Lightning protection for Tampa's tallest and most valuable trees

A new system is installed by a climber who runs copper conductor from the highest main leaders down the trunk, with branch conductors to other tall leaders on big spreading trees. Fasteners hold the cable against the bark without girdling it as the tree grows. At the base, the conductor runs underground, away from the trunk, to one or more ground rods set outside the main root area. The whole run is made without sharp bends, so the current stays in the copper.

After a strike, the damage is not always obvious. Some trees split or lose a strip of bark down the trunk; others look fine for weeks and then decline because the roots were damaged. We look at the scar, the bark along it and the crown over the following season, remove any dangerous wood, and tell you what the odds of recovery look like. Pines often fail after a bad strike, because bark beetles move into the damaged wood quickly and finish what the strike started.

Existing systems need checking. Trees grow away from their conductors, fasteners can be pulled by growth, ground connections corrode, and storms can break branch conductors. We inspect the full run from the top leaders to the ground rods, extend the conductor as the crown grows, replace damaged sections and check the ground connection. A system that no longer reaches the top of the tree or has a broken ground connection does not do its job, however well it was installed.

Grand oaks are the trees most owners protect. A live oak that took generations to grow, or a big tree that shades the house and anchors the yard, is worth far more than the cost of a system. Tall trees standing alone, or the tallest tree near a house, are the ones most likely to be struck. We look at which of your trees fits that description and recommend protection only where it makes sense for the tree and the house.