grounding and its quality depends on the strength of the charge, which it can remove from the coating. To increase the efficiency of the device, increase the number of grounding conductors.
So we looked at how to do the grounding of the roof of a private house with our own hands. As you can see, the protective circuit device is quite complex, so it is important to familiarize yourself with the nuances of installation.
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