Dear Steve,
We build an aluminum 50ft and have one question.
1. How to make the lightning protection ground plate to the outside of the hull and what material/size to use. Hull material alloy 5083, painted.
2. How to make SSB ground plate to reflect waves into the air, also here please advice size and material.
Please be so kind to advice your comments based on experience on your aluminum boats.
I cannot find reply in your book.
Thank you and best regards, Alexander
Hi Alexander: Easy answer. With aluminum construction you have a good built-in lightning system and antenna ground. While on our fiberglass boats we go to a lot of work to provide special lightning grounds below the mast(s), with metal we allow the entire hull to do the job.
Same for antenna grounds for SSB (or any electronics). The hull is an excellent ground plane (for fiberglass we laminate in a copper screen). But, you need to use a large capacitor in all of the electronic ground wires, to maintain your isolation from the batteries. The capacitor allows RF energy, which you are grounding, to pass, but prevents DC current from getting to the hull. More details on this are in our Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia. Regards – Steve
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 30, 1999)
