How to Run Underground Power to a Shed | Ask This Old House
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- Опубликовано: 4 фев 2017
- Ask This Old House master electrician Scott Caron turns a shed into a powered-up hangout by running electricity underground.
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Time: 1-2 days
Cost: $4000-5000
Skill Level:
Difficult
Tools:
Trenching machine
Shovel
Propane torch
Concrete mixer
Hole Saw
Drill/Driver
Screwdriver
Shopping List:
1 ½-inch PVC conduit pipe
PVC junction boxes
UF 6-gauge electrical wire
UF 6-4 electrical wire
NM 14-2 electrical wire
Electrical wiring boxes
Breakers
Electrical Sub Panel
Masonry screws
Steps:
1. A project like this should only be performed by a licensed electrician.
2. Before digging, call the utility locating service to mark any underground pipes or wires.
3. Begin by digging a trench from the house to the shed. This can be done with a trenching machine or a shovel. The trench should be 18 inches deep to bury electrical conduit according to code. In some cases, you may not be able to reach that depth due to site conditions.
4. Spread out a layer of sand into the trench to protect the conduit from sharp rocks.
5. Lay out the lengths of 1 ½-inch PVC conduit to go from the house to the shed.
6. Use PVC cement solution to coat the inside of each pipe and connect them together.
7. To make the PVC pipe conform changes in grade, use a propane torch to heat the pipe and make it pliable.
8. Form the shapes needed and lay the PVC conduit in the trench.
9. Use 90 degree PVC fittings to connect the underground pipe to the side of the house and shed.
10. Use a drill/driver, masonry screws and clips to attach the pipes to the side of the house and shed.
11. Use a hole saw to carve out a hole to feed the pipe and junction box into the side of the house and the shed.
12. Add a second layer of sand over the pipe in the trench to act as a warning in case anyone accidentally digs in the area and then cover that sand with caution tape.
13. Mix concrete with water and cover any conduit that did not reach a depth of 18 inches due to site conditions.
14. When the concrete dries, back fill the trench with old and new soil.
15. Feed fish tape from one side of the PVC pipe to the other. This will be used to pull up the electrical wires.
16. Tie a thin rope to the fish tape at the opposite end and pull that back through.
17. At the shed, use electrical tape to tie the 4 individual UF, 6-gauge wires (2 hots, neutral and ground) and feed them back through the conduit.
18. Mount a sub panel in the shed and tie on a braided 6-4 UF wire.
19. Connect the individual wires to each braided corresponding 6-4 wire using insulated connectors in a junction box.
20. The ground wire and the neutral wire will terminate in different spots in the subpanel. Connect them to the appropriate terminal with a screwdriver.
21. Tie in both hot wires to opposite sides of busbar, allowing 120 volts to 3 different breakers on both sides.
22. Attach desired electrical wire boxes throughout the shed for lights, light switches and outlets.
23. Run 14-2 NM wires throughout the shed and tie them through electrical wire boxes.
24. Attach any desired fixtures in the shed or on outside and run wire as needed.
25. Tie in 14-2 NM wires from fixtures and receptacles into sub panel breakers as needed.
26. Turn off the electricity inside the home at the main breaker panel.
27. Connect both hot 6-gauge UF wires to new 60 Amp breaker inside main breaker panel in the home.
28. Connect the neutral 6-gauge wire to the neutral bar inside main breaker.
29. Connect the ground 6-gauge wire to to ground bar inside the main breaker.
30. Turn the power back on inside the home at the main breaker panel.
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How to Run Underground Power to a Shed | Ask This Old House
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with that small 100A main service adding a few lighting circuits in the detached garage is feasible. Installing a level 2 charging station is a stretch
This book ruclips.net/user/postUgkxb2mhCug-GkCWrq69Ce2I0nM0D4QpxAqu does have a lot of great information on the building of sheds, design ideas, building options, etc. The author goes through the steps to build a foundation, framing, roof, even ideas on internal storage and external finishes. The text is easy to follow and understand. There are many sidebars that give tips and advice which most laymen probably wouldn't have considered. The photographs are great quality too. This is a great book and I'd recommend it highly for anyone needing or interested in building a shed.
I was expecting a small trenching machine...Brings out the mother of all trenching machines!
That's alot of confidence in your work to trench, run the conduit, glue it, bury it, cement it .... And THEN feed that wire.
Its a conduit in trench... It works that way.. The fact that he could run a fiberglass fish tape all the they way from one end to the other tells him he is good..
Good guys always run 2 or extra when they are running anything because as we all know, you end up using them all up later..
He did not feed the wire, he ran a rope and then pulled the wire in.. I hope he attached, or had enough rope in the conduit to help him do it again... If nothing else, a really good strong string to be able to use to pull in a new rope for later, if needed..
Meanwhile I can't even trust myself to screw in the outlet cover before checking to make sure it works first
@@frandanco6289 I for sure would have added a second pipe while I have it all dug up anyways. cable, ethernet, anything you want can go in it.
It’s actually a code requirement that the conduit run be complete before pulling wire, so confidence or not, you kind of have to. For PVC conduit, that means gluing before pulling wire. For a pro, that didn’t look like a particularly difficult pull.
@@nathanscandella6075 fine, glue the conduit... But backfill and concrete :)
If you don't have a long enough fish tape, I use nylon pull string, tie a piece of plastic bag to the end, go to the other end of the conduit and use a vacuum. Works 90% of the time, every time.
And very fast.
I'd put the cable or pull rope through as I assemble the conduit.
@@timothygunckel7162 yea that works. Much more a pain in the butt tho. I only do that in certain situations.
That old man showed me how do that fairly easily? One time. As you start, you have a piece of fiberglass fish rod That's at least a foot longer than your conduit joints will be. Tie your pull string to that stuff it through the first conduit so it pops out. Before you glue the joint you're at You grabbed that fiberglass rod and shoot it through into the next joint. Once you see string, you know it's all the way through. Go ahead and glue that joint and move on. Just keep doing that until you hit the end of the run. He and I had to run 500 ft. That way And it worked pretty well. Still not as fast as a vacuum and a string. But there was a box in the middle that would have interrupted that so he wanted to do it this way@@timothygunckel7162
I can tell you one thing I was as electrical contractor in the Chicago area and I’ve never seen a sand base and concrete and warning tape installed in any trench I’ve done or anyone else has done. We used either rigid, iMac or pvc where the local codes allowed. I’m not sure if anyone could afford the work to the garage if I had to do all those steps. The coolest part of the video was the pvc heater to bend the pvc. We used to use a straight propane torch. Maybe that’s why at 69 yrs old I’m forgetting some things because of the fumes that came off the pvc if you burned the out side of the pvc while heating if.
My dad did this work back in the 80s and said very similar things when watching this lol
You would have to take out a second loan on your house to afford this.Quality work no doubt.
Right wow
Well you measured your 18" wrong. The top of the pipe should be at 18". In other words 18" of cover. Therefore the depth of the trench should have been 21".
Areas all have their own code, and I'm sure you're aware of that. Same with how concrete masonry and plumbing are to vastly different codes in the south than the would be in Chicago due to the lack of constant freeze/thaw cycles.
Perfect how to video... Renting a trenching machine today. Just need to learn how to become a master electrician...I should be done in 5-10 years. Wish me luck!
You don’t need to be an electrician to do anything you saw in this video
@@pgood7266 I think that was the joke.
thats a long time to rent a trencher..
3yrs left on a home depot rental ahaha
And don't overload your panel like he just did.
I just got finished doing a project where I had to run wire underground but I was putting a GFCI outlet at 17 trees for Christmas lights for a children's hospital. He was lucky to use that machine, they didn't want use to ruin the grass so we had to roll back the sod. Was so much work but it was for the kids!
I’m a new parent and have had both my kids in an out of children’s hospitals the past few years. The work you all do really help us parents of sick kids to feel a bit better during hard times. Thank you!
RUclips university can not be beaten for the price.
Never seen an electrician work so hard lol
Hmm. Well how often have you seen electricians work in general? It’s usually hard work.
That was not very hard at all compare those in the factory. lol
You’ve never seen a residential electrician work that hard. In commercial or industrial, that’s lights work
And I think he actually cleaned up after himself lol
Hahahahhahaaaaaaaa
I don’t know why but this video shows up in my feed once a year and I watch it every time
I like this electrician. He talks very straightforward and simple....Great advice!
Gives you a good idea what is involved, not every aspect is covered but when you think this is at least several days worth of work and the time to get inspections and they are trying to pare it down to 11 minutes I'd say that was a great video.
7 days? This is half a day to a day's work at most, Especially if you're using a trenching machine. I've dug trenches by hand that were 15m long at 600mm deep to do similar installs. Still took a day with 2 guys
You guys have such a good RUclips presence. So glad cause I used to watch on PBS all the time and now I watch it constantly online. Really cool to see the program adapt to the times.
ATOH always does THE BEST freaking job. Every possible scenario is considered and every guideline is met and exceeded. I'm always yelling at my TV, "THAT'S SO NIIIIICEEEE!"
He said it's a little tricky to run a conduit from the box to the panel after he just trenches an underground feeder. He should run the pipe to pull wire all the way with no terminations. Way easier and safer
“Pretty good sized trench digger” pulls out a whole bobcat.
I know right hahahah. Master Electrician?? More like Master Landscaper that day instead.
Pretty much the minimum size trencher in south-central Texas if your site hasn’t been engineered and graded to hell and back.
It wasn’t an understatement. They come a lot bigger than that.
Fox Fireside Chats yep. A lot of people are surprised to learn the huge variety of tasks electricians undertake that don’t involve twisting wires together. Seems like you’re one of those people. I’m glad you learned something.
@@RB-xv4si Yep, huge Vermeer crawler trenchers are standard fare on most every construction site.
I just love when all these videos don’t have a single rock in the soil! That’s about all we have is rocks.
Lol, right
The way these shows show it, it's as easy as building in Minecraft
Well... that ain't the fault of This Old House, or the homeowner they are working with. Kind of odd critiquing a video based on where you chose to live.
And nobody ever busts a knuckle or throws there tools.
Good thing is your house will probably never be swallowed by a sinkhole lol
He is my favorite electrician from the show
Ramped Upp When ATOH first started, they had a different electrician
Did anyone else see that bowline? Truly a professional!
all that work with some dim lights at the end
It's broad daylight outside dum dum, of course the lights will appear dim.
@@Doomzdayxx yeah your right must be the special effects
@Phil Meup or put up a solar panel. For less than $200 I charge my tools in my shed and didn't dig up the yard. And it doesn't cost me anything on the power bill. And I have nice bright LED lights.
@@penguin12902 u got any links for what you used? or general specifications what you used
Really wanna see that cool barn style light at night
Measurements are from the top of the conduit to grade not from the bottom of the trench with partial sand fill (See 2017 NEC Table 300.5, note 1)
BUT, BUT he is a Master Electrician. So a bit of help Dig 24 " than 6" of sand then bury and have the Tape a few inches below the surface. He may be on You Tube but I would have FAILED the trench. The line to the shed is not going to supply enough to run a a car charger. . Another FAIL
There is no RUclips without This Old House.
my inspector said the ground rod is only needed if you have more than 6 breakers, in which case with over 6 breakers you would want a main breaker in the garage panel. At 8:38 please use cable stackers so your romes is 1 1/4" away from the front and rear of the stud. At 8:43 you have 4 romex wires thru one bore hole. code allows only 3 wires per hole. At 6:56 ;you have a giant splice box, why not use another LB on tihe inside and continue the conduit all the way into the panel? Love the insulated connector at 7:22.
Ask your inspector for a code book reference. Because I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t exist
After watching that video, I still have many, many questions that were not touched upon for example:
- Why PVC rather than RIDGID conduit?
- What schedule is acceptable for underground PVC?
- Required permit not mentioned (comment)
- Required county inspection not mentioned (comment)
- If only one circuit is needed to the out building, is 6GA wire still required?
- Is UF cable acceptable for all underground applications?
- Etc., Etc., Etc.
Don't do diy electric especially with only this guy's video... These videos should be banned
I pull string as I install the conduit. It's strung and ready to pull wire after install. Much easier
Thats pointless push a fish tape thru there
@@stevenhudson3545 you feed and you reel a fish tape. You don't "pull" it. Experience will teach you this
Doesn't that add the risk of extruded PVC glue inside the conduit sticking to the string?
This man is frkn thorough!!!!!!!! 👍🏻
All completely unnecessary 🤓 but I love a man who gives it his all!!!!!!
In industrial plants the concrete is normally dyed red so that it's obvious that it is electrical if it's ever dug up.
I've been watching this show for 20 years. I learn something every time.
Nothing ever gets built on schedule or within budget. ⚌⚌ twitter.com/a054sd/status/1389636166585143300
!💖🖤❤️今後は気をライブ配信の再編ありがとうです！この日のライブ配信は、かならりやばかったですね！１万人を超える人が見ていたもん（笑）やっぱり人参最高！まさかのカメラ切り忘れでやら1かしたのもドキドキでした,. 💖🖤在整個人類歷史上，強者，富人和具有狡猾特質的人捕食部落，氏族，城鎮，城市和鄉村中的弱者，無`'守和貧窮成員。然而，人類的生存意願迫使那些被拒絕，被剝奪或摧毀的基本需求的人們找到了一種生活方式，並繼續將其DNA融入不斷發展的人類社會。. 說到食物，不要以為那些被拒絕的人只吃垃圾。相反，他們學會了在被忽視的肉類和蔬菜中尋找營養。他們學會了清潔，切塊，調味和慢燉慢燉的野菜和肉類，在食品市場上被忽略的部分家用蔬菜和肉類，並且學會了使用芳香的木煙（如山核桃，山核桃和豆科灌木 來調味g食物煮
This homeowner really took advantage on TOH. Sometimes I cringe at what people are on this show for , but this guy...he asked for their help with a project that probably would have costed thousands
I always use an insulated screwdrivers when attaching wires to a circuit breaker. Even though the breaker is off, it protects any contact with the charged electrified panel board.
I used to work on live circuits all the time. If you know what you're doing, you don't get shocked. Mostly. 😵😬
Over kill for 240 120v.
You guys always make it look so easy and simple....makes me believe I can do most of these things that you guys do...
practice makes it easy
But you can do it, too!
I'm glad you mentioned the 8ft ground rod, (made electrode) I would have recommended it for the shed. Even if the NEC doesn't require it.
the code does tell you that you need a ground rod for a any separate structure fed by feeders or more than one branch circuit. aka this shed.
@@Ofthehunt Interesting. My shed is grounded to our house circuitry.
Didn’t need to run the ground wire to the house smh. Definitely needed the ground rod but not to be tied to the main panel
One thing I didn't see mentioned in this - 811.
You're running underground facilities yourself. This means you're going to have private facilities in your backyard.
And private facilities means that the utility locators - 811 - will _not_ locate it for you. That is, if you call 811 and they come out and mark your backyard, they will not mark your new electrical cable.
You need to remember that it's there, and tell any new owners.
As a general rule, if you have electrical power in your garage, and don't have a meter in your garage, you can assume that you have private underground facilities.
If you don't know where it is, you need to hire a private locator, because the utilities won't know about it.
what? at 2:41...
@@tubeyou0925 At 2:41 they mentioned calling the "utility locating service", which is 811.
What they don't mention is that 811 forwards locate requests to the utilities that have undergoing facilities in your area, and that each will come out and locate their facilities, but that the utilities will _not_ locate facilities that they didn't place and aren't aware of.
If you bury electric cable yourself, or if any prior owner had buried cable, calling 811 is not enough. The electric company didn't bury it, they don't know that it's there, and they won't come out and tell you where it is.
You need to call 811 before you dig, but you also need to be aware that any private facilities are your responsibility. 811 won't locate them for you.
That's why they put in the caution tape.
That shed should be insulated and drywalled, finished, and painted.. A nice shade of white will also brighten and reflect the light better in there... Electrician did a perfect job.. Thank you..
We used extension cords duct taped together about a foot under ground leading from an outlet. Only accidentally dug it up twice but not fully threw orange extension cord.
Good ol' shop rocks.
Also with the unheated shed , you may want to use the "No-OX" grease on all connections , even the splices in the boxes.
Don't forget about the conduit plug duct seal compound where that conduit enters the building to keep condensation from building up and dripping out into the panel and possibly onto the main lugs.
In this case he broke the connection by using a junction box so that wouldn't happen but would still use the sealer in the junction box where the conduit comes through.
This would be even more important in the box at the house as it's all downhill from the shed and that's where the water will go.
Yup , you NEED to have a ground rod at that shed service also.
Just don't forget to remove that little green bonding screw in the neutral bar if it came with one.
I have 120VAC running from the main house from a power head out to my apartment in the back - roof to roof... It's been hooked up that way since the 1950s when my Grandmom built the place for my Dad. My plan is to run a new line thru the main house attic, out the wall and jump across to the apartment thru a conduit.
Living in England we generally use steel wire armoured cable for direct burial underground, no need for any additional protection, also we have 240v single phase so only need to run 3 wires instead of four, if we had two phases it would give us 415v!
Always interesting to see how things are done differently across the pond.
I've had an extension cord with gfci built in going out to my shed for at least ten years, lol. It's run out the basement window along and between our fence and the shrubs to the shed. I check it every couple of years or so and it's still in good shape.
How does that handle charging your Tesla?
@Benjamin Burlos might provide 5-6 miles per hour of charge, but I doubt you could find an evse that runs 20+ amps @120 volts. Not a bad idea but 240volt service would be ideal, especially in this case. The only extraordinary expense is the trenching. IMO this was a good investment if they will be buying an electric car (or two)
are you a retired electrician, ha, ha!
@thisoldhouse fish tape is a pain when running in conduit. use twine, a plastic bag and a shopvac. tie plastic bag to twine and stuff the bag in one end of the pipe. Then on the other end of the conduit "attach" (hand hold, duct tape, whatever) the shop vac and turn it on. the bag will seal the pipe creating a vacuum and cause the bag to get sucked into the shopvac. This happens VERY quickly so watch out. This even works when wires are already in the conduit, as long as its not too full.
I know this is old but that is genius!
I was told by an electrical inspector years ago that an electrical panel that has 42 breaker spots can only have 42 circuits in it. This particular panel had 20 mini breakers in it bringing the total to 62 circuits, so it would not pass an inspection. Makes me wonder why they even make them? You run into these type of things when you get called to places that didn't pull permits in the first place.
That inspector is WRONG. For one, you are rarely going to see a 42 space panel in a house. But to your point, the manufacturer’s specifications are on the inside door of the panel and it will tell you if it is a straight 42 panel or if you can add tandem breakers or 1/2” breakers.
Lol. Inspectors usually don’t know jackshit. Of course there are exceptions. By the way, that’s not even up to an inspector to determine. It’s whatever the listing says on the manufacturer’s label in the panel
These videos are so helpful - They inspired so many of my own videos!
I remember when I was about 8 I got very lucky and my dad called me outside to help him (whenever he needed help which was a lot, I knew it was going to loads of fun) he said he needed help digging a trench from the house to the shop which was about 30 yards. To make a long story short I got to dig the trench while he sat and watched, it sucked lol
*I paid my nephew to help dig holes for fence posts after I hurt my back. I ended up doing most of the work, though. We had lots of beer breaks, snacks, and gave him $200 plus gas money. On Monday morning he calls and asks for a loan. He doesn't call anymore.*
My father had my brother and me help with lots of projects - no regrets working on any of them with him.
Nothing ever gets built on schedule or within budget. ⚌⚌ twitter.com/a054sd/status/1389636166585143300
!💖🖤❤️今後は気をライブ配信の再編ありがとうです！この日のライブ配信は、かならりやばかったですね！１万人を超える人が見ていたもん（笑）やっぱり人参最高！まさかのカメラ切り忘れでやら1かしたのもドキドキでした,. 💖🖤在整個人類歷史上，強者，富人和具有狡猾特質的人捕食部落，氏族，城鎮，城市和鄉村中的弱者，無`'守和貧窮成員。然而，人類的生存意願迫使那些被拒絕，被剝奪或摧毀的基本需求的人們找到了一種生活方式，並繼續將其DNA融入不斷發展的人類社會。. 說到食物，不要以為那些被拒絕的人只吃垃圾。相反，他們學會了在被忽視的肉類和蔬菜中尋找營養。他們學會了清潔，切塊，調味和慢燉慢燉的野菜和肉類，在食品市場上被忽略的部分家用蔬菜和肉類，並且學會了使用芳香的木煙（如山核桃，山核桃和豆科灌木 來調味g食物煮
I worked as a lifeguard at a lake beach when I was 17, and literally on the hottest day of the summer, they made us dig fence posts for a mud volleyball tournament.
Classic!
"Real steep incline..." does that mean the electricity will struggle to get up hill and fall back to the house before it gets to the stuff inside the shed? Will that electrocute the worms and moles?
very good points. maybe they are using very strong electric magnets at the shed. and they put that red warning tape underground so the worms and voles will know.
True
They just need to use a pump to help the electricity up the hill
@@jaytea23 Solar? Battery? Gas??? LOL
@@jaytea23 A guy I knew once use an air compressor line hard plumbed into the electric line near the end which the pressure of the air would create a venturi effect and allow the electricity to flow smoothly up the hill. Before he did this, the electric was sitting there pooling
yes my man your technique is fire..... nice skills
..
Absolutely the BEST video I watched. I went through a lot of videos and this is definitely the most and well explained and detailed. Thank you guys so much. You really helped me a lot
With the female side of the pipe connection facing up hill if there's a single cracked joint that pipe will fill with water.
@JosLewisWood Carpenter Unless there is enough water that it builds pressure and backs into the house where the box goes into the basement. This is like funneling water into the house. With that steep incline it will quite easily make that upturn into the box.
Then you get the pleasure of digging out concrete to fix it
Wonder if TOH will remember when the call comes in?
Conduit underground should be considered a wet location anyway. As much glue as you put on, there's no guarantee that you won't get water in it, no matter what direction the pipe is facing.
As others have stated, the wire will be listed for this. Also, the conduit stubs above grade to an LB. I highly doubt groundwater would build enough pressure to get into the basement though the conduit.
Whats up with the concrete 2" from the surface?
So you can always know where the trench was by the color of the grass.
Great video. Very informative. Thanks for sharing. God Bless.
Great service thanks for sharing
Oooh, I find it hard to believe the fish tape went through that easy :)
It's easy to push through when there's nothing in the conduit. He could have made it even easier by taking off the receptacle heads before pushing it through. Either way; job done.m! Also the thin black conduit he had the wires coming out of the junction box to the sub-panel? Probably should have been through a 1 inch sealtight for safety and electrical compliance because of the wire gauge?
@@adambrown3918 That wasn't conduit coming up to the panel it was just 4/4 or 6/4 wire
I'm sorta shocked he bothered to pull the rope. I would have just pulled the conductor with the fish tape on a run that short.
Awesome, useful for when I build my garage. Thanks!
scott caron is a great electrician,,,,
Everytime I watch This Old House and it requires digging, I think to myself... you guys have it SO easy! Try digging where I'm at!! Clay soils. Especially if it hasn't rained. Sheesh. I pray for the soil in this video.. I wish
Love it! Had no idea if it went shallow to cover it with some concrete
I actually want more information on that specific shed. What size did he get? That is pretty much the EXACT layout I need/want. It's perfect! Someplace to put bikes, all the garden tools, our push mower, an overflow storage for some tools that are larger when not in use such as my table saw as I mainly do automotive work. All this with a smaller sub work area would be AMAZING!! 240 isn't necessary but is a nice idea as a possibility for the future as there's no driveway where I want it but incase I want to use a 240v power tool or welder out back instead of my current garage/shop which is just overflowing with so much stuff I can't get work done without moving something always.
I'm just glad the sand protected the conduit from shop rocks.
Rocks won’t pierce through the conduit
@@Tairone1337 Even really "shah-p" rocks?
Master Electrician goes to work in the morning. Comes Home. “So what did you do at work today honey”. 90 percent landscape, 10 percent electrical.
That’s how it goes.
Hire an illegal to dig.
That’s the way it is sometimes
Where was this? It looks like you were trenching topsoil! I've been doing this for 35 years and never seen anything like that! Most of my time is spent digging out giant rocks.
Made for Television 📺 my brother
Love how Scott works and his explanation as he goes. Is he still with the show?
I don’t think he is still on the show now the knew electric videos are with a different electrician
I have seen where direct burial wire was laid, then a small layer of dirt, then conduit. The conduit provides a warning and extra protection.
Very Helpful Thank you.
So the house has 100Amp service and you run 60Amps to the shed. Maybe you should have suggested they get upgraded to 200Amp service for the main panel like most modern houses so they have power to spare. You also could have run 6 Gauge UF-B underground rated wire in the conduit as well. It looks like he used expansion couplings where the conduit came out of the ground as well. It would have been nice to see the final sub panel with the surge protection and breakers installed.
No you could not have pulled 6/3 UF through all that conduit. That statement alone tells me you have no idea what you're talking about. Making your entire, lengthy comment useless. Sorry
@@fnhwk I would have used larger conduit and wire lube and it would have pulled just fine. Four lines is lengthy comment for you (it could have been a lot longer), life must be tough with the attention span of a three year old..............
Hi TOH , I love this episode cause it shows Roger Cook , I hope he is doing better with his health problems !!! 👍😘🛠
with all due respect . Hire 4 day laborers , plastic tarp , cut the grass and sett off to the side . dig small trench by hand ,put dirt on tarp . Plant pipe ,,backfill , put cut sod back . nice clean job. Electrician is expensive way to dig a trench . As you plant the pipe ,run rope through the pipe . No need for fishing tool . I also would put the sub panel in out building . I'm building an out building and want to run power into it . Great video I learnt a lot , thank you .
Scott does good work.
Why make the 6x6 j box right under the new panel??? Run the new feeder directly into the new panel. Just another connection not needed.
Jeffrey Spence absolutely, seems like extra and unnecessary work?
Agreed. Lots of extra junk thrown in here.
Nice bowline knot after the fish tape. Has This Old House ever done a show on knots and rigging?
I would have a added a conduit from the floor junction box up to the fuse box in the shed. Something slides down the wall and hits it and it would fail. Also I love the way he says there is lots of room. I don't call that a shed it's more like a kids cubby house. You don't even have enough room to change your mind in there. But whatever, if you just want to store a lawnmower amd spade, it's fine.
Wow luv that trench digging machine
My favorite part of this is when he forgot to do a ground rod and pretended later that he put one in.
Simple enough to drive one in if you can get ahold of a beefy hammerdrill
four wires went into the panel. 2 hot, a neutral, and a ground. its grounded to the main panel thru the ground wire in the conduit. no ground rod required, unless of course his main panel isn't connected to one. But thats a whole other episode.
@@Afredericknyc wrong. When the sub panel is in a different building, you need a ground rod for that panel. He says so later and pretends he didn't forget
@@KitchenerLeslie2 a sub panel does not need its own grounding rod if it is grounded to the main panel. Look up the code.
@@Afredericknyc when it is in a separate building it does. You look up the code
very practical I learned more in a couple of minutes than hours in the occupational school! thanks
Rafael Castro that school must suck
Rafael Castro oh, ok, now go stick your hands in the load center after watching a 12 minute tutorial.
Rafael Castro to bad it's bad information.
Awesome video! i saw you tie a bowline knot between guide probe and wire
Nicely done.
I am not an electrician but I have wired 5 houses including panel/entrance under inspection so I know a bit about panels and subpanels. The only thing I have been asked to do better was put more putty in the conduit where the conductors enter the LB from outside. I can see this as a major problem especially with the elevation difference. cold metal cables in an open ended conduit means condensation... That lower junction box will fill with water... or did I miss the packing with putty?
Considering the difference in elevation and the pressure that water with that much head will create, it will push any putty out. You are much better off drilling a small drainage hole (or two) in the bottom of that LB. NEC says that too (to provide for proper drainage)
when i installed mine, i went panel to panel with conduit, sucked pull string in and done.(along with a second ground rod at the sub panel)
Brian Fischman Yeah. They weren’t very clear about the necessity for a second ground rod installed at the shed or why. They did touch on it slightly at the end, but it was not explained very well and wasn’t clear it was for at the shed.
It's like way over my head with this voltage stuff..but it's actually nice to have someone talk about electric now in this old house
Awesome video, thank you!
Great video! First bit reminded me of the bit in the Step Brothers film when they make their beds into bunks lols
How many saw thumbnail and thought:
"He's gonna make the homeowner dig that trench with a shovel"
Kudos for the video content! Sorry for butting in, I would appreciate your initial thoughts. Have you tried - *WoodBlueprints. Com* It is a great one of a kind guide for building better sheds and woodworking without the normal expense. Ive heard some decent things about it and my cousin finally got astronomical success with it.?
ARTICLE 300, Table 300.5 Minimum Cover Requirements- Nonmetallic Raceways Listed for Direct Burial Without Concrete Encasement or Other Approved Raceways need to be 18 inches (450mm) deep. For installations in a trench below 2 inches (50mm) thick concrete or equivalent: Nonmetallic Raceways Listed for Direct Burial With Concrete Encasement or Other Approved Raceways need to be 12 inches (300mm) deep. REFER: 3:21.
That dusk to dawn light is perfect for reducing light pollution.
If in Massachusetts, 24" deep. Whole new ballgame.
Could have paid a little extra for rigid conduit and only had to dig down 7", avoided concrete and maybe even the trencher. Worse, the discussion at the end suggests that the depth is function of the voltage, but nothing in the NEC (300.5) refers to this other than the total range specified there of 0-600V (0-1000V in some versions). The depth is a function of nothing but the means of burial, not the voltage.
I was going to say the same thing, but it's 8" for RMC. Could be in this situation they needed a trencher anyhow due to terrain, rocky soil, time constraints etc. so might as well go with PVC at that point.
@@BigBrotherIsTooBig Table 300.5 of the NEC specifies 6" for RMC (in dirt, other than under driveways), which with a 1" conduit diameter means digging down 7".
@@pauldavisthefirst Yep, that's what I meant to put.
"I have a very sexy disability... sexlexia."
-Zap Brannigan
Do you have any idea how much RMC costs right now? Sure it would work but it would be one hell of an investment to bring some power to a shed......
@@fnhwk how does the extra cost of RMC compare to the labor cost of trenching 3x deeper? If you've got a long straight run in ditch-witch friendly soil, 18" plus non-metallic conduit could be the right choice. With a short run, or with terrain or soil not amenable to machine-driven trenching, the RMC could be a bargain.
Great refreshing course
Yes 18 inches below ground but then you still have to add the thickness of your pipe that way your conduit can remain 18 in below ground
Some states do not want you to install a ground rod at the shed when there is an equipment ground wire (green wire)installed . The best thing to do is check with your local electrical inspector weather or not to install a ground rod to a shed. Sometimes installing a ground rod at a detached building could introduce many other hazards to your homes electrical system. Each state treats the National Electrical Code differently to fit the needs for their area.
Good point. I was wondering why they were mentioning a ground rod at the end of the video. Mike Holt explains this in his RUclips videos.
Smh, you guys with your “call your local inspector”. Inspectors, for the most part, don’t know jackshit. For example, yesterday, I had an inspector ask me why I didn’t use a “10 amp circuit breaker” for a smoke detector circuit I added.
Can have problems if the ground rods are bonded together by the EGC and a lightning strike causes a voltage gradient between the two sets of rods. In many cases this can induce a pretty high voltage on the parallel conductors and send a nasty spike back to the home/building. I'm no expert, this is just my understanding. NEC 250.32A is a bit confusing.
Good video, very informative too.
The trench I believe is for the new fondation twin tower's awesome 😉
9:37 this area is going to be well lit with the dimmest light in the world 😂
That home needed a panel upgrade MPU from 100 amps to 200 amps.
I have 100amp in the garage, Just in case....
Thought the same thing! 100A ain't nothing anymore! Had ours done last year, about $1000 upgrade...
@canuckguy worried Great to know we have plenty of juice for electrical needs! Ice Hockey fan?
@@josephkilleen7807 Here in Fredericksburg VA, $1000 for a heavy up would be a deal.
@canuckguy worried Ice Hockey?
6:07 "The little brown eel comes out of the cave, swims into the hole, comes out of the hole..."
I installed solar powered motion detector lights in my shed. I don't go too often back there at night anyway. Plus I saved $$$$
Same. Its awesome. Little inverter and I can charge my kids toys and battery tools
Excellent video thanks
I would recommend the panel outside with a main breaker for less than 6 throws of the hand. It is code.
English please.
the n.e.c. requires a main @ the sub-panel as shown. the n.e.c. is the minimum requirements, yes! to the ground. dont forget the gfci's.
@Hello mark how are you doing
The peanut gallery here is pretty harsh on Scott. This is actually a major job- the digging alone would take all day if you didn't have the ditch witch or had to deal with a lot of tree roots and other pipes along the way. It also helped that the shed had open walls. The only fault I see is that unless local code is different, I think he needed a ground rod to the sub panel too but overall, he handled it like a champ. I probably would have ran an extra conduit for future use however as long as the ditch was there.
@ 11:14.. They didn't show it during the installation but mention doing it in their wrap up.
Thanks for the info
I totally turned it off after it was done with the job and didn't see the end!
As long as you have the ditch open, run another conduit and put CAT6 ethernet and a phone line in there. It's easy and cheep to do at that point, but would be a pain later on.
Arie i hand dig often. i believe that amount of digging would take me a few hours. saving me the rental on the machine and passing those savings on to the home owner.
Love this show.
great video lots of great tips!