What Makes Ground Bars Important?
If you think that lightning never strikes twice then you are wrong. Lightning actually strikes over a quarter a million times per year. These lightning strikes cost hundreds of people millions of dollars as a result of damage done to their property and bodily injuries.
To prove it further, according to reports, insurance claims resulting from lightning have been increased by twenty percent throughout the last 3 years. The total insurance claims resulting from lightning strikes reached nine hundred thousand dollars. These numbers indicate the importance of avoiding these lightning strikes. The dangers of lightning strikes can be avoided by simply installing ground bars to your home.
How does ground bars protect residents from lightning strikes?
Ground bars are basically bar devices made of copper, galvanized steel or stainless steel. The most commonly used material is copper. To avoid the dangers and the damage done by lightning strikes you will have to divert these strikes directly to the ground.
The whole concept behind ground bars is very simple. They are bars that can be integrated with the lightning protection system in order to offer the lightning strikes with a much easier passage to plunge into the ground without causing any harm or damage to the residents or their appliances.
Since these ground bars are vital to the wellbeing of your family and your house, it is essential to make sure that all of them can rise up to the NEC standards and regulations. The problem is that many ground bars were installed when the codes and regulations were not as strict as they are now. Most of them are not up to par with the current codes and regulations. This is why you have to make sure to test them to guarantee that they are up to the current regulations.
Purchasing ground bars
After making the decision to buy ground bars you have to know that they can come in a variety of lengths and thicknesses. This is why you have to acquire the exact measurements of the needed ground bars before you go shopping. Also you can ask for pre drilled holes to be made into the ground bars to make its installation process easier.
It will cost you extra but it will save you the time and effort that it would take to drill them yourself. You will also have to purchase certain accessories that are essential for the installation process. They include clamps, brackets and cables.
If you are planning to install them yourself, make sure to be protected and not to wear any jewelry or watches while working with the electric current. On the other hand you can just get a professional electrician to install it for you.
