Whether it’s an antenna or anything else metal on your roof, it simply needs to be grounded. Grounding is a simple procedure where you run a wire from the antenna or dish to a ground source. This can be a rod placed in the ground or more often, a cold water pipe.
Solid Signal has a wide variety of parts designed for grounding. The grounding block you see above is designed to work with today’s SWM-enabled dishes, the sort that you see in homes all the time. This should be standard procedure for all installations. Using the proper parts for grounding is one of the easiest and least expensive ways to protect your home. It’s even a good idea to take pictures of your handiwork and keep them in case there is some sort of calamity and you need to prove that it wasn’t your installation that caused the problem. If this particular grounding block isn’t the right choice for you, there are a lot of supplies at Solid Signal that you can use as well.
What needs grounding?
It’s simple. You should ground everything with a wire leading into the house. This means your antenna, your cell booster, your dish, Anything. Any item made of copper, or any item that has a copper wire needs grounding. Anything high on your home, no matter what it is, should be grounded. Proper grounding helps stray electrical charges safely dissipate and keeps your home safe. It also can help your antennas work better, since stray charges could affect reception.
How to ground your devices
Proper grounding isn’t hard, but the laws and building codes differ from location to location. In many cases, it simply means running a ground wire from something up high to a cold water pipe or to the grounded part of your circuit breaker box. In other parts of the country you’ll need to stick a rod into the dirt and connect the ground wire to that. If you’re not sure what you need in your area, consult with a local contractor or head down to city hall and ask.
Some grounding is better than no grounding at all, but you should try to do it right. There’s a reason those building codes exist. They are different in different areas because they have to account for weather and the likelihood of lightning strikes.
Why a ground block works
A ground block connects the outer part of the coaxial connector to the metal part of the block, and then the ground wire attaches to that as well. The inner, center conductor stays isolated. The design of the connectors on the ground block keep the signal isolated. That way it the grounding process doesn’t cause more problems than it solves. Stray static electricity has an easy path down into the earth where it can’t hurt anyone. Without that, it could continue to build up, eventually leading to a lightning strike which could destroy your home. Let’s be honest, no one wants that.
Click here for a selection of grounding parts and accessories from Solid Signal! We’re your grounding headquarters. If you have any questions on grounding or anything else having to do with your home theater, call us at 888-233-7563.
