What should we know about the lightning protection installation?

Lightning has great potential. Globally, there are approximately between 40 and 50 lightning strikes every second and nearly a billion and a half per year. Not only are their numbers alarming, but their electrical potential can vary between 100 million and 1 billion volts.

You might think that these are just numbers and that the probability of being struck by lightning is negligible. But the statistics are telling – every year hundreds of people lose their lives or are seriously injured by lightning strikes. The number of damaged buildings and facilities that were damaged as a result of the subsequent electric shocks is much greater.

Are you worried about this data and want to protect your property? In this article, we at Blitz Guard will share with you what you need to know about lightning protection systems.

Which structures need protection?

In the past, people tried to predict where lightning would strike and devise an effective method to prevent it from occurring. Despite their many attempts, over time they realized that it was impossible to prevent their appearance. Therefore, they focused their efforts on providing the buildings with the best protection.

The purpose of protection installations is NOT to attract, but to control lightning passing nearby. They intercept the electrical charge and provide it with a safe path to earth, thereby preventing property damage and protecting human life.

This means that every building and facility needs proper lightning protection. It is very important for architects, designers, developers and building engineers to appreciate this need in the early stages of building design.

Although many of the old buildings in Bulgaria do not have protection or it is outdated and ineffective, in new construction it is practice to install one.

How to assess risk?

If you are the owner of an office or industrial building, it is your duty to ensure that it complies with all regulations according to Bulgarian and European legislation.

In order to understand how much your property is at risk and what your responsibilities are, it is important to carry out a full risk assessment. Some buildings are at greater risk than others.

The risk assessment is done by looking at the size, height of the building and the annual number of lightning strikes in the region.

This means that a two-story house will be at less risk than a five-story block of flats. A building in a high impact density area will be at much greater risk than one in a lower impact density area.

It is recommended that you perform the risk assessment annually to ensure that your system complies with all current regulations.

Note that simply having some lightning protection doesn't mean you're complying with the legislation. You cannot rely on an outdated system and expect that you have protected your expensive equipment and there is no chance of lightning damaging the equipment or interrupting production.

Only by installing a modern system and applying legal requirements will you ensure safety for your building and the people in it.

These are just two of the things to look for when choosing your lightning protection. Stay tuned to our blog because we will continue the topic soon.