Underground Electrical Service Entrance

Extending electrical service to a detached garage or other outbuilding isn t much different than adding a circuit inside the house with one important exception running underground cable.

Underground electrical service entrance.

The short answer is yes underground is preferable to overhead mostly due to the protection feeders get from being buried but underground service equipment can be much more expensive than similar overhead feeds and. Electrical cable depth options. 2 2 2 4 al ser service entry electrical cable can be used in wet and dry locations up to 90 c or 194 f. This method has become the choice of many replacing the unsightly overhead feeds.

With underground service the service lines between the utility transformer and the house are known as the service lateral and the service entrance conductors often travel up to the service panel rather than down from the roof. Decide how much digging you re prepared to do which determines the type of wire you need to use. This cable is primarily used as a panel feeder in multiple unit dwellings. The most common types of direct burial cable used in residential projects are underground service entrance use and underground feeder uf.

The entrance cable must have at least 18 inches of excess wire left past the weather head to allow connection of the service wire. For a 6 in deep trench use galvanized rigid metal electrical conduit with individual conductors inside. Weather head must be a minimum of 18 inches from top of the. When dealing with service entrance cables on new homes the question often comes up about underground and overhead feeders.

Instead of overhead aerial cable feeding an overhead service conduit an underground service is fed by underground direct burial cable. For use in almost all applications where type se cable is allowed. Type use cable is usually black and is most often used for buried lines that bring power from the utility s transformer to individual houses. The southwire company 500 ft.

Are underground feeds better than overhead feeds. 2 2 2 4 al ser the southwire company 500 ft. Underground service entrance feeds are fed like their names imply underground. The service lateral cables must be protected in the ground by conduit until they reach a depth of four feet.

If you are sufficiently confident of your wiring skills that you would feel comfortable adding an electrical circuit indoors then running a circuit to a. Underground cable for running electrical power to a remote location can be installed at different depths depending on the type of conduit and type of wire used. Table of underground electrical service cable sizes amps how to detemine the electrical service size or ampacity entering a building step by step illustrated instructions how to use a dmm digital multimeter or analog voltage meters to determine or estimate service voltage and electric service and electric panel drawings for visual inspection. See below for our assembly guide for meterbase for underground service.