Subsoiler for burying PEX

ishiboo · Oct 23, 2014

I buried black poly. PEX would be easier to work with, but I think having a large-diameter tubing over long distances helps. You can bury regular PEX just fine, however it cannot be exposed to sunlight or it will degrade. Come out of the ground with something else.

Attono · Oct 23, 2014

Yep, I'm planning on tying into a frost free hydrant about 3' down.

Attono · Oct 26, 2014

Works great. Made a few passes first and then pulled. Only hard spot was the first 10 feet and keeping the pex and wire from just pulling down the trench. Once I figured out to tie it off, it was fine.

SPIKER · Oct 26, 2014

looks like ya got it licked! good going.

M

CNC Dan · Oct 26, 2014

Looks great. Remember to keep it out of the sunlight while you are working on the rest of the install.

Kyle_in_Tex · Oct 26, 2014

hope it lasts a long time for you.

Threepoint · Oct 26, 2014

Nice job, Atono. Curious how far down your rig buries the tubing and cable, and whether the depth stays consistent. Is it below the frost line where you're located? Around here, electrical cable other than low-voltage must be 24", and the water pipe 36", so I went with a track hoe for the 300 ft to our barn and frost-free hydrant. I have a sub-soiler that I no longer have any other use for, so this is an interesting idea. Here it would be great for low-voltage runs, and for irrigation pipe that's drained for the winter.

Fallon · Oct 27, 2014

Threepoint said:
Nice job, Atono. Curious how far down your rig buries the tubing and cable, and whether the depth stays consistent. Is it below the frost line where you're located? Around here, electrical cable other than low-voltage must be 24", and the water pipe 36", so I went with a track hoe for the 300 ft to our barn and frost-free hydrant. I have a sub-soiler that I no longer have any other use for, so this is an interesting idea. Here it would be great for low-voltage runs, and for irrigation pipe that's drained for the winter.

I've been keeping an eye on this for that reason as well. I doubt my subsoiler would quite make the wiring depth, much less clear the Colorado freezing depth.

boggen · Oct 27, 2014

just catching this thread. by code, you normally need to bury both electrical and water in separate trenches that are so many feet apart from one another, and as Threepoint noted at different depths.

to many chances of a rock or like busting a hole in a water line and going up towards electrical, were another rock or like could go through electrical wire insulation.

pex is not a all in one thing, there are many varieties pex comes in, the hose itself. to many folks just go and not know, and end up needing to redo things shortly there after, that ends up being more costly of a repair job.

Threepoint · Oct 27, 2014

boggen said:
just catching this thread. by code, you normally need to bury both electrical and water in separate trenches that are so many feet apart from one another, and as Threepoint noted at different depths. [snip]

Yep, local codes rule. In Fairfax County, VA, in addition to the minimum depths, the electrical and water lines must have a minimum of 12" of separation of dirt, either vertical or lateral. They can be in the same trench so long as that separation is maintained. But running the water line directly below the electrical cable creates a huge headache later if you need to access it! If one trench is absolutely desired, the better practice is to use a 24" hoe bucket and lay the lines on either side. Or a narrower bucket and create a ledge for the electrical.

boggen · Oct 27, 2014

Threepoint said:
Yep, local codes rule. In Fairfax County, VA, in addition to the minimum depths, the electrical and water lines must have a minimum of 12" of separation of dirt, either vertical or lateral. They can be in the same trench so long as that separation is maintained. But running the water line directly below the electrical cable creates a huge headache later if you need to access it! If one trench is absolutely desired, the better practice is to use a 24" hoe bucket and lay the lines on either side. Or a narrower bucket and create a ledge for the electrical.

problem in same trench, is i like to "snake" both electrical and hose lines within the trench, so if there is some frost heave, "more so settling" the wire and/or hose. has some slack to move. vs stretching and breaking / cracking / splitting.

when i say "snake" more of a WWWWWWW back and forth through the trench. (if the W's were one constant line)

digging up old lines, i have found a noticeable difference between say someone taking a potato plow / middle buster, and just pulling wire/hose in one constant tight line/trench. vs weaving / snaking the wire/hose into a trench. the stuff that was put in as one straight line, has more nicks in it, and for wires the insulation was discolored in some places (stretching of the insulation happened) or you could take your fingers to the insulation and almost roll/rub it off. and like doings with plastic hose water lines and LPG copper line.

budepps3760 · Oct 27, 2014

I need to run about a half mile of 2" pex for a water main for a house I am going to build in the woods. I wonder if the same setup will work for that project?

Attono · Oct 27, 2014

Frost line doesn't ever get below 18" here, so I am pretty comfortable that it won't freeze. Matter of fact, most hydrants folks install around here are at 24".

Sodo · Oct 29, 2014

I like this, thx for posting!

Great tip about the "W" I never woulda thought of leaving room for stretching. If you are going to bury one line of 12-2, add a spare, it gives the option of running more power out there if necessary. That's a long run for 12-2, I hope you have worked out your amperage / voltage drops.

Charlesaf3 · Nov 2, 2014

It works, but Agri supply sells them for around $80, not including subsoiler. Hooked it up to my old tractor supply Company subsoiler without much problem pulled in a bunch of sprinkler lines

Charlesaf3 · Nov 2, 2014

Also I haven't really been able to bury below 6 inches starting from Grade, which is fine for sprinklers but.. On the other hand I think I could get it lower by digging a starting hole down so I'm not trying to pull down, just straight.

I was originally going to pull pex but decided 160psi poly was cheaper and made more sense.

Attono · Nov 2, 2014

Charlesaf3 said:
It works, but Agri supply sells them for around $80, not including subsoiler. Hooked it up to my old tractor supply Company subsoiler without much problem pulled in a bunch of sprinkler lines

Looks good, but I'm not sure it would bolt up to the Fred Cain subsoiler I found. ASC says it works with 3 Point Subsoiler-Subsoiler Attachment | Agri Supply #73410

Anyhoo, finished up all the backfill today. All the water connections are dry and all the electrical works fine. I did take the added precaution of putting GFI plugs in both circuits.