[Rhodes22-list] Lighting Rod

Tue Mar 11 11:09:16 EDT 2014

Hi All,
Years ago, Stan calmed my fears about the lightning by explaining the path to ground, as has been discussed here.  I can say that for 5+ years, anchored in the Anclote Key, FL area nearly every weekend, during some horrific storms, that I felt safe.  Of course, it helps to have you life in order with the man above. :-)
Alton 
s/v Mishka

---- peter klappert <peterklappert at comcast.net> wrote: 
> 
> Gee, don't think I've ever been 1 in a million before, but my R22 got fried by lightning 2 years ago on Tampa Bay. No visible damage to the boat itself, but all the electronics got cooked. So it wasn't a direct hit, just Zeus taking a pee nearby. After a fair amount of research on lightning mitigation for sailboats, I decided crosst fingers are the only cost-effective solution.
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "James Nichols" <jfn302 at yahoo.com>
> To: "The Rhodes 22 Email List" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2014 1:03:38 AM
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Lighting Rod
> 
> The only way I'll be wining the Powerball is if a winning ticket blows into
> my face while I'm out for a walk. 
> 
> James
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
> [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of Michael D. Weisner
> Sent: Monday, March 10, 2014 11:56 PM
> To: 'The Rhodes 22 Email List'
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Lighting Rod
> 
> We've had these lightning "discussions" before on the list.  Just look
> through the archives for as many opinions as there are replies.
> 
> The only thing that is certain is that the chance of being struck by
> lightning, regardless of location, is about 1 in 1,000,000 (1 in nearly 4
> million in NY but 1 in 614,000 in Florida,
> http://discovertheodds.com/what-are-the-odds-of-being-struck-by-lightning).
> The chance of winning at least $1,000,000 in the Powerball lottery is 1 in
> 5,153,632 (http://www.powerball.com/powerball/pb_prizes.asp).
> 
> Sooooo ... if you expect to win the Powerball lottery, I do not want to sail
> with you.
> 
> Mike
> s/v Shanghai'd Summer ('81)
> s/v <-no name -> ('91)
> Nissequogue River, NY
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
> [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of James Nichols
> Sent: Monday, March 10, 2014 10:43 PM
> To: 'The Rhodes 22 Email List'
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Lighting Rod
> 
> Typically Lightning will not strike anything that does not give it a clear
> path to ground, so running a wire from the mast to the water is only
> inviting lightning to strike the boat more often.  Lightning, like water,
> always looks for the easiest path to ground.  Fiberglass is an awesome
> insulator,  so the mast doesn't typically attract lightning.  Also, while
> lake and sea water conduct electricity (sea water is a much better conductor
> because of the salt) Lightning on a lake setting will more likely hit a tree
> on the shoreline because the path through the tree into the earth is much
> easier than the path through the boat, through the water, then into the
> ground.  Also, while most lightning happens during a storm, so the
> fiberglass on the boat will be wet, the amount of water clinging to the deck
> doesn't usually offer enough of an electrical pathway from the mast to the
> main body of water  that the lightning would choose to strike the boat over
> striking the water directly.
> 
> All these statements aside though, as Ron said, stay away from large metal
> objects on the boat during a storm, and you should be fine.
> 
> As a side note about the quote about deaths of boaters but not sailboats.
> The boats that have deaths are because they are running motorboats that have
> large engines that create large electro-magnetic fields to drive the motor,
> and they tend to run them all out, so the electro-magnetic field is as large
> as it can get, and as they are screaming across the water, what they don't
> realize is they are screaming, "STRIKE ME!!"  And nature says, "Ok."
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
> [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of Ron Lipton
> Sent: Monday, March 10, 2014 7:47 PM
> To: The Rhodes 22 Email List
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Lighting Rod
> 
> The Rhodes is a lightning rod - there is no need to install another. The
> real issue is diverting the current into the water rather then through you
> or your electronics.  Such a system would include heavy gauge wire
> connecting the mast to a large area conductor in the water.  Pretty
> cumbersome.  The main thing is to stay away from metal during a storm. A
> good reference is:
> 
> http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/sg071
> 
> " Every year there are multiple deaths of boaters in open boats caused by
> lightning strikes, but very few reports of sailors in sailboats killed by
> lightning"
> 
> Ron
> 
> > On Mar 10, 2014, at 19:15, <chcarreon at cox.net> wrote:
> > 
> > All,
> >  Has anyone installed a lighting rod on a R22?  If so, how did you do it? 
> > 
> > Thanks much,
> > Chuy
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