Electric cable in footings

[Davey]

Good evening,

We're excavating the footings for our extension and have come across a cable buried about 18 inches down. The cable runs from a plastic pipe, through what looks like a length of cast iron drain pipe (!) and back into a plastic pipe.

The cable is thinner than my little finger, it's blue in colour and it may be armoured - it's difficult to see properly.

Both ends of the cable are buried under concrete so we cannot see where it comes from or where it goes to. However it does not appear to be fed from either the fuse box or an existing socket.

I assume it may once have supplied power to lights or a pond in the garden. Does this seem reasonable or can anybody identify what the cable may be?

As you can see it is right in the middle of the trench. If we can prove the cable is dead can we just cut out the middle which is in the trench and leave the two ends buried?

If so, what's the best way to prove the cable is dead before we cut it?

I have (hopefully) included some pictures: //www.diynot.com/network/Davey/albums/

Thank you

 

[ban-all-sheds]

The cable is thinner than my little finger, it's blue in colour and it may be armoured - it's difficult to see properly.

Blue?

Sure it's not copper sheathed?

Both ends of the cable are buried under concrete so we cannot see where it comes from or where it goes to. However it does not appear to be fed from either the fuse box or an existing socket.

If you can't find either end then you can't be sure there isn't a hidden connection to it somewhere.

I assume it may once have supplied power to lights or a pond in the garden. Does this seem reasonable

Yes

or can anybody identify what the cable may be?

As you can see it is right in the middle of the trench. If we can prove the cable is dead can we just cut out the middle which is in the trench and leave the two ends buried?

If so, what's the best way to prove the cable is dead before we cut it?

The only way to prove that it is not only dead but can never be brought back to life is to find where it originates.

Even if you turn off all your power you still won't know if it's dead and if it is MICC cable I doubt that a voltstick (unreliable at the best of times) would work at all.

With all the power off and taking PPE precautions you could just chop through it with a fibreglass handled axe, but that's a bit desperate, and it it does then turn out to be live you'll have an interesting scenario on your hands.

Right now I can't think of anything you can do except try and find one end of it, preferably where it would have been connected to the supply, but it'll probably be easier to dig holes outside the house....

Do you have/ did you used to have any outbuildings?

Any evidence of holes in outside wall which have been filled in?


Time for your electrician to get involved...

 

[333rocky333]

View media item 48770 View media item 48770View media item 48772 View media item 48773

 

[dingodeano]

Looks like a drain rod to me.
However you need a cable locator and a Genny. To find where the `cable` is going to.
http://www.surveyexpress.co.uk/Safety-Equipment/Cable-Avoidance/c-1-110-111/#.UBgpfpw1jng

Try local hire companies.

 

[RF Lighting]

That's a pyro to my eyes! Do not cut it! it could well still be live.

As BAS has said, it is a copper sheathed cable so your standard volt stick type testers will NOT work on this cable.

Can you post a photo of your mains incommer, meter, fuse box(es) etc.

Do you have a garage or a shed or even an outside socket anywhere in your garden?

 

[OwainDIYer]

I agree, looks like pyro.

A scourer pad and some brasso should bring it up nicely

If it happens to supply a sewage or sump pump, things could turn really stinky if you disconnect it.

Unusual to see pyro without a plastic sheath especially buried - which makes me wonder if it supplied something more important than a garden pond - this could date back to the 1930s or so. A well pump perhaps?

 

[Davey]

Thanks for the useful replies guys.

Our house (and the identical house next door) were built in the mid 70's in the back garden of a much older house. This is turn was demolished and two new houses were built in its place in the late 90's.

From the amount of rubble we have found there may well have been out buildings on the site our house now occupies. If this was a supply to these then the cable may originate from what is now our neighbours.

However further digging this evening has revealed one end of what looks like the same cable. This has just not been terminated properrly - just cut off and left buried.

It's a few feet away from where I'm digging and I'm going to try and unearth it tomorrow. If this is the same cable can I just cut it out or do I need to try and find where it originates - just in case?

Thank you

 

[HERTS P&D]

You could always get someone with a drain camera and put a camera up the pipe work to see where it is going.

Andy

 

[Davey]

Update - after a hard days digging we discovered the end we had found was indeed connected to the cable in the trench.

The "cable" was also copper and it did polish up very nicely

However it wasn't cable but copper pipe

We are now on mains gas but seems the house originally had oil fired central heating. The pipe presumably lead from an storage oil tank to the boiler.

In fairness it was difficult to see through the gap between the plastic ducting and the cast iron drainpipe - but I still feel foolish.

Thank God we didn't call an electrician out

Thanks you your help anyway.

 

[RF Lighting]

It would have been quite amusing to call out an electrician to look at an old pipe!

Nice to hear a happy ending though, and you did the right thing not to go charging in and just cut it off hoping for the best!