The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1872-12-06
Lightning Rods.

men, who palm of worthless and ex-
pensive articles upon their customers,
and in many cases, in addition TO this,
guilty of downright swindling. 1t may
be well, therefore, to say that, by at.
tending to few essential points, any
ordinary carpenter or householder |
can easily erect a rod that will give |
perfect protection. The points to be |
attended to are three: /. The rod |
should be of sufficient size-a solid /.
iron rod, half an inch square, or a
copper rod, one inch wide and one
tenth of an inch thick, are the sizes
recommended by the best authorities.
Thin copper strip is most easily
handled; but copper wire, No. or 0,
may be more easily procured, and will
answer quite as well. The light tubu
lar and fancy rods sold by itinerant
vendors are almost always deficient in
metal. There is no advantage in
tubular, star-shaped, twisted, or other
rods. Harris, the great authority, says:
Provided the quantity of metal be
present, the form under which We
place it is evidently of no consequence
TO its conducting powers" (harris,
"On Thunder storms" p. 107). Bee
querel, Pouillet, Faraday. Noel, and
every electrician of note that we have
consulted, agree with him.
q In arranging the rod, carry It
along the ridge and along the corners
of the gables. Connect it with all
tin roof cutters, water-spouts, etc. and
do not irlsulGte ii. Paints are of COM
paratively small consequence, and it is
not best to disfigure house by row OF
bayenets stuck on it. The crestings1
and finals of Mansard roofs are as
good lightning-rod points as can be
desired. The rod may be painted the
same color as the house but do not
allow the paint TO destroy the metallic
connection between the rod and the
masses of metal that we have men,
toned. The best mode of attaching
the rod to the building is by small
staples for wires, and tacks or nails for
fiat strips.
3. Beyond all question, the most i'm
portant point in the construction and
erection of lightning-rods is the
ground-connection. Careful and eX-
tensive observation has convinced US
that, in regard to this matter, fully
two-thirds of the lightning-rods in ex-
istence are defective; and it is here
that the itinerant vender generally
manages to cheat his customer most
thoroughly. There is DO safety, unless
the rod is carried into the ground TO
q depth below the level of the well in
the locality. This is the rule laid down
by the commission by the French
Government, and, if space permitted,
it would he easy to show that it is
based on sound principles.
Whether or not the rod should be
connected with the gas and water
pipes, is an open question. We should
say not. The joints of gas and water
pipes are generally formed insulating
substan ces and in several well-au-
henticated cases these joints have
been ruptured by the discharge, and
the water allowed to flow out, and the
gas set on fire. In this case, as the
least of two evils, We would violate the
rule which directs Us to connect the
rod with all metallic substances, and
make no connection with the gas and
water-pipes.
These are not the vague notions of
an isolated dabbler in science, but the
conclusions arrived at by commission
ers appointed by the Governments of
France and Britain, for the special
purpose Of investigating this subject.
the most implicit confidence.
But, while it is easy to project build
ings and ships, il is not always possible
TO protect isolated human beings. All
that we can do in this case is to avoid,
as much as possible, the vicinity OF
those objects that are likely to attract
the lightning. A few years ago some
wiseacre invented portable lightning
rod, consisting of an umbrella, having
a metal stem, to the lower end of
which was attached chain that was
allowed TO drag the ground. Such a
continuance would be not only useless,
but dangerous, as it would be utterly
impossible to give such aportable rod
good ground-cOnnection.
The Old directions about feather-beds,
glass windows, etc, are all nonsense.
One of the safest places is house
furnished with good rod; one of the
most dangerous is a barn filled with
new hay. Another very dangerous
place is beEeath a tree, and the mid
die of an open field is nearly as bad.
A distance of fifteen to thirty feet from
a tai tree is "a tolerable safe position.
In a house furnished with rods, the
most dangerous places are near the
fireplace or chimney, and those cor
ners down which the water-spouts de-
scend. The carrying of metal bars or
rods is Of course. dangerous, because
every mass of metal tends TO open up
a line of real resistance to which il
will form a part; and, if the human
body should form part of this line,
serious consequences may ensue. But
it is not probable that small articles,
like keys, watches, knives, ETC., exert
any appreciable influence.
Cases have frequently occurred where
persons in small boats have been struck
and killed An instance of this kind
occurred within few weeks. In such
cases, if the thunder-cloud is very
near, ii will be advisable to lie down
in the boat, even at the ri-k of getting
thoroughly drenched. Any object
elevated above the surface of the
water incurs great risk of being struck.
Every small boat carrying a mast
should be provided with lightning
rod. 1t may be easily and cheaply APP
piled, and will prove perfect pro-
tection.-Appleton's Journal.