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Old 09-08-2021, 06:36   #1
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thunder and lightning

Hoping for some response . Earlier in the summer I was trying to sail from

Frys harbor, Santa Cruz Island California to Cuyler Harbor at San Miguel Island. I was too afraid because of so much lightning. I turned back and waited till the next day. On my way back there was a group of three sail boats motoring up. and the next day I saw them anchored at San Miguel. I don't know if they passed thru the storm or anchored somewhere for the night. Did I make the right decision to wait? I don't have any experience with lightning It looked pretty scary.
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Old 09-08-2021, 07:58   #2
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Re: thunder and lightning

I'm from Florida and anytime I can avoid lightning I will. Why second guess yourself? Everyone makes decisions based on their own levels of risk and experience.
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Old 09-08-2021, 08:03   #3
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Re: thunder and lightning

Caution is NEVER the wrong move. As you can see, there is always tomorrow. (And if there isn't a tomorrow it wouldn't have mattered either way.)
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Old 09-08-2021, 08:29   #4
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Re: thunder and lightning

if you're offshore...where lightning could strike is hard to predict....you'll be the only thing out there with a tall metal stick thingy pointing to the sky...

but.....in the many years I've sailed offshore in storms....I've only been hit by lightning once...I've had lightning strike all around me, but not the boat...considering the odds...its quite rare....during the day, you have some option of changing course, but at night you are a sitting duck...

it's a crap shoot....make sure you are properly grounded.....

in a marina, with dozens of masts, I don't recall a time when a boat was hit...

but you'll know it when it happens....it will be incredibly loud and incredibly bright, in my case, I couldn't touch any of the electronics on the boat for an hour or so after due to static electricity...but didn't suffer any damage....my boat is well grounded as is all the electronic gear, rigging, etc
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Old 09-08-2021, 19:30   #5
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Re: thunder and lightning

Quote:
Originally Posted by MicHughV View Post
in a marina, with dozens of masts, I don't recall a time when a boat was hit...
We had one hit in the slip a couple years ago. Blew all the thru-hulls out. Because the slips are shallow, no one even noticed for about 2 days. (Owner is absentee, only there on weekends.) Good news? The boat only sank about a foot. We were able to plug the holes and used a household sump pump to pump it out. It didn't flood the engine and as we are fresh water, damage was fairly minimal.

Quote:
Originally Posted by MicHughV View Post
you'll know it when it happens....it will be incredibly loud and incredibly bright
True that! I've been close (and lucky) 3 times (not aboard thankfully). FLASH/BOOM! at the same time, incredibly bright and incredibly LOUD is an understatement (IMO). Years ago, working on a friends boat, we heard what sounded like a compressed air leak (loud hiss) followed by the flash/boom. A meteorologist friend said that was the 'leader' going up to the cloud; the lightening then follows back to ground. He told us we were extremely lucky not to have been hit.
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Old 09-08-2021, 19:40   #6
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Re: thunder and lightning

Quote:
Originally Posted by EngineerRetired View Post
Caution is NEVER the wrong move. As you can see, there is always tomorrow. (And if there isn't a tomorrow it wouldn't have mattered either way.)
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Old 09-08-2021, 20:41   #7
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Re: thunder and lightning

Smart move. Unless it’s an emergency, or you can’t get away, there is no reason to sail through a thunderstorm.

Never been struck at sea. Been struck in a jet, though. Would not recommend.
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Old 09-08-2021, 21:18   #8
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Re: thunder and lightning

Thanks all for the input. JD
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Old 10-08-2021, 10:22   #9
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Re: thunder and lightning

stick a lightning dissipator on top of your mast.
if you can see the aurora which forms get out of the area. you can also get cheap lightning detector for $50 or so from acurite.
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Old 10-08-2021, 20:57   #10
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Re: thunder and lightning

I've now been in a lightning storm in a boat twice.

The first time we were hit twice. The engines hesitated, but kept running.

The second time was recently, I ended up surrounded by thunderheads off the coast of Florida, I was scared, and put out grounding straps connected to the shrouds into the water, but wasn't hit.

Not sure how it hit a power boat twice, but somehow missed a 70 ft metal rod sticking into the air, but there it is.

I'm still not sure if the grounding straps are effective, as I haven't been hit yet to test, but they are heavy gauge copper braid crimped to a OO gauge lug, and screwed onto the chainplates with a 1/2" bronze bolt.

My next install is one of those feather dusters on the mast.

I made one from 2.5 ft of OO gauge aluminum stranded wire crimped to an aluminum terminal with an aluminum bracket to screw to the top of my aluminum mast so no galvanic corrosion.

I'll post a thread on how well it works if I ever get hit.

(less than $100 in parts).
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Old 11-08-2021, 06:48   #11
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Re: thunder and lightning

A bit technical but interesting read...

https://www.practical-sailor.com/blo...ut-dissipators
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Old 11-08-2021, 12:02   #12
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Re: thunder and lightning

My thought on the lightning rod is I'd rather it hit my feather duster than my vhf antenna or anything else on top of the mast.

If the cloud of ions lessens the impact, that's a bonus.

The issue with catamarans not having a good path to ground is valid, but from mast top down a shroud to chainplates to a ground strap attached to a copper plate is as good as it gets.

One of the things i read is the submerged surface area is important as the charge from copper (good conductor) to sea water (bad conductor) is a limit to current flow.
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