Lightning Protection

[Mike Strutz]

I am interested to know if my O'Day 222 has built-in lightning protection. If not, how do you protect yourself and the boat from serious damage in a storm?

 

[Nick]

Save yourself from lightning

Hmmm. I'm not sure myself. But, I was once told to tie a wire from the mast and run it over the side and into the water to ground the boat.Would that work?

 

[Paul Mieszczenski]

Dealer option??

Mike, I don't think that any of the outboard motor versions of O'days came grounded. It might have been a dealer option, but I have never seen it. I have a piece of 5/16" galvanized chain shackled to the backstay of my 25 and hanging about 18" into the water. I ran it through some hose to keep it from marking up the transom and leave it attached all the time. You have to give it a way off of the boat or it will find its own; may blowing out a thru-hull in the process. We've been caught in several nasty lightning storms and it really is not fun. Stay below and sit as far away from the chainplates as possible.Here's hoping that neither of us have to test my chain theory. PM