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Lightning Damage

Peppa Cig

Lightning over the weekend caused significant damage on the electrical supply. Couple of sockets blown off wall in garage. One socket has scorch mark. Following items no longer working:

Electric gates

Robot Mower

Car battery charger

Mains electric fence unit

etc.

Some sockets had a surge device on them but clearly useless.

is surge protection at the Mains “consumer unit” a thing/possible?

Is that a solution or is plugging devices out the only protection against lightning?

Thanks

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CreadanLady

All those are toast. Scrap the lot.

[Deleted User]

A properly set-up lightning conductor system is the only thing to help prevent this type of thing. Few private houses have them, apartment blocks in my estate do though. As our climate changes towards more lightning strikes these systems will be ever more sought after. There’s one company in Dublin 15 providing a risk assessment, installation & testing service.

Peppa Cig

or replace the “circuit” boards (hopefully)?

Peppa Cig

The Continental Op

Any insurance? Your normally covered for Lightening damage. I've written a few reports for Insurance companies stating that computers were damaged by lightening or individual components were damaged. In the worse cases like the OP's its easy enough to take pictures of the damage to show it was lightening.

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058301501/lightning-damage

I think type 2 spds are standard now in new houses

Type 1 or 1+2 if there's overhead lines at risk of lightning strikes

Can't say as I know too much

kirk.

https://kingsmillindustries.com/product-guide/introduction-to-standards/guide-to-bsen-62305/

Bit of information there

I'd assume for domestic only concerned with SPDs fitted at board unless there's a specific risk of strike to the building itself

Was it just the supply cables hit , are they overhead

windowcills

Did ya try new psu in lawmmower, should be cheap enough

kirk.

Maybe a few items repairable ?

Would be important to get a REC straightaway to check wiring imo

iwillhtfu

Was the damage isolated to the garage and if so I wonder would be that there was no earth rod installed there?

Those items you've listed should have a glass fuse on board so you may get away with a few fuses. If you go down the PCB route price it all up before starting as you may find it's cheaper to replace and claim on insurance.

CreadanLady

Replace the lot and claim off insurance. Less hassle than fiddling around with PSUs and fuses and circuit boards. Might get going but might be troublesome.

Be done with it and replace. Surely better things to be doing than fiddling with the innards of things.

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738048#Comment_120738048

Unless you can repair after claiming

I presume there isn't any fraud involved in that ?

CreadanLady

I know yeah, but why would you be bothered with buying parts and spending hours and hours fiddling around with the insides of things, when after all that it still might not work.

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738154#Comment_120738154

You wouldn't spend hours and hours

You'd diagnose and repair or else scrap as you advised

Peppa Cig

Not sure - I guess surge via supply cables. Rural location - no overhead supply cables just ESB pole with our supply out front.

Peppa Cig

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120737856#Comment_120737856

Not sure - I guess surge via supply cables. Rural location - no overhead supply cables just ESB pole with our supply out front.

thanks

Peppa Cig

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120737868#Comment_120737868

New PSU and PCB on order to try.

Thanks

Peppa Cig

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120737969#Comment_120737969

95% related to garage power supply.

I don’t think garage has its own earth rod. Feed to detached garage is from house consumer unit so it would be earthed to the main earth rod for house.

Should garage have its own earth rod?

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738415#Comment_120738415

Probably type 1 and type 2 combination at the boards starting with type 1 , from my cursory understanding

Type 3 then is closer to specific items of electronic equipment if needed then afaik

I would talk to a company that works in the field and get the wiring checked

iwillhtfu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738449#Comment_120738449

I would suggest yes but can't be sure if it is a requirement. The lightning strike will look for the quickest path to ground so likely the reason for sockets being damaged etc as it travelled it's path. I'd have said an earth rod would've minimised the damage at least.

I'd take a look at internal fuses before going buying expensive parts.

Peppa Cig

Never made an insurance claim before so rang then to see the story.

Have always had building and contents insurance but they said the optional “Accidental Damage” cover would be required to cover the items above :(

I queried it as policy states cover for “Storm Damage” and it was a “Thunderstorm” that caused damage!

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738567#Comment_120738567

Id say you're talking nonsense as usual checking fuses and garage earth rods

Type 2 spd is 30 euro

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738569#Comment_120738569

Phone again its not accidental damage. I suspect your outdoor stuff won't be covered but anything plugged in inside should be along with the house wiring.

Antenna

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738449#Comment_120738449

You say you have an electric fence unit

I would suspect the jolt entered via the electric fence wire. It will of course jump over to the mains inside the fence unit.

One of these may have prevented or lessened the damage

https://www.forcefield.ie/product/lighting-divertor-kit/

Any other damage to what you list above? Cordless phone base units are very high risk of being blown (or anything connected to both a phone line and mains) though maybe this doesn't apply to you. Its advisable to plug them out in a lightning storm if you can.

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738909#Comment_120738909

If thats the case don't tell the insurance company as that might bandjax any claim.

iwillhtfu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738789#Comment_120738789

I can't say you're as memorable to me but you know what they say about opinions and all that.

Good luck OP hopefully you manage to diagnose and prevent from happening again.

Peppa Cig

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120738909#Comment_120738909

Thanks! That would make sense.

Biggest visual impact was the fencer “exploded” off the wall.

The next biggest impact was the socket next to the fencer with socket plug blown out.

10-10-20

fencer, no. "Auxiliary power supply" blew off the wall. Right. 😉

Risteard81

To prevent against direct lightning strike you would need a Type 1 SPD at the origin of the installation, and then cascading Type 2 and Type 3 SPDs. You would also need an LPS if you have a Type 1 SPD.

A Type 2 SPD in the DBs with an Earth rod isn't going to do anything to protect against direct lightning strikes. It's more to do with switching surges in the network.

kirk.

Would be important to be getting a rec out here obviously after this