Have you ever heard of grounding an antenna? Is your antenna grounded? Well, you need to ground your antenna to experience the advantages that come with doing that. This article explains more.
Grounding an antenna serves one major role; to protect your antenna and TV equipment from destruction by electrical disturbance from lightning. It also minimizes the effects of TV reception that are brought about by static electricity buildup. This article on how to properly ground a TV antenna gives you insight into the process of installing the antenna as well as the advantages of doing such among other useful tips.
There are three reasons as to why we should properly ground our Outdoor TV antennas. They are;
- To preserve your TV equipment – The excess power from lightning, power surges, or even static electricity buildup can prove to be of great danger to household appliances, among them being your TV components. You, therefore, need to ground your TV antenna to prevent that.
- To fulfill legal requirements – In some states or countries, it is wrong to not ground your TV antenna. You should, therefore, ground it to be on the right side of the law.
- Minimize electromagnetic interference – with the fractional leak of currents from your coax cables or other wires connecting your TV to your antenna, there accumulate electromagnetic charges that cause noise and interfere with reception. When you ground your antenna, these charges are carried to the ground and you cease experiencing the noise on your TV.
First off, before looking at the installation procedure, let us check the equipment or materials needed for the grounding task. You will require;
- Two Grounding Wires, preferably copper-made.
- A Mast Clamp to bond the grounding wire to your antenna mast.
- A standard Coax Grounding Block to help in grounding the antenna’s coax cable.
- Ground Clamps
- Sufficient Coax Cable to run around the whole system.
After making sure that all these requirements are within your reach, it is now time to ground your antenna. This is how it goes.
- Finding a spot where you will install a grounding block or your lightning arrestor is the very first step towards grounding your antenna. You should also identify where your antenna’s coax will enter the house. After that, shelter from rain on the spot where you will attach the grounding block to your house.
- Attach the grounding block to your wall. Since most grounding blocks come with screws for attaching the block to your home’s exterior, you will find it easy with this step.
- Run a cable from the antenna to the cable. To prevent signal losses that come with long wires, you should probably shorten the cable with the recommended shortening tools. You should, therefore, make sure that the long coax is short enough. The connections on the cable can also be waterproofed using waterproof grease. Importantly, you should loop the coax to prevent rain in your house.
- Run coax from the grounding block to the TV. Make sure that the coax connections are tight.
- Attach the other grounding wire to the house ground wire and the block. Using a copper grounding wire, attach one end to the ground wire using a clamp and the other to the block. Again, make sure that the wire spots the shortest length possible while avoiding sharp turns.
That is how to ground a TV antenna. Let us also look at how to ground your TV Antenna’s Mast.
- Attach one grounding wire onto the mast. Make sure that the mast clamp is securely attached and will not easily slip off if it is what you are using. If, on the other hand, you are attaching it with a bolt, be sure that the wire is in direct contact with your mount. If necessary, scrape off any coating or paint.
- Run your grounding wire to your House Ground Wire. If you are using a simple clamp or bolt, attach the wire to a separate point other than your coax grounding wire. Again, avoid sharp bends or turns and let the coax be the shortest possible.
By doing that, you will have grounded your antenna mast and prevented the likely damage of excessive electrical disturbance.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
a. Should I ground my indoor TV Antenna?
Since indoor antennas are meant to be used from the inside of the house, they are sufficiently protected from lightning among other physical electrical disturbances. Therefore, grounding an indoor antenna may not be of much help.
However, you can ground the coax cable of your antenna by using a grounding block. There are two likely advantages to doing this.
- If you were to install a bandpass or LTE filter, a grounded coax cable will improve the efficiency of the filter. Grounding prevents unwanted radio signals from entering the coax from the filter.
- Grounding the coax protects you from potential electric shock.
I have this tip for you. If your converter box or TV’s power cord is 3-pronged, you might not have to worry much about grounding it since it’s probably already grounded. It, therefore, doesn’t pose a huge electrical risk. On the other hand, a 2-pronged power cord is mostly unsafe and power leakage may be an issue. You should, therefore, consider grounding your antenna.
To wind up on this article, always keep in mind that the ultimate goal of grounding an antenna or any other equipment is safety; your safety, and the safety of your electrical gadgets. You should, therefore, do it carefully and safely. Do not mount the antenna when the weather is stormy or at unrest. Make sure that during the process, you are safe. Besides, you should have powered off the mains electricity source to prevent electrocution.
Moreover, since not all antennas are the same and don’t have the same grounding procedure, you can opt for assistance from a qualified technician. It is also of great importance to follow state rules concerning grounding and electrical systems. I hope that this article on how to properly ground a TV antenna was of help to you.