Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-10-03
TO AVOID LIGHTNING
HOW IT NAY BE SUCCESSFULLY
DONE.
GOOD POINTS FOR FARMERS
Many Simple Methods Suggested by
Which Static Charges May Be Dis
persed and Rendered Harmless
Barbwire an Excellent Conductor
Full Protection for Haystacks

| In view Of the unusual Yalenct
| Of thunder storms this year it is inter
| eSting to consider the subject of light
ming and to discuss the various ways
| in which it's disastrous effect on hui
man life and habitations may be
avoided. During the past six months
a large number of persons all over
the country have been struck by light
ming Many Of these have been killed
outright. and others have been more
or less severely injured. Thousands
Of buildings have been struck, and the
loss from pecuniary standpoint must
have been considerable.
The energy of the lightning flash is
mainly spent in overcoming the resist
ance of the air. otherwise its destruc-
tive effects upon objects that lie in
it's path and impede it's passage, such
as houses, trees or animals, would be
fearful. From this fact we n, y de-
duce the following:
The destructive effects of lightning
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are caused by the resistance it meets
in its path.
Provide an easy path for lightning,
snd it meets with little or no resist
ance.
When it meets with no resistance
it does not work.
When it does no work it does no
harm.
Every one connected with telegraph
or telephone work knows that lines
running across the country receive
static charges from the air frequently
strong enough to interfere with the
working Of the lines. In the telephone
the disturbance is indicated by a sharp
clicking sound. On construction work
men are sometimes quite severely
shocked by these discharges which
have followed the lines for, perhaps,
tell when a storm is brewing by the
strength and frequency Of these
charges.
When the lightning strikes a tele-
graph line the flash disappears, show
ing that the cause of the flash was
the intense heat, developed by the re-
sistance Of the air. The charge will
often follow a line for miles till it
enters some Office, when it will dis
tribute itself over the board, and go
to the ground without doing harm.
The lesson to be learned from these
facts, therefore, is to provide a good
in order to protect your
property: We cannot extend conduc-
tors to the clouds, nor is this neces-
sary, for the instant lightning strikes
a good conductor, the fash disappears,
and if the connection to the earth be
a good one, it leaves no further traces
of its work.
lightning. as we have seen before,
can be carried off silently, before it
has time to accumulate in dangerous
quantities. An unusually heavy dis
charge is apt to be split. Of the half
dozen streams that start from the
cloud only one may reach the earth
entire, the Others being so divided
that they become harmless to ter
restrial objects. Therefore, we should
provide more than one path for the
discharge that comes in our direction.
BY dividing the flash we greatly les
sen the chances for mischief.
There exists a general notion that
a lightning conductor will protect a
certain number of square feet. This !
notion is a false one. The best way
to arrange a conductor is to have it |
provided with points every few feet, |
and then to extend it over every prom |
inent part Of your house, the idea, be- |
ing to throw a shield around the house
rather than to trust to some magnetic |
quality of the points to draw" light |
ming out of it's course.
There are many ways Of protect /
ing buildings. A house surrounded by !
green trees is fairly well protected, |
as the sap in the trees and the points |
on the leaves facilita tie the rapid dis |
pension of static charges. A Sappy, !
green tree is rarely struck by lightning !
on this account. Still, you should have /
a conductor on your house, in order |
to make sure. A barbed wire stretch |
ed from tree to tree ten or fifteen !
feet above the roof and connected |
with the ground at each end would |
be very efficient. Barbed wire is best !
on account of it's numerous points.
A house with a metal roof, with !
metal water conductors leading to the |
drain or cistern, does not need any |
further protection, except that point !
should be run up alongside Of each !
chimney. A barbed wire extended !
over the chimney and down each side |
and soldered to the roof answers the !
same purpose.
If your conductor pipes end in a !!
tile drain drive a sharp-pointed rod |
at least six feet into the ground and !
connect a wire strip from this to your
conductor pipe, and rivet or solder |
them together. Provided the metallic !
connection is continuous, this meth |
cd is absolutely safe, as the whole !
roof is covered with metal shield. !
This explains why we have so little /
lightning directly over a city, except !!
when some church spire is struck. 1t |
matters little of what metal con-
ductor is made Experiments made !
by the brilliant DR.. Oliver Lodge seem |
to show that contrary to all previous !
opinions. iron is a better conductor |
for static charges than copper. Prac- |
ically there is probably little, if any. |
difference. Copper does not rust east
ly, and is on that account to be pre- |
ferred: but in the country galvanized |