wire trench and fire pit

[Ryf]

obviously, they can't be close, I have an area we use for cooking with an open fire, its around 5' diameter. I would hope 15 ft away from it would be enough? I will have to arc my trench around the pit, but it seems cheaper than melting the shielding off the wire lol.

anyone know what kind of distance we are talking?

 

[Tscott]

I'd be willing to bet you could run directly under the fire pit as long as you were at 3' or 4' below grade. I don't see dirt being that good a conductor of heat and I would imagine most of the heat from the fire is radiated upward. I am sure the 15' you propose is way more than enough clearance. I would avoid the pit just to keep from tearing it up, but I don't think you need to be more than a few feet away from it to be clear of any negative effects from the heat.

Tom

 

[Ryf]

thanks for that, the 15 ft range is perfect for me really, it is just right for a 22 degree bend, going to try dry fitting the pipe and see if I need to arc it or if I need to use the bend for it. how hard is 2" pipe schedule 40 conduit to arc?

are there rules about using heat to help bend schedule 40?

 

[hidollartoys]

thanks for that, the 15 ft range is perfect for me really, it is just right for a 22 degree bend, going to try dry fitting the pipe and see if I need to arc it or if I need to use the bend for it. how hard is 2" pipe schedule 40 conduit to arc?

are there rules about using heat to help bend schedule 40?

I am currently building a 40 x 80 and have a 2" running the 80' length. 2" is not hard to arc and there are no "arc" rules in the NEC or per our local AHJ. If the lengh is enough you can "arc" all you want. No rules for "straight" conduit run. Mine is 12' from one corner to 2' from the far corner. Easy peezy. It is not uncommin to "stake" the conduit in place. You can heat the sch40 to assist in the "bending". We heat and bend 90deg bends at work as normal practice. No rocket science.

 

[nehog]

Five ft should be sufficient. We used to melt the frost (could be two to three feet) using a barrel and a bunch of charcoal and wood. Start a fire in the barrel (which was open at both ends) and let it burn overnight. By morning, the ground was thawed to below the frost line. (We were installing those big satellite dishes at the time, with holes about 2 ft in diameter.)

 

[Rtw5150]

thanks for that, the 15 ft range is perfect for me really, it is just right for a 22 degree bend, going to try dry fitting the pipe and see if I need to arc it or if I need to use the bend for it. how hard is 2" pipe schedule 40 conduit to arc?

are there rules about using heat to help bend schedule 40?

I'm assuming you mean schedule 40 pvc, right? Have you ever seen a pvc bender? One type is a blanket, looks like a heating pad, you wrap around the pipe until it is warm enough to bend. The other kind looks like a turbo heater that you put the pipe in and rotate it until it is warm enough to bend. So using heat is ok. You have to be careful putting a bend in too close to the end of the pipe, if you apply heat too close to the ends it is easy too oval or egg the pipes shape and you'll never get a fitting on the end. The bender kits usually come with a plug to put in the end to keep it round. I have never bent anything bigger than 3/4 without one of the previously mentioned benders. 3/4 or 1/2 is easy, you can use a heat gun or a torch. If its just a bend or two why not buy a 22 or 30 degree bend? Obviously you need an elec bend and not a plumbing bend. I've been an electrician since 94 if you have any questions send me a email rtw51
50 at gmail. I'm new to this site and that will be the fastest way to respond

 

[jbberns]

I am currently building a 40 x 80 and have a 2" running the 80' length. 2" is not hard to arc and there are no "arc" rules in the NEC or per our local AHJ. If the lengh is enough you can "arc" all you want. No rules for "straight" conduit run. Mine is 12' from one corner to 2' from the far corner. Easy peezy. It is not uncommin to "stake" the conduit in place. You can heat the sch40 to assist in the "bending". We heat and bend 90deg bends at work as normal practice. No rocket science.

I agree with trying to stay away from factory bends. 360 degrees of bend is max. If your "arcing" it, that wouldn't be straight!

 

[Ryf]

meh, I can prolly arc it without it, and I am not overly concerned with the 360 deg, it is fairly straight, I could likely do it without heat, just blissfully unaware of the limits of the larger conduits. its about 70 ft from the back of the house to the front of the shop. and it has to go out to the right away from the shop to miss the fire pit, then arc around and come back, I can do this with a 22 degree bend, but would rather spread it out over 3-4 lengths for ease of pull.