The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1908-05-15
LIGHTNING RODS


the ground along the comb of the
building to the ground again. If on
a dwelling, it must be so placed that
the chimney from the cook stove San
be protected In q two-story house
having a one-story kitchen the dan
ger is less from the high chimneys,
for during the thunder storm season
they rarely have issuing from their
throats the column of hot air that
lightning loves, but the cook stove,
like death, has all seasons for its own.
The old instruction that rod must
be bent in a circle having a radius of
less than a foot need not be observed,
for Prof. Monroe Hopkins, lightning
rod expert of the navy, finds that volt
ages up to 1,SOO 600 travel rod bent
into a series of w's as cheerfully as
straight one.
A rod should not be run over a
porch because of the liability of the
human body to draw a stroke from it
as does the COW from the wire fence.
The holdfasts should be of material
that cannot rust, and should keep the
rod at a distance of an inch or two
from the roof or wall.
A BAD PRACTICE.
The practice of holding wire cable
on a building by driving iron nails
through it is bad. Copper being
e!ectro-negative to iron a galvanic
battery is formed when rain water
gets between it and the nail and the
nail-head is soon eaten off
The lower FIVE feet of barn rod
should be boxed to protect it from
wagons and from animals which
might use it for a scratching post.
When a lightning flash jumps an
open joint in a rod it makes a heat
like that of an electric arc lamp,
which is four to five thousand de-
grees F, This is more likely to re-
suit in damage to the rod than to the
building, but is a reason for holding
the rod from the building.
THE POINTS.
A cluster of points should be placed
above each gable and chimney and the
space between clusters on the roof
comb should not be greater than 20
feet. The tops should be plated to
keep their points bright and sharp so
that they will prevent strokes by
making easy the escape of inducted
electricity. But they must be heavy
enough to stand a bolt of ordinary
power without melting.
The state fire marshal of Wiscon-
sin. Mr.. Purcell, after gathering the
statistics of the go farm mutual in
surance associations Of the state for
last year, said in his annual report:
Their reports showed a lightning
loss en- unprotected buildings of
$SO,S77 and but S95 on buildings which
were protected: a part of this being
from damage to lightning rod points,
one company stating they now have
10 points which had been struck but
in no instance had the building been
fired"
THE GROUNDS.
The two ends of the rod must go
near enough to the underground water
beds to be in the earth that is always
moist. In most situations this can be
done with a spud If the building is
an expensive one a mass of iron, a load
of charcoal or a copper can should be
secured to the end of the rod. A rod
should not be grounded on the upper
side of a bank barn because OF the
difficulty in reaching permanently
moist earth. Last summer a stroke
went down a rod so grounded and
following a chain from the wall to a
cow, killed her. Independent grounds
are preferable to water or gas mains.
Prof. Henry, of the United States
Weather Bureau, insists that the sys-
tenn of protection be devised and
erected by a thoroughly competent
person"
The idea that rod that is broken
off above the ground is a source Of
danger is foolish. IF the grounding
is bad the lightning don't take the rod
at all" says Sir Oliver Lodge.
The time is near when farm insur-
ance companies will make a separate
classification for rodded buildings and
will inspect the rods each spring.
D. S. CREAMER,
Safe Fire Marshal.