While true, primary consideration should be given to the pH
of the soil in which the ground rod will reside. If acidic
(as is most of the US east of the Mississippi), galvanized
is a better choice.
The pH of the soil can be tested with the same products used
to test the pH of pool water. Dig down a few inches, take a
sample of the dirt, "melt" it in distilled water, and apply
the test strip.
Realize that the various soil strata can have different pH.
It is not uncommon for rod destruction to occur due to this
situation, just as if dissimilar metals had been joined
together. This is particularly true for caliche soil such
as found in Arizona. I believe the bentonite of Colorado
behaves similarly. The reaction between dissimilar metals
can be reduced or eliminated by placing stainless steel
between the two metals.
73
Bob AA0CY
former PolyPhaser technical consultant
-----Original Message-----
From: towertalk-bounces@contesting.com
[mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com]On Behalf Of Rob
Atkinson, K5UJ
Sent: Tuesday, January 28, 2003 1:28 PM
To: towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: [TowerTalk] Re: Ground rod material
Hi Julio:
I'd go with the copper clad rods. For one thing, you will
probably be using
copper of some sort in your runs to the rods and/or buried
in the ground so
if the rod is copper you won't have that galv./cu reaction
problem. in
other words, it partly has to do with what kind of metal you
are gg to be
connecting to the rod.
73,
Rob Atkinson
K5UJ
k5uj@hotmail.com
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