I have used El Sid pumps for over 13 years and learned early on to orient the pipe vertically so any trapped air can rise through the pump body. The driver should be horizontal to prevent the impeller from riding hard on the bearing at each end.
I too, have lost a few to lightning strikes. I learned to GROUND all collector and copper plumbing to prevent damage to the electronics in these pumps. Grounding is very important and should be done properly. I also had professional lightning protection installed on my building after a very close major lightning strike that took out a tree about 10ft from my building. Any metal on your roof (collectors + solar panels) can attract lightning with devastaing results.
