does your house go on fire? last night it was lightning and thundering terrible and at 2:30 am a huge bolt of lightning struck and the whole house shook and flashed a blinding white. some things fell off of the shelves. then our alarm system went off very loudly. was our house struck by lightning????
2007-10-05 09:42:07 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Weather
It's possible, but not necessary. The lightning could have struck a tree or power pole nearby. Go look at any tall trees nearby, and see if there are any scars, damage, loose bark, etc. A lightning scar on a tree is usually a path or strip of bark that's missing or loose. The electricity follows a path of sap or moisture under the bark. It heats the sap until it boils, which can explode and blast the bark off.
Also, walk around the house and inspect everything outside and inside. Are there any obvious signs of damage? Stand back so that you can see the whole roof - any holes, scorched spots, etc? Check your electronics inside. If the house got hit, sensitive electronics like computers, TVs, phones, etc are often damaged.
If you can't find any signs of damage inside or outside, then you probably had a near miss.
The alarm may have gone off just from the noise. If it has a sound sensor on it, that could be triggered by the thunder.
2007-10-05 09:49:50 · answer #1 · answered by Ralfcoder 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not really, but it was so close to you that the things you mentioned reacted. The shaking of the house was result of the pounding thunder crash since the air around the lightning suddenly expanded like shock waves, the alarms went off thinking an intruder was inside when actually it reacted to the shaking of the house. Now as for a house catching fire, if the house is equipped with a lightning rod system, the likelyhood of it catching fire in minimized by that system.
2007-10-05 13:44:47 · answer #2 · answered by trey98607 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Although there have been reports of lightning causing fires, most houses are grounded against such thing. This means that there is at least one copper wire from the house, down into the ground (get it, grounded). This will provide a path of minimum resistance for the lightning to travel from the top part of your house, to the ground. The blinding light and loud-enough-to-make-your-ears-bleed sound means that there was a strike very near you. If it did hit your house, all electronic devices in your house would have been burned by the natural EMP that is associated with lightning. Electro Magnetic Pulses are known to accompy lightning.
2007-10-05 09:56:48 · answer #3 · answered by gleemonex69 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The fact that the sound was very loud and enough to really shake the house indicates that it most likely was nearby rather than a direct hit. The thunder is usually the loudest when it strikes one to three hundred feet from a house.
When you are very, very close or in something (house or vehicle) that gets hit, it is a very, very loud crack but not as loud as a nearby strike.
The other answers are very good. Sounds like lots of experience people answering this one.
2007-10-05 10:57:32 · answer #4 · answered by Water 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
More than likely the strike was` nearby, but probably not your house.
The alarms and such will go off if you get a power surge. If it doesn't have back-up power, it may have gone off if the power went out for a few seconds.
So, it appears as though the house was spared.
2007-10-05 10:37:39 · answer #5 · answered by Mr. Me 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The lightning could have surged through your electrical wires or cable wires that go to your tv. That's why you need a surge protector to run your tv cables into before they go to your tv and to run your power chords through before it goes to your tv. You really should run most of your expensive media type appliances through a surge protector. It not only can go through the power or cable lines, but it can also go through your phone lines and fry the modem in your computer. So it's good to have the phone line in your house connected to a surge protector before it goes to your computer. Most surge protectors have a warranty to cover X amount of damages. Make sure to mail in the warranty and keep a copy of it and your receipt of the surge protector and they should pay for any damages you have due to a surge if their surge protector fails. You should be able to file the damage to your insurance company if it meets your deductible and your insurance covers lightning strikes.
2016-04-07 06:03:50 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Usually electronic products will no longer work if you are struck. However, your house may have lightning rod which prevented damage.
2007-10-05 09:49:06 · answer #7 · answered by William C 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋