Protecting your PC from lightning

[rion]

guys, what do you do to protect your computers from lightning?

I hear grounding/earth it will do, but grounding it with shalow dirt or wall is wrong...?

[ghosthunter]

guys, what do you do to protect your computers from lightning?

I hear grounding/earth it will do, but grounding it with shalow dirt or wall is wrong...?

The best is to unplug the computer from the power, network and phone line.

If you want grounding, grounding to the water plumbing is the best alternative if your building has no actual electrical grounding system available.

[StraightSix]

The most important is a good ground. I used a 10' ground rod that I got from a lineman for a small "fee". It was driven to ground as close as possible to the equipment/s to be protected. The connecting wire was the braid (shield) from a thick coaxial cable. Use the right length ... too short won't reach, and too long will just get in the way. If the equipments are in the upper floors, you'd still benefit as spikes and surges travel thru the path with the least resistance to ground.

Get good spike and surge protectors. I had a gas-type lightning protector (for RF equipments) which reacts more quickly. These protectors only work if you have a good ground. Protect all possible entry points. I had my pc fried once from a near-miss because I forgot about the phone line.

I didn't try a lightning rod - which is supposed to prevent the build-up of static electriciy by continously discharging to ground - because I reasoned out that my antenna array was directly connected to ground. [SIZE=1](If anybody's wondering, the "hot side" of the cable was terminated in an impedance-matching network)[/SIZE]

[SIZE=1][/SIZE]
HTH

[Memphis Raines]

I've always wanted to have this for surge protection/power spikes:





I found that at Amazon.com, wonder if it can really protect.



.

[GerardTagayty]

we have power surge protectors and huge AVRs on all out computers at home. pero whenever theyre not in use niuunplug pa rin namin. pati yun mga surge protectors. hth

[rion]

looks like ghosthunter's unpluging solution is the cheapest solution. peru makakalimutin kasi ako eh.

I just tried to hook my Pc's casing ground near to our plumbing lines and I notice sparks when I attach it to the pc body. hindi ko nalagay sa pipes mismo, may plastic kasi. though my connection is shallow, but notice ko nawala na yung RF/humming noise from my mini-amp connected to my PC audio.

eto pala incidents ko sa lightnings.

on 3 incidents, eto yung Destroyed:
2 X modem
1 x Aiwa sound system
1 x onkyo 5.1 amplifier component system
1 X VCR
1 x V12 amplifier
1 x V12'S power supply (psu)
1 x Lan card
2 x video cards
1 x 17" Monitor

all of them were connected to my pc.

thanks guys. *StraightSix, hanap ako ng 10' ground rod. I don't think I can afford those protectors. unplug ko nalang immediately ang Video card to Tv connection after using it. tapos memory gain plus nalang bilhin ko.

[rion]

The biggest threat is the phone line and the cable TV sources. but TV always survives.

bali yung Energy papasok sa video card's tv input or sound system's audio input from the PC connected in the Tv or phone. you need to discharge it before it reaches aux lines, lan connections.