The sole purpose of a lightning protection system is to provide structural protection against a direct lightning strike and prevent the devastation caused by lightning. A properly installed lightning protection system is the ONLY method recognized by the Canadian Standards Association, Lightning Protection Institute, the National Fire Protection Association, and Underwriters Laboratories to protect valuable property from lightning destruction.
A Lightning Protection System consists of three major parts :
The lightning rods are positioned on locations where lightning is most likely to strike such as a roof peaks, dormers, chimneys, cupolas etc.
The conductor interconnects the lightning rods and provides a safe path to ground for the lightning.
The grounding system dissipates the lightning safely into the ground.
A properly installed lightning protection system intercepts a lightning strike and provides a safe route for lightning to travel around a structure and down to ground, in lieu of penetrating the structure and causing damage.
A Lightning Protection System should only be installed by a qualified licenced lightning protection contractor. Experienced lightning protection technicians have been trained to properly install these systems to comply with the National Standards and Provincial Regulations. General contractors, electricians and roofers are not qualified to install these systems.
