How to flag / protect on a moled cable ?

[JD6400]

I have been told in the past ( All be a builder that wanted the job instead ! ) that it is illegal to mole cables underground as you can not install a marker tape with it !
What thoughts do others have on this one ?
Thanks in advance if you reply .

Dave

 

[HandySparks]

Interesting question. How about a second hole above the cable to pull the marker tape through!

 

[supasparxs]

interesting question. How about a second hole above the cable to pull the marker tape through!

rofl

 

[JD6400]

Interesting question. How about a second hole above the cable to pull the marker tape through!

Can be done , but very time consuming and you will need to have gone the extra depth with the first mole to still be in a workable moiling zone on the second one !


edit ; Plus if there is not enough distance between the two moles the first one will suffer for it .

 

[JD6400]

Have any others got thoughts on the regs that cover this or ones that are being broken by moiling a cable without markers .

 

[mogga]

mmmmmmm Interesting question I thought that Moled cables may be well below normal depth and would be marked on drawings ect

 

[Guitarist]

As long as you install marker tape above the cable you are covering regs, so a small trench a few inches deep would suffice. However, good working practice is to surround cable with sand to protect outer sheath unless placed in a conduit or duct.

 

[Guitarist]

Just to clarify...tape a few inches below surface, not cable. That should be ideally at least 600mm

 

[Mark_Burgess]

I'd love to see a mole pull marker tape let alone a 10mm SWA, their tiny little paws would never do it!! lol.

 

[JD6400]

Thanks Mogga , generally the deeper the better and it should really be around 10x the size of the mole ( smallest ones i have seen are 45mm in diameter so 450mm down ) but i have seen them go in literally just below a skim of concrete before !
They can not be in contravention of the regs or surly the utility company's would not use them ?

 

[JD6400]

As long as you install marker tape above the cable you are covering regs, so a small trench a few inches deep would suffice. However, good working practice is to surround cable with sand to protect outer sheath unless placed in a conduit or duct.

Hi Guitarist and thanks for your reply , the trouble with that is the reason for using the mole normally is not to or it is impossible to damage the ground surface , so this is not always possible ?

 

[jase]

I would say that to mark a moled cable you would have to mole in a pipe or duct, and then run the cable through that, the duct should be orange in line with BS1710, that would be classed as adequatley marked IMO

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[Guitarist]

I would say that to mark a moled cable you would have to mole in a pipe or duct, and then run the cable through that, the duct should be orange in line with BS1710, that would be classed as adequatley marked IMO

pipe marker, pipe markers, pipe marking, british, standards, UK, united kingdom, pipe labels, pipeworks, pipe labeling, labeling, label printer, pipe works, pipe safety, safety labels, safety signs, sign, warning, hazardous, chemicals, direction, BS

Sounds like the best way to me jase.

 

[HandySparks]

As I don't know anything about moling; is it usual to pull in a duct to protect the cable from sharp stones?

 

[Engineer54]

Never used moles to pull cables in buried cable installations. Not the best idea in my mind as there will be zero protection for the cable from sharp stones and other objects. Unless they have a way of pulling cable and duct in at the same time??

 

[Guitarist]

As I don't know anything about moling; is it usual to pull in a duct to protect the cable from sharp stones?

Without additional protection such as a flexi-conduit or ducting, the cable should be surrounded by sand to eliminate stones piercing the sheath.
I am a "belts and braces" man so always install underground cable in a conduit.

 

[JD6400]

This is part of my question really , i have never seen a utility company do this when i have seen them do road crossings in the past ?
We tend to nearly always pull expander's up the mole and then duct it before pulling a service , this approach is very labour intensive but the right one in my opinion !
It would be good to know for definite though what the minimum requirement would be ?

 

[Guitarist]

Regs are that armoured cable is buried to a suitable depth with marking tape or a marked cover above it (reg 522.8.10). Good working practice is to lay the cable on 100mm of sifted sand at a depth of 600mm, then a further 150mm of sifted soil or sand is poured over the cable. Then a marked cable tile is placed on the sand followed by the backfill.
If the cable runs through a suitable ducting or conduit then that method of protection should be suitably identified. I think Jase's suggestion of orange conduit would cover this if it was impossible to place marking above the cable itself.

 

[JD6400]

This is how i see it too , but how do the utility company's get away with it ?
I suppose they don not follow the same regs as us though .

 

[Guest111]

seen them put under motorways and apparently they have to run at 90 degrees to the road and they put a concrete marker post at each end, and of course marked on digging prints,as the idea of moling under a mway is to avoid disruption opening it up.