sundance-communications.com/forum Forums Wiring - Telecom Carriers - Trunks & Services Outside Plant OSP Construction Connecting Two Bldgs w/ 50 pair wire

I've already connected a 50 pair wire btw two buildings and on either end have two PortaSystems Gas filled punch down blocks. The wire is outdoor rated and I also put Plastic conduit around it for added protection. It's buried over 2' in the ground and I have the metal sheath grounded to 3 lightning rods on both buildings. I am still getting "spikes" from lightning cause it is taking out my Merlin Legend MLX-16DP phones at about 3/storm. I would have thought those expensive PortaSystem punch down blocks would take care of it but I am a novice and I guess I need additional lightning protection. Please Help and try to use whole words because I am not in this field and don't know all that shorthand "jargon" on the other posts. Thanks for the help!

First question I have, is the phone system grounded to the same source as the cable sheath? If that answer is yes, take a volt meter and read from the power ground (you can use the ground of a grounded outlet) to your system ground, you should read near zero ohms, not more than 5 ohms. If this is also true, what voltage are your porta systems protectors? If they are the high voltage and the only thing on them are the phones use a low voltage protector. Don't use low voltage on the CO lines or anything other than your low voltage digital phones. Hope this helps

Is it taking out the phones only, not the ports too? Are these phones only out across this feeder? If they are and the system/ports aren't getting hit then I would check the bonding/grounding at the far end.
Justbill is ...so very correct! How many times I've had to explain to a customer who purchased Porta equipment, or the like, and didn't purchase the low-voltage modules.
Lightning is very fast,very dangerous, and always unforgiving.

I am a novice and I guess I need additional lightning protection. Please Help and try to use whole words because I am not in this field and don't know all that shorthand "jargon" on the other posts.

Best whole words I can give you is to hire someone who IS in the "field". If this were easy to do and all you needed was available on the internet you wouldn't be having a lightning problem.

Each case is different and we can't see what you have, what you have done and how you did it. All three are vital and without actually being there to evaluate there is no way anybody here can give you any advice that would be meaningful.

This is costing you money. Stop wasting it by thinking that this is a do-it-yourself project.

-Hal

Hal has a very good point.

This started in the Avaya Forum, moved to equipment repair (he has a few smoked phones), then I suggested that he come here.
It is only the phones at the remote location getting taken out, not the ports. I should have realized that it had to be on the remote end grounding/lightning protection.
In my defense, I can only offer that we specialize in fixing the phones once the lightning has hit and do not install them.

I'm betting he has a difference in potential from his equipment ground to the sheath ground. The low voltage protectors should help, but as Hal says find the cause first.

Nothing like getting a rear end chewing from Hal.
The porta sytems protector is a model 581 P2. The sales representative at GrayBar said this would be sufficient for my phones and phone system. Yes only the phones are getting smoked not the ports. The ohm reading was 0.0.

If all grounds are equal to the power neutral than the only thing it can be is inductive to the cable pairs in between the buildings. Use the low voltage protectors on the digital phones and ground any unused pairs in the cable. What you are describing is a difference in ground potential, but your ohm reading says you don't have one. The 581 P2 is the whole terminal without the protectors, the 581 series has 250v 75v and 350v modules, you'd want the 75. Again you just want these for the digital phones, nothing else. One more thing, even though you're not indicating a difference in potential, it's sure acting like one so make sure all grounds are bonded together, I'd about bet they are not. Also you say "3 lightning rods" Do you mean ground rods that the building lightning protection is grounded to?

You said you connected the two buildings. My question would be, was this system up and running PRIOR to connecting the two buildings? Where I'm going with this is, perhaps the spike has nothing to do with the underground construction. You may have the front door bolted, but left the upstairs window open.