Why You Should Get Household Lightning Protection

/in /by

When your house is struck by lightning you can be assured you will know all about it! In a country that is one of the top three with the highest death rates from lighting, it is sensible to protect your home and environment from strikes with household lightning protection.

America and India are in the top two spots for experiencing the most deaths from lightning strikes.

Lightning is responsible for at least 300 deaths annually in South Africa with the hardest hit areas of the country with the most occurrences of lightning strikes depending on their geological setting; for example places with ferric or red soil provides a positive charge required by lightning.

One bolt of lightning has the capacity to constitute a nuclear power station, and lightning can strike from massive distances.

A good example is lightning from a thunderstorm in Parys in the Free State can strike a person in Pretoria – information gleaned from the Lighting Interest Group for Health Technology and Science.

Conduction:

  • Lightning has been known to travel long distances in wires or other metal surfaces,
  • Metal does not attract lightning but is provides a path for the lightning to follow.
  • It makes little difference whether you are inside or outside, anyone that is in contact with anything connected to metal wires, including plumbing or metal surfaces that extend to the outside are vulnerable to lightning strikes.
  • This also includes anything and everything electrical – in other words anything that plugs into an electrical outlet, taps and showers, corded phones and windows and doors.
  • Household lightning protection has been designed in a fashion to protect your household appliances and electronics from strikes.

Direct strikes:

These occur when individuals and animals are in open areas.

Side flashes:

Side flashes are also referred to as side splashes. These happen when lightning strikes a taller object near the victim, such as a building, pole or a tree, and a portion of the current jumps from the taller object to the victim.

Ground current:

When lightning strikes a tree or similar, much of the energy travels outward from the strike and along the ground surface.

This is known as the ground current.

Streamers:

Streamers develop as the downward–moving leader approaches the ground.

Usually only one of the streamers makes contact makes contact with the leader as it approaches the ground and provides a path for the bright return stroke.

Lightning should be taken seriously; installing lightning protection for your home will keep your home as well as all your sensitive electronic and electrical equipment safe from strikes.