Grounding & Lightning Protection

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Grounding and lightning protection are critical for keeping a wireless network performing 100 percent of the time. Electrical surges within the network can cause significant damage and expense if not properly addressed. Many technicians and installers are not familiar with proper grounding techniques or they take shortcuts to save time and money. The result is a poorly performing grounding system which won’t show any faults until it’s too late. The proper design of a grounding system is critical and starts with testing to identify the site’s resistance ground. In most cases, resistance of 5 ohms or less is required for proper grounding. If that threshold is not met, additional design elements, including soil enhancement, must be used.

Four primary categories must be fully addressed to ensure a properly operating ground system that will protect a site:

RF Surge Protection
RF cables are highly conductive and can quickly and easily draw a surge to the heart of your wireless network. Proper grounding techniques require taking any surge off both the inner and outer conductors.
Products: Surge arrestors, grounding kits, ground buss bars, arrestor trapeze kits.

Grounding Ring
A properly functioning grounding system begins with the grounding ring, the centralized network for quickly dispersing unwanted energy away from the site. Buried in the ground surrounding the site, all components of the grounding system are connected to the ground ring, including the external infrastructure.
Products: Exothermic molds and weld metal, ground wire, ground rods.

Internal Shelter Grounding
Proper grounding inside the shelter is a critical last line of defense from an electrical surge. Similar to the external
grounding ring, a grounding halo is installed around the interior of the shelter. All active components are grounded to the racks or cabinets that secure them, with all racks and cabinets being connected to the grounding halo.
Products: Ground wire, ground lugs.

AC Protection
Electrical impulses resulting from lightning and ‘dirty’ power can cause surges that harm sensitive network equipment. Proper grounding of all AC at the exterior of the building and again at the connection of the equipment to AC is critical to ensure the highest level of protection.
Products: AC surge protection, breaker boxes, line conditioners.