I agree. Ohm’s Law applies. 800,000 volts (that was what the lab used in the Tesla coil) through a resistance of 10^6 ohms (the average resistance of a tire) would produce a whopping 80ma. through the Faraday cage.
EDIT: My bad. 320ma. There are 4 tires! And the voltage potential of the Faraday cage to ground will be close to 800,000 volts during the strike. That is that “voltage ladder” thing.
resistance of a tire, ok… where’s resistance of an air? or an air is pure conductor for now?
During a lightning strike, there is very little air in the electron stream. It has been superheated and expanded to the point that the electron stream creates its own “vacuum tube” with the walls held out by the air against the outer boundary of the stream. The thunder you hear is the electron stream ejecting the air.
Here is an interesting video. There is no Faraday cage for this guy. He is outside.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CUz8XNHbiY
Only a lack of ground prevents this guy from getting body parts blown off.
SurferTim,
I’m just a few hours north of you - I understand (real world any way - your theory and understanding of electricity exceeds my own) what you have said and have had similar experiences. Nothing beats having little or no ground with a nice grounded lightning rod near by - even if you use AC for power with proper equipment.
I would like to understand the small solar system you setup though. Would you mind posting all the parts, maybe a small diagram and perhaps a photo of momma and company.
I believe if you are willing to share onlist would be best but if you would rather send directly to me thats fine. scott at brevardwireless dotcom
I have another question for you too… Forget solar and the lightning for a sec - if I just want to run my equipment off 12v or 24v dc battery and have appropriate 12/24 volt charger can I just hook radio equipment directly to battery terminals with fuse of course (also assume my equipment is made for given voltage) and plug in a small inexpensive smart charger from walmart (those terms may be mutually exclusive lol) and be done with it? I wonder about the way the output from the charger affects the routerboards if at all. I’m sort of thinking the radio gear would really be running from the charger output not really the battery and not sure if that will cause overcharging of battery because the smart part of the charger may get confused with the other equipment connected - or is it a non-issue. Thanks for your time.
Scott
Hi Scott,
The setup is very simple. I use Kyocera solar panels and Morningstar chargers (the one with the Low Voltage Disconnect). I am expecting the arrival of a new panel/charger this week.
I do have some battery powered units that are charged by AC, but I use marine type battery chargers (for sailboats while at dock). They are more expensive, but the ground is isolated to prevent galvanic action (stray electrical currents) from corroding the underwater metal parts of the boat. But what is important to me is it has no ground path for lightning. They are also designed to be connected to your battery 24/7, unlike some other not-very-smart chargers. The only drawback is the low voltage disconnect. It is almost as expensive to buy a Low Voltage Disconnect unit for these as a solar charger.
UPDATE: Yes, three severe thunderstorms later, and that roof unit is still working. Just lucky, I guess…