2-2-2-4 SER question

[iammadmike]

I am almost complete with a detached garage project. I had electrical plans drawn up by a friends father that is a retired electrician. In the plans he had given me a parts list that included USE cable but when I went to HD they only had SER. I called him and asked if it mattered and he told me that it wasn't a big deal but to make sure and bury it inside sealed PVC conduit. I have completed the connection from the main panel to the subpanel and covered the wire up. My building inspector signed off today for the final inspection. I now see that SER shouldn't be buried. Does this pose a risk? Do I need to dig up and replace?

 

[CNGsaves]

Too Little Information . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Country ?? State or Province ??
. . . . . . . Distance of total wire run ??
. . . . . Amp load in detached garage ??
. . . Breaker feeding the run in house supplying power to run to garage ??

GJ Sparkies will give you all details, but your suspicions are on target. You've got the wrong wire. I hope that is a short run to replace.

ALWAYS better plan to run CONDUIT for all that buried portion (Sch 40 underground and Sch 80 when above ground and subject to damage).

 

[pattenp]

SER in noway should be below ground, directly buried or in conduit. The inspector must have not realized you used SER cable for the underground run. It needs to be replace with approved wire for underground installation. Also USE cable is not allowed inside and must be terminated outside of the structure. You can use SER inside and change over to USE on the outside or use MHF in conduit from panel to panel. MHF is direct bury so conduit isn't required for the portion underground.

The issue with SER underground is the constant water/mositure contact and the ground conductor is not insulated and will oxidize and fail overtime. I assume we are talking about aluminum SER.

Also conduit underground, even if sealed, is not a dry place. Condensation will eventually collect in the pipe and there will be places with standing water that the wire will be laying in.

*

 

[My Old Tools]

Some are dual marked SER and MHF. if so, you are fine.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Some are dual marked SER and MHF. if so, you are fine.

Not true.

SER and MHF are 2 COMPLETELY DIFFERENT cable types.

SER has an outer jacket MHF does not.

Unfortunately, the OP got bad advice and needs to replace the SER.

The inspector was probably in a hurry and the FIL didnt know what he was talking about.

 

[My Old Tools]

Sorry, USE-2 and MHF dual marking.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Sorry, USE-2 and MHF dual marking.

MHF is NOT a marking or insulation rating. MHF is a product made by Southwire.
Just like Romex is NOT a cable type, it is a type of NM-b made by Southwire.

The insulation rating that allows MHF to be used inside is RHH/RHW-2

 

[My Old Tools]

And the wire is marked MHF and USE-2. Look it up.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Markings:

Manufacturer's ID plus E FILE NUMBER (SIZE AWG) AA-8000 AL TYPE USE-2 OR RHH OR RHW-2 SUN-RES 600V XLPE (UL) plus YEAR OF MANUFACTURE.
Sequential footage

 

[theoldwizard1]

Straight from Southwire

Southwire mobile home feeder consists of four quadruplexed type RHH or RHW-2 or USE-2 AlumaFlex AA-8000 series aluminum alloy compacted conductors. The cable contains 2 triple extruded phase conductors, a white striped neutral conductor and a green grounding conductor to eliminate the need for field marking per the National Electrical Code. The insulation is sunlight resistant

Not sure what "quadruplexed" means. Bonded together ?

 

[pattenp]

And the wire is marked MHF and USE-2. Look it up.

MHF is "Mobile Home Feeder" and is just an identifier name for the assembled cable product which consist of wire that has multiple insulation ratings. The actual insulation ratings of the wire used in MHF are USE-2, RHH, RHW-2.

 

[pattenp]

Straight from Southwire



Not sure what "quadruplexed" means. Bonded together ?

It just mean it's a four conductor assembled cable. There is also Triplex which is three conductors.