PVC Conduit

[Jason Roehl]

How deep was the run?
Is there a different depth requirement for a run not in a conduit vs one in conduit?

Yes. I don't recall the exact numbers, but it's something like 12" for conduit and 18" for direct-bury cable.

As for gluing PVC pipe, the best tip I ever learned from someone was to prime, glue quickly, then push the fitting on, and twist it back and forth until it locks up. That helps keep the glue distributed, and it prevents the hydraulic pressure of the glue from pushing the joint apart before it sets. It seems to speed up the set, too.

[roger wiegand]

Speaking as someone who has, twice in the last three years, needed to move a buried circuit, I respectfully disagree with those who say that ability to disassemble a buried circuit is irrelevant. I'd also say that given a saw and a couple couplers it's also no big deal to disassemble and move a glued conduit. If I'd known about these I would have used one near the base of my lighted sign to make replacing the post easier next time, but glued the rest of the ~200 ft run.

[Jim Becker]

How deep was the run?
Is there a different depth requirement for a run not in a conduit vs one in conduit?

24"+ per code. I could have done 18" in conduit. The Big Orange Power Tool had no issue making the trench more than deep enough

[Patty Hann]

24"+ per code. I could have done 18" in conduit. The Big Orange Power Tool had no issue making the trench more than deep enough

I'm sure it didn't

[Jim Becker]

One of the pleasures of a property that has essentially no rocks in the soil, unlike our previous property which was pretty much one big rock: the foot of supposedly one of the only two exposed limestone mountains in the state.

[Tom M King]

Below the subsoil here, it is just one big rock. Fortunately we can get 24" deep in most places.

[Jim Becker]

Below the subsoil here, it is just one big rock. Fortunately we can get 24" deep in most places.

That's pretty much what it was like at our old property, but there were many places that it was not possible to dig very far. The neighbor's back lawn was about 2-4" of soil and then solid limestone. They were truly at the head of the mountain upcropping.

[Jerry Bruette]

Part of the reason I'm considering conduit is that this run will go across a yard that will be driven on. I could bury the UF cable, but if something goes wrong with it I'll need to dig the whole thing up again to fix it. I figured if it's in conduit and the wire does something it shouldn't I'll just pull new wire.

I initially thought about pulling UF through the conduit until an electrician I worked with talked me out of it because of the problems I'd have pulling it and the size of conduit I'd need. Pulling THHN will cost about $20 more than the UF If I buy the THHN off of Amazon. If I buy the THHN at the local Green BORG it would be about $65 more than the UF.

[Tom M King]

It would be a cheap 65 bucks if you tried to pull UF wire.

[Jim Becker]

You have good justification for the conduit, Jerry, and I'd probably do that in the same situation. My run from the shop to the shed isn't in a traffic area and would rarely be crossed by anything bigger than the Big Orange Power Tool. (~2900 lbs) That advice about the difficulty of pulling UF through conduit is sound. it was "fun" just pushing it through the short risers was a pain!! (Stripping it is also a bag of laughs)

[Rollie Meyers]

Yes. I don't recall the exact numbers, but it's something like 12" for conduit and 18" for direct-bury cable.

As for gluing PVC pipe, the best tip I ever learned from someone was to prime, glue quickly, then push the fitting on, and twist it back and forth until it locks up. That helps keep the glue distributed, and it prevents the hydraulic pressure of the glue from pushing the joint apart before it sets. It seems to speed up the set, too.

12" is for residential branch circuits 20A 120V max GFCI protected, most conduit & cables is 18" except under roads & driveways which is 24", rigid or IMC metal conduit is 6", 'cept under roads & driveways which is 24", or 18" for 1 & 2 family dwellings.

[Ole Anderson]

When I ran my underground RG11 cable from the pole to house (for the fourth time in 35 years) I finally put it in 3/4" schedule 80 underground PVC conduit. Glued the joints, but I ran the RG11 as I went, one stick at a time. Not taking chances of it getting hung up on a joint.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I got scolded by an Inspector for not using the correct glue and am now careful to use the correct glue for the various types of PVC. I used all porpoise clear on conduit, the Inspector wanted to see grey, approved for Sch. 80. I have tried pulling the wire as you go as well. I worry that the conductors will be stuck in the squeeze-out or that the glue might not be good for the insulation?

[George Yetka]

Use the pvc with couplings built in and make sure they all go the same direction as pulling through them will become harder if you hit a male end. Prime just before gluing. The primer and glue react with each other but the primer will not help if its on more than a little bit before the glue.

If you are concerned wrap some of this around the joints
https://www.supplyhouse.com/Pasco-90...4aAogjEALw_wcB

[Thomas Crawford]

I did UF cable inside oversized conduit. We have rocky soil and I couldn't quite get 24" everywhere. It was a royal pain pulling it but with the addition of a pull box and plenty of the lubricating goop it was doable. I think I had about 85 feet with one right turn at the box and then a gentle slope to the outbuilding. I stacked old brick pavers across the top of the entire thing. It gave me peace of mind that if I go digging in the future I'm not going to accidentally cut it. I'm sure it was overkill but conduit is cheap relative to everything else. In retrospect I probably would have just sprung for the THHWN even though it saved hundreds of dollars at the time.