It is crucial to protect your buildings against lightning with proper grounding solutions. Lightning energy is dissipated safely into the ground with these grounding solutions. The purpose of grounding solutions is to minimize the potential rise in ground voltage, reducing the risk of injuries to people and animals as well as damage to equipment and property.
In general, grounding solutions are designed to allow electrical energy (from above-grade networks) to be safely transferred to the surrounding native soil (earth). Devices designed to protect against lightning and surges work by dispersing voltage spikes and surges to a safe ground plane, such as the ground or a copper pipe inside a building, rather than directly reaching the electrical components they are protecting.
There is a major difference between earthing and grounding: earthing is the act of connecting the circuit directly to the Earth, which has zero voltage potential. The opposite of Grounding, in which the circuit’s potential is zero, even if it is not connected to ground.
A poor ground connection can sometimes lead to disasters as lightning can find other ways to reach the ground, such as through plumbing, resulting in the same results as a lightning strike on a building, which is fire. The simple grounding of such a system is not recommended.
Thunderstorm current can safely travel to the ground when a lightning protection system intercepts this voltage. However, they provide a direct path to the ground, which prevents fire, explosion, and electric surges caused by lightning. Since they don’t reduce your home’s risk of lightning strikes, they do provide a direct path to the ground.
There are some exceptions – such as camping/fishing cabins – to electrically conductive paths to ground in most houses. You have no control over the direction in which lightning travels to the ground in that case.
