Adding Lightning Protection to the Verdi Gateway (Gen 2)

What this kit does

The Verdi Lightning Protection Kit [V2589] diverts surge energy that builds up on the antenna coax during nearby lightning activity, before it reaches your Verdi Gateway (Gen 2).

It is not a full lightning protection system for the site, it will not stop a direct strike, and it does not protect the power side of the gateway.

The kit only works if it is bonded to earth correctly. If the grounding step is skipped or improvised, the arrestor does very little.

Kit contents

Shipping today

1 x N-type male to N-type female lightning arrestor
1 x 20 ft 10 AWG grounding cable

Coming soon

Kits will ship with two grounding cables and two rebar clamps. If your kit contains only one cable and no clamps, source the second cable and both clamps locally before you start the install.

2 x 20 ft 10 AWG grounding cables
2 x grounding rod clamps

What you need to supply

Ground rod. A ground rod is not supplied with the kit. Use one 8 ft rod and drive it its full length into the earth, as close to the gateway as practical. A listed copper clad steel ground rod is preferred over bare rebar, which corrodes at the clamp in irrigated soil.
Ring terminals and a crimp tool, if your cables did not arrive with ring terminals already attached. Each cable needs a ring terminal on both ends. Crimp them on before starting.
Wrenches for the arrestor and the rebar clamps.

How the grounding works

Two separate wires. One ground rod. Two clamps.

Wire 1 runs from the lightning arrestor to a clamp on the ground rod.
Wire 2 runs from the gateway housing ground point to a second clamp on the same rod.

Both wires land on the same rod, each on its own clamp. This keeps the arrestor and the gateway at the same potential during a surge.

Do not run one wire from the arrestor to the gateway and a second wire from the gateway down to the rod. That puts the gateway in the discharge path.

Do not drive two separate rods. Two earth references create a voltage difference across the gateway.

Installation

Prepare the cables. Confirm each grounding cable has a ring terminal on both ends. If not, crimp them on now.
Drive the ground rod. Drive the 8 ft rod its full length into the earth, as close to the gateway as practical. A short, straight run to the rod matters more than anything else in this install.
Fit the arrestor. Thread the arrestor into the coax run between the antenna and the gateway, so the signal path is antenna, then arrestor, then gateway. Mount it as close to the gateway as the connectors allow, so the grounding wire stays short.
Bond the arrestor. Unscrew the flathead bolt on the arrestor, taking care not to lose the washers. Fit the ring terminal of the first grounding cable and reattach the bolt.
Bond the gateway. Attach the ring terminal of the second grounding cable to the external ground point on the gateway housing.
Land both wires on the rod. Fit one rebar clamp per wire on the same ground rod. Tighten both clamps onto bare, clean metal.
Route and secure. Run both grounding wires as straight and as short as practical. Avoid sharp bends. Secure them to the mast or pole so they cannot swing or chafe.

Before you leave site

Arrestor is threaded between the antenna and the gateway, snug with a wrench.
Both grounding wires terminate on the same ground rod.
Each wire has its own clamp.
Ground rod is driven its full length.
Neither grounding wire is daisy chained through the gateway.
No sharp bends in either wire, and both are secured.

AC powered installations

If the gateway is powered from a building AC supply, the grounding wires must bond to the same grounding electrode system as that AC service, not to a separate isolated rod. Contact Verdi Support before installing in this configuration.

Standards

The lightning arrestor supplied in this kit meets the following standards. These cover surge protection on signaling and telecommunications lines. They are not lightning protection system standards.

YD/T 1542-2006 Technical requirements and testing methods for Surge Protective Device of signaling networks.
Q/70924537-1.01-2000 General requirements for electronic surge protective device.
GB4943.2001/IEC60950:1999 Safety of information technology equipment.
GB/T18802.21-2004/IEC61643-21:2000 Low-voltage surge protective device-Part 21: Surge protective device connected to telecommunications and signaling networks-performance requirements and testing methods.