I am a few weeks from closing on my first land purchase and will also be building a house upon closing. I need to run the electrical line back to a transformer at my build site but I need to cross a small ditch to do so. The ditch seems to always have water running through it so I'm scratching my head on how to trench across the ditch to bury the line. The electric company is calling for a 12" wide x 36" deep trench in which to lay the conduit on site. I plan on renting the trencher but I'm having trouble thinking of a efficient way to get across the ditch. Any ideas?
How do I Trench Across Ditch to Bury Electrical Line?
- Thread starter Barker
- Start date
yoderjac
5 year old buck +
I'm putting in a road and running power underground for about a 1/4 mile for my new home sight. Talk to the power company. They came out to give me advice and specs for trenching. One thing they told me was to not to go under culvert pipes across the road but to go around them. The depth requirement in my area won't let you go under a culvert pipe without adding the diameter of the pipe to the depth measurement.
I don't have to cross water that is standing or running year round like you, but I'm sure the power company will have not old advice but standards. They probably run into the problem frequently. They do have machines they use for running cable underground. My presumption is that you would trench deep on either side and then use one of those machines to drill under it but that is just a presumption.
Thanks,
Jack
I don't have to cross water that is standing or running year round like you, but I'm sure the power company will have not old advice but standards. They probably run into the problem frequently. They do have machines they use for running cable underground. My presumption is that you would trench deep on either side and then use one of those machines to drill under it but that is just a presumption.
Thanks,
Jack
mikmaze
5 year old buck +
dig deep spot above crossing of ditch where you want to bury cable, divert all water so it goes into deep spot, drop in a plenty big water pump suction inlet into deep spot, run the pump. when it has the water all going through the pump, dig your ditch and drop in conduit for wire. bury, and shut off the pump.
You will have to dry spot out enough to drive across with trencher.You may be able to go alittle less or even trench between 2 sheets of plywood after pumping.Are you putting in conduit?Another option is to bore under the ditch and pull conduit back.It's not that hard to pull wire through the conduit.Suck a string then pull rope lube up cable, but does depend how far
