1950's code

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spark master

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Is anyone old enough to know (remeber) the 1950's code ?

Our excavator hit a 1950's direct burial service. It was about 8 inches deep. No where near the 24" required now.

Yes, it was marked out, but no one expected to hit it at 8" down. It was in pretty good condition considering aluminum wire & driveway traffic... But now we have to rip up 300 foot of asphalt.....

Was 8" acceptable in 1950 ??
 
The earliest reference I can find to actual burial depths is the 1962. 339-3(c) requires a minimum of 18" Prior to that, it appears to be up to the AHJ. 310-6 refers to 339-3(c) as well.
 
spark master said:
Is anyone old enough to know (remeber) the 1950's code ?

Our excavator hit a 1950's direct burial service. It was about 8 inches deep. No where near the 24" required now.

Yes, it was marked out.
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I have seen old direct burial cable on top of the ground (live service). I'm old enough to know to be careful around buried cables.

It may have been 24" back when it was installed but grade can change over time .

Instead of tearing up 300 ft of driveway couldn't they bore under most of it?
 
PaulMmn said:
Can't you just divert to one side or other of the driveway and dig up the lawn instead??
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Trees, roots, ect, etc. There is no easy solution. I'm not killing 50 trees. Mature trees.

I'm wondering if the AHJ will allow a junction box in the driveway... and do a repair. But it may have to be sleeved as far back as possible, because it's no where near proper depth. Especially the area will be graded down to accommodate a new patio, with drainage.
 
spark master said:
Trees, roots, ect, etc. There is no easy solution. I'm not killing 50 trees. Mature trees.

I'm wondering if the AHJ will allow a junction box in the driveway... and do a repair. But it may have to be sleeved as far back as possible, because it's no where near proper depth. Especially the area will be graded down to accommodate a new patio, with drainage.
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spark master said:
The property owner. It's from the main house to an out building. The grade changed massively over the years I'm sure.
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First off there are splices for direct burial cable for underground ? The power companies do it all the time.

But leaving an old cable under a patio doesn't seem a very good idea at all. At least not cable from the 1950s.

Since it should have been planned to move the cable in the first place it really doesn't matter if someone accidentally cut it .

Figure out a place where the cable can be spliced and re-route around the patio area.
 
I don't believe in that theory. zillions of direct burial cable are under roadways, patios, gardens, driveways, etc. Once it's buried, it's long forgotten. until something happens.

My house, the POCO drop is under my driveway. at least 100' of blacktop. Probably not sleeved.. who knows what they did back then.
 
spark master said:
I don't believe in that theory. zillions of direct burial cable are under roadways, patios, gardens, driveways, etc. Once it's buried, it's long forgotten. until something happens.
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When I said it's crazy to leave 60+ year old cable under a patio that's just an opinion. Everybody has one.

I guess it's because I have had to call the power companies about so many breaks in service cables from that era. I wouldn't want to bet that old cable would last even 5 more years.
 
If left undisturbed, the cable would have lasted another 50 years.

But someone touched it. All bets are off! :angel:
 
Key word "undisturbed".

Now... it probably needs a continuous ground wire ran back to the service entrance of the main house.
Back then, it was a 3 wire. Now 4 wire is mandate.
 
spark master said:
Key word "undisturbed".

Now... it probably needs a continuous ground wire ran back to the service entrance of the main house.
Back then, it was a 3 wire. Now 4 wire is mandate.
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There is an exception in art. 250 that allows for an existing three wire feed as long as there are no metallic paths between the structures.
 
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