[Antennas] Ground rod questions (Ground currents)

Tue Jun 30 11:59:47 EDT 2009

Hello all,
One thing to note about a power ground. It purpose is for short circuit protection back to the utility and has nothing to do with getting rid of noise.
If there is no short circuit or resistive leakage to ground there is no reason for current to flow in the ground circuit. Unbalanced current in the 240Volt vs the 120volt should flow in the neutral.
I just see no reason to worry so much about a ground unless you have faulty wiring as far as current flow.
The other concern about grounds should only be for either ground or radial systems for antennas
or for lightening protection.
You should not depend on your power system ground for your antenna systems because in doing so will cause rf current to flow in your house ground system which can cause lots of problems. The power system ground at the pole which should provide a ground circuit to your power panel ground is not for RF short circuit to ground. Only short circuits in your power system.
If I am wrong on any of these please let me know.

Loren WA7SKT

Member: ARRL and Pacific Northwest VHF Society
Member: Hearsat Satellite Monitoring Group
Location: CN86cx 

> Date: 2009年6月30日 11:31:37 -0400
> From: rbethman at comcast.net
> To: antennas at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [Antennas] Ground rod questions (Ground currents)
>> Phil and Gang,
>> In my last series of grounding and ground systems, I touched on water 
> table issues.
>> I ran across this in Enewetak, an Atoll in the South Pacific. Our 
> outfit sent a bit over a dozen of us to install and operate a 2MW power 
> plant to provide the juice for about 2000 troops and the water 
> desalination plant.
>> We had weird fluctuations whenever a load was put on one side, (120), of 
> the 240V drops to each building. The one load with
>> The similarities are striking. Phil, your system does well when it is 
> well wetted. Ours was being on a coral outcropping sticking up out of 
> salt water.
>> Here is MY take. Your trailer village is located on soil with pathetic 
> conductivity. (Just like crushed coral). Your power supplier is MOST 
> likely depending on the butt grounds for each pole. The single ground 
> for each service does NOT get adequate conductivity in that soil.
>> So when you put in a GREAT ground, wet it on a regular basis, YOU have 
> become THE ground for the entire village.
>> Hence all the noise and the voltage plus current readings you are seeing.
>> Unfortunately you can't cure the whole village. You "might" raise heck 
> with the power supplier, show them what you have found and try to prod 
> them to improve the entire village power system.
>> We ended up running an extra conductor on the whole power system, and it 
> got right!
>> Bob - N0DGN
>> -- 
> Bob - NØDGN
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