kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
Maybe it is three phase?
Conduit/THWN wires cut underground
- Thread starter 1.21 Gigawatts
- Start date
- Status
Cow
Senior Member
- Location
- Eastern Oregon
- Occupation
- Electrician
Direct buried cable and a gas line. Placed right under rocks....
readydave8
re member
- Location
- Clarkesville, Georgia
- Occupation
- electrician
unless that 4th wire is phone
readydave8
re member
- Location
- Clarkesville, Georgia
- Occupation
- electrician
to me looks like 3 different wire sizes
I just assumed for a POCO it would be triplexed or quadraplexed.
Not single strand
That’s what I see. Two hots, a smaller neutral, and an even smaller ground
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
You guys haven't seen enough high leg delta services, especially installed in 60's and 70's. Seen a few 200 amp but with only #2 or even #4 aluminum on the high leg. Sort of ok, if you have a fused disconnect as the service disconnect and reduced fuse on high leg.
Another C10
Electrical Contractor 1987 - present
- Location
- Southern Cal
- Occupation
- Electrician NEC 2020
It was single phase, I believe the smallest utility wire was a tracer wire, cant imagine running telephone along with the utility although they did run the gas with its tracer wire along with the bunch. I was pretty amazed never saw anything so careless from our Utility Company, the utility rep that came out was pretty surprised too. This property is in the foothills and the entire neighborhood was a huge river bed , rocks are everywhere underground.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
Tracer wire with electric line? Not that it is impossible but generally not necessary, can always trace the grounded/grounding conductor, or when locating fault you disconnect the ungrounded from source if that is what you are tracing.
Many phone and CATV lines buried around here in same trench as electric. POCO's that are picky might want it at least a foot above the electric line. I myself rather have them all in close proximity, less chance of damaging the phone line if it is next to the electric than if it is a foot above, plus you dig deeper with machine before having to hand dig, and IMO doesn't ordinarily effect operation of the phone line either.
ptonsparky
Tom
- Occupation
- EC - retired
Tracer wire for the gas line...
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
Yellow wire that is spliced in the image I presume is tracer wire for gas line, but I think he was mentioning a tracer wire run with the electric line.
- Location
- Placerville, CA, USA
- Occupation
- Retired PV System Designer
Whether the gas line is in the same trench with the electric line may depend on whether the same company provides both gas and electric service.
- Status