Hi all,
Am designing my shack, and I think I have a problem.Very near the
shack entrance is the entrance of my natural gas line to the house,
plus meter. Now I know I cant attach ground to gas line.... the
question is, how close can I get my rods? I plan to use 3, one right
outside the entrance, and the others 10 feet to either side. I dont
have the option of running away from the house more than 3-4 feet. The
first rod would be about 3-4 ft away from the gas line, but the ground
strap will have to go very very near the gas line. Am I looking at an
explosion in the event of a lightning strike? or will a few inches of
earth be enough insulation? I should point out that there appears to
be an aluminum ground rod driven into the ground at the same point the
gas line exits the earth. Thanks for any advice and information!

Good question, my ground rod (6ft) is about 4ft away from my gas
meter/pipe...never had any problems but I never thought about it..

kb8viv

Am I looking at an
explosion in the event of a lightning strike? or will a few inches of
earth be enough insulation?

wrote
Hi all,
Am designing my shack, and I think I have a problem.Very near the
shack entrance is the entrance of my natural gas line to the house,
plus meter. Now I know I cant attach ground to gas line.... the
question is, how close can I get my rods? I plan to use 3, one right
outside the entrance, and the others 10 feet to either side. I dont
have the option of running away from the house more than 3-4 feet. The
first rod would be about 3-4 ft away from the gas line, but the ground
strap will have to go very very near the gas line. Am I looking at an
explosion in the event of a lightning strike? or will a few inches of
earth be enough insulation? I should point out that there appears to
be an aluminum ground rod driven into the ground at the same point the
gas line exits the earth. Thanks for any advice and information!

I am providing you some comments, and excepts, but your personnel safety in
these matters dictates that you obtain professional assistance, which I am
NOT.

1, Gas piping may NOT be the *primary* grounding electrode conductor.
2. Gas piping is REQUIRED to be bonded.

The ground electrodes you refer to installing outside your shack, these are
presumed to be the closest electrode connections for your station single
point ground? If so they must NOT be the same ground rod that will perform
the requirement of (minimum of two) lightning downconductors per structure,
or the grounding earth electrodes for those downconductors. But the station
single point ground MUST bond to the lighting protection system (AFTER) the
lighting downconductors have FIRST terminated at their OWN grounding
electrode or system thereof. The station single point ground must ALSO bond
to the home electrical service entry ground. You *should* discover your gas
piping is already bonded to the service entry ground in accordance with
code. But parts of the NEC and NFGC relating to this bond are fairly recent.
I strongly recommend you hire a licensed electrician who demonstrates
experience with lightning protection systems. If you come up dry on this
search after several telephone calls, start calling professional
(electrical) engineers who specify lightning protection systems. Call other
areas if you come up dry there.

A few excerpts related to your query:

Equipotential bonding of all metallic supply lines entering a building is a
vital requirement for protection of a building and its contents. Gas piping
systems are specifically required to be bonded to a grounding electrode in
accordance with the National Fuel Gas Code NFPA 54/ANSI Z223 and the
National Electrical Code ANSI/NFPA 70. The grounding electrode is a
requirement of the National Electrical Code.

The 1999 and 2002 editions of the National Fuel Gas Code require that "each
above ground portion of a gas piping system upstream from the equipment
shutoff valve shall be electrically continuous and bonded to any grounding
electrode, as defined by the National Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA 70."
Bonding jumper shall be sized in accordance with NEC Table 250.66.

An equipotential bonding connection shall be made between the fuel gas
piping system and the electrical service grounding electrode. The bonding
jumper should be sized in accordance with NEC Table 250.66 (based upon the
rating of the largest overcurrent device protecting the feeder that supplies
the building - typically 200 amps). Bonding and grounding connections are to
be made by a qualified technician.

Hope this helps,

Jack Painter
Virginia Beach VA

WNTU4 wrote:
"Now I know I can`t attach ground to gas line."

The gas line is likely grounded on the house side of the meter. Stoves,
etc. have e3lectrical appurtenances which otherwise might shock you..

The supply side of the meter is likely nominally insulated to avoid
overloading the cathodic protection rectifier which maintains a fraction
of a volt on steel pipes and other gas supply equipment. This tiny
potential ensures that ions flow toward the apparatus rather than away,
which would erode the stuff away.

You only must avoid shorting out the cathodic protection potential. Easy
since its insulation is already very poor. Pipe dope has cracks. The
rectifier has a large ground bed for its return. The rectifier has leaky
arresters, etc. It`s no real problem to have a very near ground rod. The
gas pipe is subjected to plenty of lightning current during
thunderstorms.

Best regards, Richard Harrison, KB5WZI

"Richard Harrison" wrote in message
...
WNTU4 wrote:
"Now I know I can`t attach ground to gas line."

The gas line is likely grounded on the house side of the meter. Stoves,
etc. have e3lectrical appurtenances which otherwise might shock you..

snip.

Best regards, Richard Harrison, KB5WZI

The gas line is "likely grounded " should not to be used as a
measure of confidence
to ground to a gas line . If something does happen you may not be around to
hear the words
"Oops I'm sorry, how was I expected to know!"
Don't assume anything
Art

Art Unwin wrote:
"The gas line is "likely grounded" should not be used as a measure of
confidence to ground to a gas line."

That`s correct. Plastic pipe is now sometimes used for gas and it
certainly won`t serve as a ground.

The questioner wrote:
"Now I know I can`t attach ground to gas line."
His question was about proximity of a ground rod to a gas line. My
answer was not to worry about ground rod proximity to a gas line so
long as he doesn`t short out the cathodic protection potential which is
imposed on a metal line on the feed side of the meter.

Best regards, Richard Harrison, KB5WZI

Our gas lines are yellow plastic type since 1990
in nc.

wrote:

Hi all,
Am designing my shack, and I think I have a problem.Very near the
shack entrance is the entrance of my natural gas line to the house,
plus meter. Now I know I cant attach ground to gas line.... the
question is, how close can I get my rods? I plan to use 3, one right
outside the entrance, and the others 10 feet to either side. I dont
have the option of running away from the house more than 3-4 feet. The
first rod would be about 3-4 ft away from the gas line, but the ground
strap will have to go very very near the gas line. Am I looking at an
explosion in the event of a lightning strike? or will a few inches of
earth be enough insulation? I should point out that there appears to
be an aluminum ground rod driven into the ground at the same point the
gas line exits the earth. Thanks for any advice and information!