I recently had my house hit by lightning for the second time in a few years, and it caused some serious damage to my networking equipment and industrial PCs. My office, which is separate from my house, has all the ethernet and fiber optics, and the lightning traveled through those cables, frying the RJ-45 ports on two computers I use for routing. What's strange is that some of my fiber optic equipment, despite being protected with surge protectors, also got damaged. My home has a grounding rod on the north side, but the lightning struck an oak tree on the south side, possibly traveling through the house to reach the ground. I'm considering adding a second grounding rod on the south side to improve protection, but I want to know the best ways to safeguard my home from this happening again!
3 Answers
Honestly, lightning is incredibly powerful, so relying solely on surge protectors might not be enough. You can look into Ethernet surge protection devices, but keep in mind they don’t guarantee prevention. It might also be worth investing in a quality UPS that can keep your equipment running during an outage—just make sure it's one that allows your system to run on battery power.
You might want to check out rooftop lightning suppression systems too. I have Ubiquiti switches you could use if you're interested. I came across some useful info about these systems, and they really can help protect against strikes. There’s also a segment on YouTube about it that might give you some insight!
It sounds like you definitely need that second grounding rod. Most experts recommend having two 8-foot ground rods that are at least 8 feet apart. While this won't completely control lightning strikes, it can help mitigate the effects. Also, consider consulting an electrician who can give you a better assessment of your setup.
Those systems can definitely be a good investment! Just be cautious, as no system can fully prevent a direct hit. But every bit of protection you add counts!