Watch This Before Digging Around Utilities 

That is brilliant

On the note of electrical safety: Important note: **Do not do a bunny hop** with your feet together like has been taught in some places. This makes you more likely to fall while hopping, raising the danger level. Instead, "shuffle your feet" means to slide one foot past the other WITHOUT EXTENDING PAST THE OTHER FOOT. Your two shoes are ideally always contacting each other as much as possible while moving away from the live wire. This means that it's more likely for current to flow mostly between your two shoes and back to the ground instead of current flowing mostly up one shoe, then the leg, then the groin, then the other leg, then the foot back to the ground. If current did so (flowing up and down the legs), besides possible electric burns and muscles tearing themselves apart due to sheer amount of electricity, this may throw you on the ground, which would expose the rest of your body (including your heart, which depends on a very ordered pace of electricity) to the dangerous electricity. Keep in mind that wet skin is a lot more conductive than dry skin. If you can avoid being/getting wet in any way whatsoever, take that route. This may include reaching an area with dry gravel or patch of dirt with no wet grass.

On a job we dug a trench for gas across a drive to the path, super deep, added stones, loads of tape, mud, then warning tape ( it was a long time ago I can't remember) gas lads turn up and lay it 4 inches deep down the grass near the path and connect it up.. I love how the safety goes out the window when they're paying.

The cable in question _may_ have been laid shallow when it was installed, so the DNO would likely find it difficult to justify recovering all their costs. However, it’s not at all unusual for ground levels to change over many years, particularly in private gardens and a cable that was installed correctly ends up being shallow but no-one realises it until they strike it. Similarly, I’ve seen cables, again installed at the correct line and level, that end up being over 2m deep because the land was built-up. Like Roger says, contact the utilities before digging to get as much information as you can.

Agreed. This wasn't 240v this was 11000 volts, and he reckons it was about 4 inches deep. You would of thought they'd be straight out to sort their mess out and say sorry for nearly killing him, not send him a bill. To follow a fence/ property border where home owner may have work done with this type of cable is wrong.

Remember too that the "100 year old maps" aren't always accurate. Roads also change widths to take over the verges.

Hi Paul, I am having my lead water pipe replaced with new ones. My contractor told me that he did an utilities search and "nothing" came up. I find it unbelievable and am thinking maybe I use someone else. What do you think? If they dig the front drive, and break a rainwater pipe (lateral, carrying water along the street), would I be in trouble?

At least you noticed it before chopping through it.

There are plenty of lead, iron and copper water services out there. I have repaired them all over the years. I agree that blue MDPE is a doddle

Good tip!

Yep or sand or tile tape

That is all good advice but I am realistic. Most people putting in some fence posts etc are not going to call in a bloody great vaccum truck. We have to keep it real.

Good luck finding the PE

GPR is god

Did he have to pay anything to the gas company?

​@@Oli_HudsonThat I don't know. He never said and I didn't want to press it. He made himself known to the gas board while he was here and they were working so he didn't shun away from anything.

I work for a gas distribution network, I can tell you honestly unless it’s a ridiculous damage we usually brush it under the carpet.

I used to love doing water mains but you may find you are better off with some ground workers. Repairs to underground pipes are much easier than they used to be.

I have seen similar. A house converted into flats. One flat using the neighbour's supply.

Anything that isn't on your property isn't your problem had this argument with Anglian when my mum had a leak and estimated she was using thousands of litres a day I think the bill was £800 for a few months 😂

That is true but they sometimes say the ground levels have been altered

@@SkillBuilder I work for a DNO. This is true. It may have been buried at a regulation depth & over the years there has been various landscaping jobs that leave it near the surface. On the other hand, it's possible it was installed negligently. I agree there shouldn't be a charge in that instance but if you're dead or injured, that's small concellation. A CAT scanner & maps from your regional DNO is the best idea, then some hand digging until you locate the cable, before going at it with a digger.

What is your single yellow line for? The double yellow is No Parking

@@SkillBuilder Cars go in one direction on one side of the line, in another on the other. Plus, you can't park next to that line too 🙂

Have you considered a new profession?

@Dandodod1 poo happens learn from it don't repeat, as rocky said ain't about how hard you hit about can you get back off that ground

@Dandodod1 you should consider a new profession ya rent boi

Trip hazards?

Frost

Frost is a huge reason, as ground temperatures are insulated by the... ground, so the pipes contained deep underneath aren't as affected by cold air temperatures. Same goes with heat on plastic pipes for really hot days. Electric utilities can tolerate heat as wires can expand, contract, and dissipate excess generated heat to the wind. Water pipes cannot tolerate excessive heat. Also, water pipes are always heavy, and gas pipes can be too. Adding stronger support structures (or simply reinforcing the structures) for vertical posts to carry literal pipes instead of only cables is very costly.

Did you watch the video where I mentioned the drains?

But i thought you were talking about rain water pipes. I live in cumbria and i dont see any of those man covers.