Setting aside my very poor seamanship for getting caught like this, does anyone have an opinion on just how much protection the rig and grounding systems does provide?
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dbkennedy1 |
Lighting Strikes! |
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Okay, so I was headed up Long Island Sound last Sunday and managed to get caught in a pretty good lightning storm. I was assuring
my passengers (and myself) that the boat was well grounded and that if we did get hit the rig would pass the charge to ground. We came through okay, but did
have a couple of strikes within 100yds!
Setting aside my very poor seamanship for getting caught like this, does anyone have an opinion on just how much protection the rig and grounding systems does provide?
David Kennedy
Wave Dancer II Hull 303, Mark I, 3 Cabin
Last Edited By: dbkennedy1 06/12/08 12:46:35.
Edited 1 time.
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pdrimmer |
#1 | |||
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David,
I was in the same storm. I have never heard of anyone being injured by a strike. However, my boat has been hit (at the dock) three times in the last eight years with considerable damage to the electrical equipment. The only good thing about it is I get to upgrade my electronics. I have done a fair bit of research and have not come up with a good answer on how to protect my passengers or the boat. I have had a face to face discussion with Gerry Douglas and he did not have any specific recommendations. One friend of mine has a big piece of chain that he has connected to the rig and throws it in the water. That should discharge most of the energy without making too big a hole in the boat. However, all of my damage was caused with strikes that were near the boat, not hitting it directly. Here is the drill I use. Passengers down in the cabin making sure they do not touch metal. Make sure you have plenty of sea room and make the ride as safe and as comfortable as possible. Not sure if this is the answer you wanted. If you come up with something, please share it with me. |
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Sandy Golden |
#2 | |||
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Guys,
Florida is said to be the lightning capital of the U.S. The U of FL has reputation of being one of the most knowledgeable institutions on the subject. See http://www.thomson.ece.ufl.edu/lightning/ and http://www.cdc.gov/nasd/docs/d000001-d000100/d000007/d000007.html for their overview of lighting protection on boats. Reading those documents is a good start. Sandy Golden SV Sweet Angel |
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symandalay |
#3 | |||
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I added one of those Forespar static dissipators to the masthead. This One
It can't do any harm and maybe it works. |
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Malcolm Smith |
#4 | |||
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Build a Faraday cage in the aft cabin and have all your passengers sit inside…. You could disconnect all your electronic equipment and also put that in the
cage…. This should saveguard both passengers and equipment, the only down side is could you get them out quick enough if the boat was damaged?
Joking aside, I understand a number of boats have been hit with strike protection and although no one on-board was hurt the electrics were toasted, so I guess nothing protects sensitive electronic equipment. |
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dbkennedy1 |
Lighting Strikes | #5 | ||
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Thanks for the thoughts! I pretty did what was suggested, sent folks below and gave myself some sea room. I did have my Crocs (rubber shoes) on my feet so
maybe that gave me a little extra insulation
I will have to think about the Faraday cage a bit...
David Kennedy
Wave Dancer II Hull 303, Mark I, 3 Cabin |
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SteveInMD |
#6 | |||
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My boat came almost all new electronic everything as a result of the previous owner taking a strike in June 2006. Even the generator and refrigerator were
replaced. The hull was undamaged (sometimes the lightning can blow out thru-hulls or blow holes near the chain plates). The owner was on the boat, but other
than getting knocked on his back side and seeing stars for a moment, he was fine. The boat now has a Forespar static dissipators at the mast top.
Steve Eller, Hull #446, 3 cabin, Annapolis, MD
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sailordan2 |
#7 | |||
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My boat, which I purchased in Oct of '07, had the static dissipators installed by the PO . In the Spring of 2007 a major lightening storm hit our area and
many boats suffered damage from near misses. The dissipators did not spare my boat and several of the electronics were identified in the survey as needing
replacement. I don't think I will rely on them to spare me from a close or direct hit.
Sailor Dan
SV Lydia Grace C42 #429 |
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wcrann |
#8 | |||
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Hi, I'm considering purchasing a Catalina 42 that was hit by lightning. The good news is that the rigging, mast, sails and some electronics have been
replaced. Any ideas on what the bad news would be? Cheers
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pdrimmer |
#9 | |||
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Test EVERYTHING that is electric, including the windlass, salt and fresh water pumps, etc, including the microwave.
If they work you are probably OK. |
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peter |
same | #10 | ||
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watching from my boat as a neighbors boat got hit, the strike hit the VHF antenna. There were pieces of melted antenna on the dock. I told him about it and he
watches as his electronics slowly stepped down during a two week period of time. The VHF antenna provides a path to ground, unfortunately it also fries most
all of the electornics. Some people put their electronics in their ovens and microwaves. So far, and I am knocking on my wooden desk, I have not been hit.
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encore125 |
#11 | |||
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Encore had lightning protection installed by previous owner for LA to East coast cruise. It includes the "birdsnest" dissipator which is suppose
to dissuade a hit. And it also includes grounding cables from the mast and chain plates to the keel bolts. These are nearly 1/4 inch insulated copper wire
bolted to the mast in the master stateroom, in four locations, and two each wires cable bonded to chain plates port and starboard. Theory-- path of least
resistance to ground through wires rather than chainplates and hulls etc. In lighting disconnect electronics and put in stove as faraday cage. I don't
know how to make a faraday cage in back cabin? I'm trusting my boat to dissapte charge, just no hand holds on chainplates in storm. Boat is now in NW
where few boats have true lightning protection. But with changing weather patterns it seems to me we are seeing more electric activity in the skies here too.
One thought also is the stainless wheel, which is somewhat connected to the ground through steering cable and rudder post. We have leather cover on wheel as
well, and would probably where gloves in storm to boot. Paranoid?
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melelana |
#12 | |||
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All,
I think we're all taking lightening strikes a little too seriously. Yes, they can "destroy" boats and kill people, but it doesn't happen often. You can spend literally thousands of dollars on lightening protection systems and it doesn't appear it makes a difference in the likelihood of a strike. A decent grounding system that gets the energy to the keel is probably a good idea as is putting your hand held electronics in the microwave (a small Faraday cage, if you like) and unplugging the cord so any induced voltage spike stays out of the microwave. If you take a direct hit, it is very likely that any integrated electronics will be fried and all electrical/electronic equipment is at risk. If the strike exits through the hull to the water (or ground if the boat is out of the water) it will likely leave a burned spot and any moisture in the hull at that point will vaporize and might cause additional damage. All of this is normally covered after your deductible. I've been hit a couple of times (once on Melelana, costing me new instruments) and was in a race fleet one afternoon where 12 of 18 boats in the race were struck. Of those 12 boats, a lot of us had our hair standing up just prior to the strike, one crewman on another boat was holding on to a shroud and reported a "tingle" but no one was injured. No boats were destroyed or even damaged enough to miss any sailing time but Raymarine got a nice plus up in sales that week. I guess the bottom line is that I make sure my bonding system is in good shape, put unnecessary crew below decks and away from the chain plates and mast, and try not to tempt mother nature too much. Where I live, if you stay ashore when there's a chance of thunderstorms, you don't sail. If and when I have a strike, I check people first, watertight integrity second, and other gear third. If damage appears limited to electronics, I dive on the hull to look for underwater damage and if that is clean perform a thorough hull inspection at my next scheduled haul out. I have found Boat/US happy to take a report and hold it until a haul out at the end of the season so you are not stuck with a haul out and hull survey to rule out damage mid season. If the damage is sufficient to need major repairs, the surveyor will be able to determine if the cause was a lightening strike. Of course, if the insurance company wants an immediate out of the water survey, at their expense, I'd be happy to oblige. Carbon rigs and cored hulls are another issue, but not one we face.
Larry
Melelana Catalina 42 #175 1990 3cbn, wk Solomons, MD |
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