grounding rod

[icu1954]

hi to all, when installing and fta dish do you just have to ground it to a 8 foot grounding rod,i have seen a million of dn and direct tv installs and they are merely just grounded to the block..tell me what you think.

 

[Vorg]

You're house should be grounded to a rod. Infact, some places require 2 rods or a rod and a water line ground. So you should should have a good ground option without the need to add more rods. Unless you live in a really old house that has not had any inspected electrical work lately.

 

[B.J.]

It is almost never a good idea to put in a 2nd ground rod at a dish, or perhaps a better thing to say is that it is never a good idea to have a 2nd ground period. It is acceptable to BOND a 2nd ground to the house ground, effectively making it 1 ground, but that requires some massive copper cable between the two grounds. The problem is that if you have two grounds, there can be potential differences between the two grounds, which is more of a problem than not being grounded at all. But according to code, what you should do, is ground the coax from the dish at the house ground, where your electric service enters the house. As the other response indicated, there is almost always a good ground there, and that SHOULD be bonded to a cold water pipe, but not always, and sometimes, with the trends to replace copper pipes with plastic pipes a decade or so ago, sometimes the house grounds get separated from the water pipes via sections of plastic pipe, so you can't always count on that. So I'd check to make sure that your electrical service IS grounded to a water pipe.

 

[Wescopc]

Improper grounding will cause more trouble then no grounding at all!
Bob

 

[LocutusOfBorg]

hi to all, when installing and fta dish do you just have to ground it to a 8 foot grounding rod,i have seen a million of dn and direct tv installs and they are merely just grounded to the block..tell me what you think.

An 8 foot long 5/8" diameter copper rod is the way to go.

 

[LocutusOfBorg]

It is almost never a good idea to put in a 2nd ground rod at a dish, or perhaps a better thing to say is that it is never a good idea to have a 2nd ground period. It is acceptable to BOND a 2nd ground to the house ground, effectively making it 1 ground, but that requires some massive copper cable between the two grounds. The problem is that if you have two grounds, there can be potential differences between the two grounds, which is more of a problem than not being grounded at all. But according to code, what you should do, is ground the coax from the dish at the house ground, where your electric service enters the house. As the other response indicated, there is almost always a good ground there, and that SHOULD be bonded to a cold water pipe, but not always, and sometimes, with the trends to replace copper pipes with plastic pipes a decade or so ago, sometimes the house grounds get separated from the water pipes via sections of plastic pipe, so you can't always count on that. So I'd check to make sure that your electrical service IS grounded to a water pipe.

More than 1 ground rod is acceptable as long as they are bonded together. Where I work, we
have a LOT more than 2 ground rods per site but they're bonded together with #2AWG uninsulated stranded copper wire. Also, I have all my ground rods at my house tied together.

 

[Vorg]

I should have been more clear, many places call for 2 ground points, but on the same ground wire. Only one wire going to the panel.

 

[redilyn]

Now you got me wondering about my setup...

I have my dishes on their own grounding rod which is not connected to the house ground.

Is this a bad idea?

 

[SatelliteAV]

Now you got me wondering about my setup...

I have my dishes on their own grounding rod which is not connected to the house ground.

Is this a bad idea?

Yes, A VERY bad idea!

Multiple ground points without bonding actually creates a situation where current may actually be directed in a more distructive or deadly path. By not sharing a common ground, a voltage potential is created.

Examples: You may be shocked or electrocuted if you grab the coax cable in one hand and touch faulty gear or improperly wired home wiring. Electricity will travel the path of least resistance, so if the unbonded ground is closer or has better conductivity, the electricity may be redirected through your electronics to your unbonded ground even though the gear is properly grounded to the home's ground.

 

[Cold Winter]

If your dish is of any size and distance from your house you must ground it on its own rod(s).

Failure to do so will result in your coax being the ground conduit, your dish and all assemblies and your STB become toast... not too bright.

Ground returns are always present at your house, the power lines, your dish, etc... They are usually in the <2V ( if at all ) range. It won't kill you to string an insulated #4 copper between your ground points when you do your install if your that nervous.

 

[redilyn]

I better correct this then

 

[Cold Winter]

I better correct this then

Maybe not. If you have a grounding block ( blue color plastic for 2.4GHz frequency ) on your dish pedestal and another in your house grounded to your house ground, simply disconnect the ground in the house from that block and use a meter to see if there is any current flow between the 2. If not... no problem.

 

[SatelliteAV]

Maybe not. If you have a grounding block ( blue color plastic for 2.4GHz frequency ) on your dish pedestal and another in your house grounded to your house ground, simply disconnect the ground in the house from that block and use a meter to see if there is any current flow between the 2. If not... no problem.

Please note that Cold Winter's test is for voltage potential only. It does not predict the path of electricity during a surge, discharge, or electrical system fault. Always safe to bond grounds.

 

[redilyn]

My dishs are not connected to the house ground at all. Except for the STB's electrical ground.

All dish coax runs to a diseq switch, the into a grounding block which goes to its own independent grounding rod.

 

[Tyralak]

If your dish is of any size and distance from your house you must ground it on its own rod(s).

Failure to do so will result in your coax being the ground conduit, your dish and all assemblies and your STB become toast... not too bright.

Ground returns are always present at your house, the power lines, your dish, etc... They are usually in the <2V ( if at all ) range. It won't kill you to string an insulated #4 copper between your ground points when you do your install if your that nervous.

Um, no. You use messenger cable from the dish to the ground block and from the ground block to the ground source. (House ground, meter panel, etc)