Lightning Protection | Storm ‘Norma’

Lebanon has faced quite a tough storm. Norma has destroyed roads and filled our streets with water, it has devastated refugees and homeless people had to suffer through the cold. However, there are other types of damages that did not make it to the news. Had it been reported, the headline would implicate each and everyone of us.

If your television unit, receiver, phone line, fridge or any other home appliance has been damaged in the last few days, make no mistake, the storm probably had something to do with it.

Lightning strikes are not a force to be undermined or reckoned with. Yet, they are often ignored and allowed to interfere with our daily lives and negatively affect our most expensive equipment. For instance, a lightning strike is way more damaging to our computer than a virus, one hit is likely to be fatal, yet we are more likely to get a firewall than a surge protector.

Now, if you are considering lightning protection, a security advisor from Zod Security can assist you, just call 04-543666.

If you are still looking to learn more, read on.

To ensure a perfect lightning protection, several layers of surge devices are required, the surge protection equipment related to each layer is commonly identified by its ‘type’:

• Type 1: Building protection between the street’s electrical lines and your apartment.
• Type 2: Apartment protection between the electrical meter and your breaker.  Installed in each electrical switchboard, it prevents the spread of over-voltages in the electrical installations.
• Type 3: Tactical equipment protection localized at the wall outlets. They usually have a low voltage discharge capacity and should only be installed as a supplement for type 2.

Zod Security provides German equipment when it comes to lightning protection. Therefore, the items follow the technical standards DIN VDE 0100-443 and DIN VDE 0100-534 regarding over-voltage protection (which were fundamentally revised at the end of 2016 – The official transition period of the old versions just recently ended on 14.12.2018.)

When?

DIN VDE 0100-443 

1. Surge protection is always recommended for the operation of ‘sensitive’ equipment
2. It should be adopted for networked installations with sensitive devices – ‘System protection’
3. Increased focus on protection at switching over-voltages

Which one?

DIN VDE 0100-534

1. Surge Protective Device (SPD) Type 1 for overhead lines.
2. SPD Type 2 for all other systems.
3. The surge current to be expected at the site of operation should be supported by the protective device.

How?

DIN VDE 0100-534

1. Additional SPDs at a distance> 10 meters to sensitive equipment.
2. Maintain the energetic coordination between the SPDs and the terminal.
3. Additional SPDs for data lines and lines leaving the building.