Dave Maxwell
Well-known member
Can water and electrical cable be run in the same trench as well as cable for TV?
water and electric
- Thread starter Dave Maxwell
- Start date
koditten
Well-known member
Mine is. Water at 48", electric at 24", cable at 18". No issues so far. May want to check your local codes.
OP
Dave Maxwell
Well-known member
Thanks
larry4406
Well-known member
Power for a well pump is typically always run in the same tench as the well line to the house.
HOTFR8
Banned
I have all three in my trench from the street. Power, water and phone. Will depend on regulations in your area. Power had to be the deepest with a then plastic cover sheet that said 'Power underneath'. Water and phone went in the trench slightly higher or beside. Mind you that is about 14 years ago now when it was all done.
MustangRick
Well-known member
You need to put some distance between the cable and power. Otherwise, the power can cause signal issues with the cable line. I have never looked it up, but if I were making assumptions, I would put a foot between them.
nehog
Well-known member
Recognize that when you do run in the same trench, and the water line needs repair, the risk that the cable or power lines may be damaged is greater. In addition to vertical separation I'd suggest some horizontal separation as well...
ddawg16
Well-known member
Exactly.
If the power is in conduit....not an issue....but if you ever have to work on one of them.....and deeper is better....
If your going to rent a ditch witch....not that big of a deal to just dig 2 trenches...
Falcon67
Well-known member
You also risk a 3 Stooges scenario, where you turn on a light and get a flood, or the lights dim when you flush. So protect that power conduit.
HOTFR8
Banned
Surely some one will know the regulations before you do the work. Will it not have to be inspected before you refill the trench? As here it would all be inspected before completion and refilling the trench.
nehog
Well-known member
Brilliant! This is the way to go: run the power wires inside the water pipe, that way the water pipe protects the power lines from accidental damage. Wow, I can't believe I thought of this brilliant idea first. Excuse me while I go file for a patent on this one!
OP
Dave Maxwell
Well-known member
My plan was to run all the electric in conduit and the water and cable in there own tubes. Separated in the trench
henrysgarage
Well-known member
This is how we are doing my buddy's garage feeds.
Toomanytools?
Well-known member
Water pretty much has to be in it's "own" tube or it doesn't work very well.
HOTFR8
Banned
Thats the way. Here they all have to be a certain distance appart but ok to be in the same trench. As I stated earlier Power conduit has to have a special plastic cover.tyjoja
Well-known member
I'm a cable dude from oregon, if its your ditch you can do whatever you want. You could twist them together and it wouldn't hurt a thing or cause any problems. common sense is to separate them as much as you can. I would put the power the deepest, as if it ever got dug up it could kill you. then the cable or water, doesn't matter
tyjoja
Well-known member
power doesn't have to have a special conduitt/ plastic cover. It's your ditch. I ran 200' ditch from my garage to my shop and I direct buried 3 u/g power wires (for 220v) and water in 3/4" schedule 40 pvc, and direct buried u/g cable wire. If you see a cable guy around the neighborhood stop and tell him what your doing and he will give you the u/g cable wire, the rest buy at home depot.
HOTFR8
Banned
If you did that here you would be in trouble. Different rules for different places.
Wastedwagesracing
Banned
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I'm in the process of this right know and have thought hard about one common trench for power and water. I decided against it just because it just did not seem like a smart thing to do. It would have been much easier and less destructive on the lawn and landscaping. I had a back hoe come in and did the water separate at 7' feet deep 400' long. Then had the electrical dug in at 4' and it's 250' long. I put 12'' of sand under the water line and another 12 on the top and then back filled it. The electrical is getting 10-12" of compacted sand on the bottom and another 10-12" on top not compacted then back filled. I'm also running my 4/0 4/0 2/0 6 in 2" PVC. I like to do things once and be done.
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Dave Maxwell
Well-known member
That is a good point. I was hoping it would just seep through the soil. Lol.
Lippyp
Well-known member
I've recently run Gas, Water and Electricity in the same trench, gas is yellow MDPE, water is blue HDPE and electricity is a 16mm2 steel wire armoured cable direct buried. All bedded in sand in about a two foot wide trench, all at the same level with a decent amount of seperation between each. I checked and it meets regs here in the UK, the water and electricity are just supplies to my garage and the gas is the main gas feed from our bulk LPG tank to the house.
Honestly, you should find out if there's requiements where you live. When I trenched (neighbor and myself) for the spouting tile. I caught the old water line for a small barn( I had removed) tied into that and ran the water line in the same trench as the tile. While I had the trench open, I threw in the cable line. I wouldn't have had the electric tossed in the same trench without some type of precaution. . . .a layer of dirt/sand between and the electric in a conduit.
hh76
Well-known member
It's fine. Keep in mind that your water will be below frost line, which I assume would be at least 3-4ft in IL, so you can get some separation between it and the power pretty easily.
You don't have to worry about the water effecting the power, assuming the proper wire is used. Even in conduit, the wire will most likely be sitting in water from the ground, or condensation.
You don't have to worry about the power effecting the water, as the water will be bonded.
As for reparing one or the other, you just have to be carefull. Not really a big deal, it's done all the time.
Edit: Is this a utility feed? Utility companies can differ on what they will allow.
You don't have to worry about the water effecting the power, assuming the proper wire is used. Even in conduit, the wire will most likely be sitting in water from the ground, or condensation.
You don't have to worry about the power effecting the water, as the water will be bonded.
As for reparing one or the other, you just have to be carefull. Not really a big deal, it's done all the time.
Edit: Is this a utility feed? Utility companies can differ on what they will allow.
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Dave Maxwell
Well-known member
Electric has to be two foot under here. I'm Puting the water four foot down