For many people, a Faraday Cage is something for conspiracy theorists and those who believe that Armageddon is on its way. In actual fact, a Faraday Cage can be a useful thing for many people to have. For those who live in areas where there are often storms and lightning, a Faraday Cage can be useful to protect their electrical belongings.
What is a Faraday Cage?
A Faraday Cage is effectively a box that does not allow electrical activity to enter it. It can be used to protect electrical equipment from outside interference, as well as help to direct the electricity from lightning strikes into the ground. A small amount of interference could cause televisions or radios to crackle, but a lot of interference can cause sparks and even fires.
By being able to direct any electricity from lightning strikes into the ground you can help to protect yourself and your belongings from the electrical forces of nature and ‘dispose’ of this energy in a safe way.
Faraday Cages are named after their inventor, scientist, Michael Faraday, who discovered the concept of a room that conducts electricity away, in 1836.
Using a Shipping Container as a Faraday Cage
It is important to note that creating a highly effective Faraday Cage requires in-depth scientific knowledge, however, on a basic level, you can customise your order to be used as a Faraday Cage.
One of the main problems with building a Faraday Cage from a shipping container is that you will almost certainly not be able to test it before it is needed and you, therefore, won’t be able to tell how effective it is.
If you want a Faraday Cage to direct the electricity from lightning strikes into the ground, the most important thing to do is to attach lightning rods onto the corners of the cage. When these are connected properly, they will then direct any electricity into the ground, protecting the electrical equipment that is inside the storage container.
Another important consideration to think about is the door. Of course, this will break the continuous connection that the other sides have, so you need to try to compensate for this. You should try to ensure the door has a tight seal and can conduct the energy through it as easily as possible.
Building your own Faraday Cage
The concept of a Faraday Cage is a simple one, however, when it comes to constructing your own, there are a lot of risks, and a lot of in-depth research is needed. There are many different uses for converted units – you can use them in the traditional way for storing and transporting cargo, but also customise them and use them for the construction of housing, garden studios, plant rooms or pop-up restaurants, for example.
However, building your own Faraday Cage is much more complicated and should only be carried out with expert knowledge and guidance. Get in touch with a member of our team to discuss your next conversion project.
If you are concerned about the integrity of your internal items, we would recommend there was clear separation from the container shell, and that the shell itself is earthed to prevent arcing. Earthing is situation dependent – different materials have different conducting capabilities and that changes again with moisture.
