I am considering a similar project in Western Kentucky. 700 feet, 2 trenches one for electric 4 ft deep and one for water 3ft deep. My first estimate came in at $11k for the trench, conduit and waterline. I am in the process of getting more estimates and am also considering trenching it myself. I do have a Bradco 612 3ft trencher with a 2520 Deere tractor, but have never used it. I bought it used a few years ago and figure that I can do the water line at 3ft to see how it goes then rent or buy a longer arm for the trencher to do the deeper electrical trench. The high estimate is probably due to brush and tree removal along the path. I share this not to hijack your thread, but to give you a current sample of pricing for comparison. Good luck.
600' trench DIY?
- Thread starter 6fthook
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LD1
Epic Contributor
Why so deep for electric? IS that for code down there?
Up here IIRC, secondary only needs 2'. And primary needs 3'
LD1
Epic Contributor
gotcha.
Wasnt sure if you was burying primary or secondary.
Burying primary is alot more uncommon in residential than secondary. (at least up here)
Wasnt sure if you was burying primary or secondary.
Burying primary is alot more uncommon in residential than secondary. (at least up here)
flusher
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I used a Ditch Witch 1330 walk behind trencher with a 36" digging bar to put in about 1100 ft of trench.
- 330 foot trench 36" deep from the power pole on the fence line to the outdoor load distribution center (220 V/200 amp service).
- 175 foot trench 36" deep from the load distribution center to the shop (220V/100 amp service)
- about 350 feet of trench 24"deep for 120V/20 amp service to three sheds
- 150 foot trench 24" deep from the well to the house
- 120 foot trench 24" deep from the propane tank to the house.
Rented from Home Depot. One long 12 hour day. Cost: less than $150.
My biggest problem with that trencher was getting it aligned squarely at the start end of the trench. If I had it to do over again, I would rent one of those ride along trenchers with skid steer capability. Live and learn.
Good luck
- 330 foot trench 36" deep from the power pole on the fence line to the outdoor load distribution center (220 V/200 amp service).
- 175 foot trench 36" deep from the load distribution center to the shop (220V/100 amp service)
- about 350 feet of trench 24"deep for 120V/20 amp service to three sheds
- 150 foot trench 24" deep from the well to the house
- 120 foot trench 24" deep from the propane tank to the house.
Rented from Home Depot. One long 12 hour day. Cost: less than $150.
My biggest problem with that trencher was getting it aligned squarely at the start end of the trench. If I had it to do over again, I would rent one of those ride along trenchers with skid steer capability. Live and learn.
Good luck
vulcancowboy
Gold Member
Good idea, make sure you put a good pull rope in the conduit too.
Apsterbobed
Silver Member
I would definitely put in the extra conduit. Also make it the same size as the largest conduit, that way if any one of the utilities goes bad in the winter you know that you can use your spare conduit. An oversized spare is cheep when you compare it to trying to dig up and repair a broken pipe/wires through 4 feet of frost in the winter all while you have no power in your house! Don't worry about trying to get a rope in the pipe while you install it, after its all installed just vacuum a light string in with a shop vac. Tie a small baggie to the string just big enough to fill out the pipe diameter and suck it through. I would rent a large mini or smaller full size excavator, you need to have a trench wide enough to have a separation between your line/high voltage and the communication/low voltage to prevent interference on the communication lines. You don't want your water and electrical close especially if you ever need to dig one up, personally I wouldn't put electric and water in the same trench. It's not a bad idea to take lots of photos of the open trench and take measurements from immovable monuments so that years later you can reference them if needed.
fishheadbob
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I have about a half mile of trenches in since moving here a long time ago. Mostly drain tile but 300 feet of 4 feet deep water line.
A large trencher, preferably with a small backhoe on it if you encounter rocks should do the job in short order after the ground thaws. I would look around the neighborhood to get an educated guess as to how many rocks the glaciers left to get in your way; a lot of rocks equals leaning more to an excavator, but only if you need it. The last time I used a trencher I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly the process went along but I have silty clay with no rocks. Last summer I had a contractor here with a very big excavator for a different job. I asked him to dig a 3 foot deep, 300 feet long trench while he was here. 90 minutes, $100.
A large trencher, preferably with a small backhoe on it if you encounter rocks should do the job in short order after the ground thaws. I would look around the neighborhood to get an educated guess as to how many rocks the glaciers left to get in your way; a lot of rocks equals leaning more to an excavator, but only if you need it. The last time I used a trencher I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly the process went along but I have silty clay with no rocks. Last summer I had a contractor here with a very big excavator for a different job. I asked him to dig a 3 foot deep, 300 feet long trench while he was here. 90 minutes, $100.