Antenna Ground

[Jellyby]

I have an HD7696p antenna on the roof with the coax grounded to an outside water faucet. I haven't set up any lightening strike ground yet. I have heard that a 4 ft. ground rod is not adequate. How hard is it to drive an 8 ft. rod into the earth?

Also, we have underground utilities with the electric power-feed cable running 12 ft. away from the house foundation. Obviously you would stay as far away from that as possible, but I'm wondering how far away is considered safe?

[winegard]

Good morning Jellyby -

Concerning your grounding question I would not recommend attaching a ground wire to the water faucet since this would send any voltage strikes or static voltages through the house. You would be better of with a separate 8 foot ground rod driven into the ground outside the drip area of your roof over hang so that you are in moist soil. Driving the 8 foot ground rod will depend on the type of soil and the size of hammer used. Since electrical codes vary you should check with the city or county where you live to see what local grounding codes must be met. You can also check with a local electrical contractor as to what local codes must be met.