Lightning Arrester A Protection Device

First invented in the 1750s, Lightning Arresters have been in use for a long time now. Lightning Arresters prevent damage to property and life caused by lightning. Especially for people living in lightning prone areas, Lightning Arresters are an essential safety feature added to their homes and offices. The need for Lightning Arresters is essential in the modern world because of the plethora of electrical appliances and equipment in use today. Lightning strikes on a building or structure causes the unprotected circuits to fry. Also Lightning Arresters divert power surges from the electrical wiring and systems into the earth.

Lightning Arresters protect the insulation on the electrical wiring and prevent the wires from getting short circuited. The effectiveness of Lightning Arresters can be decided by their clamping voltage level. Lesser the clamping voltage levels, better the effectiveness of the Lightning Arresters. Lightning Arresters should not be confused with circuit breakers as these breakers are used to prevent internal overloads. Internal overloads could either be caused by excess power load from the electrical supply company or because of too many appliances being plugged into a limited capacity circuit.

Lightning Arresters are installed on tall structures and buildings to ensure the safety of property and human lives. The basic components of Lightning Arresters are- the rod made of conductive metal, cables to carry the volt generated by the lightning into the ground, and finally the grounding electrodes which neutralize the current.

Some areas and geographical locations are more susceptible to lightning strikes than others. Hence the use of Lightning Arresters is almost essential in such areas. In lightning prone areas, the frequency of lightning and thunderstorm make the use of Lightning Arrestors compulsory. Some of the common Lightning Arresters in use today include Earth Rods, Gel Earthing, Earthing Electrodes and ESE Lightning Arresters, etc. Earth Rods are rods made of conductive materials like copper and aluminium used for grounding. Gel Earthing makes use of chemical compositions to protect against lightning strikes. While in Earthing Electrodes, the effectiveness of the earthing depends on making good contact with the general mass of the earth. Choosing an effective Lightning Arrester is very vital to ensure safety of the life and property around.