Question re: grounding for lightning protection

[WRTC928]

What is the logic behind bonding your lightning ground to the house ground? Lightning always wants to go to the earth, so grounding your antenna and coax makes sense. You give the lightning an easy path to the earth, and hopefully it will take it. I also understand why it's recommended that you bond the common ground for your equipment to the house ground. The powered equipment is part of the same circuit as all the other electrical equipment in the house and you want to keep it at the same potential. However, I don't follow the reasoning of bonding the two together. It seems to me that the most logical solution for protecting against lightning is to give the electrical buildup a way to get to the earth without directing it into your house; i.e., a lightning ground separate from the equipment ground. Yet everything I read recommends bonding the lightning ground to the house ground, so there must be some reason that I don't understand.

[WSIU940]

2 minutes ago, WRTC928 said:

That's a very good explanation. Thank you.

Thankfully my education as an industrial controls electrician helped me wrap my head around this stuff pretty well. I use to wonder why things like bonding and what not were required when I first started in the career.  I had great instructors who broke the ideas down to bite size pieces that were easy to understand and gave examples that supported the "science" of it all. 

[tcp2525]

7 minutes ago, WRTC928 said:

I'm sorry, but I don't understand how that relates to my question. Please elaborate.

You answered your own question by keeping PROPER grounding outside so there's no need to do any grounding inside the house.

[tcp2525]

14 minutes ago, WRTC928 said:

What is the logic behind bonding your lightning ground to the house ground? Lightning always wants to go to the earth, so grounding your antenna and coax makes sense. You give the lightning an easy path to the earth, and hopefully it will take it. I also understand why it's recommended that you bond the common ground for your equipment to the house ground. The powered equipment is part of the same circuit as all the other electrical equipment in the house and you want to keep it at the same potential. However, I don't follow the reasoning of bonding the two together. It seems to me that the most logical solution for protecting against lightning is to give the electrical buildup a way to get to the earth without directing it into your house; i.e., a lightning ground separate from the equipment ground. Yet everything I read recommends bonding the lightning ground to the house ground, so there must be some reason that I don't understand.

All radio related grounding should be done with 500MCM cable. End of story.

[tcp2525]

24 minutes ago, WRKC935 said:

Even though this is about as far from the truth as I can imagine, I am gonna give you to benefit of the doubt to explain this, WITH links to real documentation proving what you are saying is true. 

Even if I know it's BS and in truth NOT EVEN possible.  I mean seriously, just give me a part number for the Burndy lug that's a single .25 (1/4 inch) hole that I can connect to an MTR repeater ground screw.   Let along the one for a 10-32 screw hole that would be on a radio.  Never mind getting the 500 bent into shape to connect to the radio.  I have to see this.  Do you have pictures?  Are you using the 500 cable as the method to mount the radios on a desk? 

 

Yawn, looks like you got me, Einstein! I would never directly ground a radio with 500 MCM as it's best to feed your primary bonding plate with 500 MCM and then, yes then, reduce to a home run of 250 MCM to each fixed equipment rack.

https://www.gordonelectricsupply.com/p/Harger-223T-Tin-Flange-Bonding-Plate/6096051

But, we ground each of our Baofeng handhelds with 4/0 THHN for maximum flexibility.