Digging Myself Into a Hole

[rockmeupto125]

I got this

 

 

And thought I'd need to take the edges off it with this:

 

 

To do this:

 

 

Two inch conduit should be easy enough to pull through. I picked up some one inch conduit as well and ordered hose/fittings to run through it for an air line until I get a compressor on the garage. 

 

And now it's snowing.

 

 

[XXitanium]

...edges off the conduit?

[DaveK]

10 minutes ago, XXitanium said:

...edges off the conduit?

Shed some knowledge on him man. Give him some family secrets too. 🙃

[blackhawkxx]

Must be some trees near by?  I really dislike the root issue.

[Furbird]

That's the CIA fiber optic lines.  He's going to butt connect them back together.  At least that's what Zero told him 😂

[rockmeupto125]

On 11/22/2024 at 12:56 PM, XXitanium said:

...edges off the conduit?

No, 😀 edges off the shovel because it was a wee bit wide.

[Furbird]

I dug my entire trench from the shop to the house with a posthole digger.

0/10.  Do not recommend.

[Zero Knievel]

I wouldn’t want to dig post holes with a post hole digger.

[rockmeupto125]

On 11/22/2024 at 10:02 AM, rockmeupto125 said:

Two inch conduit should be easy enough to pull through.

 

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA FML 😡

 

All the conduit is in and I'm just gonna quick run some 14-2 romex out to the garage so I have lights. Yes, I know you can't run romex underground because you'll die and the town will burn and the babies will die and the earth will pivot off axis and we'll die and the the earth will plunge into the sun and create a supernova and cause other alien civilizations in other galaxies to die and I don't care. I previously had a heavy 12 gauge outdoor extension cord running out the door of the front garage and out to the new garage and nobody died.  Anyway, figured I would easily be able to push that romex through a 2 inch pipe for 20 feet with three 90 degree sweeps.  Hell no. Tried from one side, won't go. The other side, won't go. Got out my fish tape. Won't go. Other side, won't go. Got out my video snake...can't see sh*t.  Blockage appears to be between the 90 that's imbedded in concrete, and the 90 the dumps down into the trench.  I had bought 2 test caps, little milky plastic plates that fit into the end of the pipes that I used to keep mud and dirt out of the pipes while I was test fitting them. 2 were accounted for.  They are thin and fit together, could I possibly have left Lowe's with 3 accidentally and now one is inside?  ARRRRRGHH.

 

So I cut the pipe, a couple inches off the concrete, in the first part of the 90 degree. That should put me close enough to smash open the thin test cap.  I have a spare 2 inch coupling, so if I cut it there before the bend really starts, I should be able to rejoin the pipe. Now the pipe is cut, I can see what's going on (a little), and pass the fish tape through from the short end without any difficulty whatsoever.  ???? I pass the fish tape through from the long side without any difficulty whatsoever. ?!?!?!?!?!  Okay, so whatever the hell happened, I apparently wasn't persistent enough with attempting to pass the fish tape.  Lets dig out around and glue the coupling in, and call it a day.

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA FML 😡

 

Coupling won't fit. 90 degree pipe has greater OD than straight pipe. Can I sand it down? 20 minutes later says nope. Okay, I'll get a mill bit and round out the coupling with a drill (sold the lathe, don'tcha know).  Well, that's not happening either.

 

An hour later and I've now forced a 2" fernco coupling onto a 2 1/8" pipe and my brand new conduit already has a repair in it that is most probably not up to code.  I run the fish tape, pull the wire, and today will at least have the start to getting a light in the new garage.  <sigh>

[DaveK]

I'm totally reporting you to the local authorities.  THEN, I will rape you of all your spotted DICK. 

[Zero Knievel]

49 minutes ago, rockmeupto125 said:

Yes, I know you can't run romex underground because you'll die and the town will burn and the babies will die and the earth will pivot off axis and we'll die and the the earth will plunge into the sun and create a supernova and cause other alien civilizations in other galaxies to die and I don't care.

 

At the rate things are going, all of that will happen regardless of what you choose to do.  

[SwampNut]

1 hour ago, rockmeupto125 said:

you'll die and the town will burn and the babies will die and the earth will pivot off axis and we'll die and the the earth will plunge into the sun and create a supernova and cause other alien civilizations in other galaxies to die

 

Goddammit, I was wondering who was causing this.

 

https://www.deseret.com/2024/2/7/24062307/sun-magnetic-pole-reversal-2024/

 

I enjoyed your rant, but two things...

 

You didn't put mule tape in the conduit before laying it??

 

And also, hahahahaha.  Fuck.

 

Anyway, always put two runs of mule tape in the conduit first.  And when you use the first one, pull another, so you don't use the last one, have it break, and start swearing.  Ask me how I know.  Anyway, you'll find a lot of mule tape in the conduits I've put in.

 

If you forgot the mule tape, tie a shopping bag to it, and use a shop vac to suck it through, or a compressor to blow it in.

 

 

 

[superhawk996]

1 hour ago, rockmeupto125 said:

figured I would easily be able to push that romex through a 2 inch pipe for 20 feet with three 90 degree sweeps.  Hell no. Tried from one side, won't go. The other side, won't go. Got out my fish tape. Won't go. Other side, won't go.

Was it stopping at the same place from both sides or when it hit the third 90 each time?

 

Romex in conduit is frowned upon by some but it doesn't violate code as long as the "pipe fill" isn't exceeded.  I don't know the pipe fill calculations, but I do know that the limit is lower for romex compared to loose wires.

 

If you change it out pull a tape or rope out with it so you'll have a puller in place, preferably two.  Pushing through 3 90s will be nearly impossible, pulling them will probably be somewhat hard.  If you have a person to push while you pull it'll get easier.  My electrician friend tries to limit the total bends from exceeding 180 degrees per run, 270 is his absolute limit.

 

As I was telling him your woes about pushing he said the same thing Carlos said about sucking or blowing a puller through.

[rockmeupto125]

It was stopping at the same place from both sides. , at the end of the first (or last) 90. I didn't put a line in when I laid it because 12 or 14 gauge should go through 2 inch pipe like throwing a hotdog down a hallway. There's only three 90's in the line and toe of them are connected.

 

It's 2 inch pipe, so there's no concern about conduit fill, even with romex.  But it's underground, which is what is supposed to cause the zombie apocalypse. When I get to actually running the real wiring, it will be 2-2-4-6 Al MHF, so I wanted a big enough conduit so it wouldn't take hydraulics to pull the wire through.

 

Next is running the air tubing through 1 inch conduit.  That's getting lubed, and the leading edge chamfered.

 

 

 

[XXitanium]

2 hours ago, SwampNut said:

If you forgot the mule tape, tie a shopping bag to it, and use a shop vac to suck it through, or a compressor to blow it in.

+1

 

I have only ever heard of this, not done it.

[SwampNut]

I've done it a lot.  And a friend does the equivalent of it for miles of fiber.  Gonna need a bigger shopvac though.

 

[blackhawkxx]

7 hours ago, rockmeupto125 said:

 

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA FML 😡

 

All the conduit is in and I'm just gonna quick run some 14-2 romex out to the garage so I have lights. Yes, I know you can't run romex underground because you'll die and the town will burn and the babies will die and the earth will pivot off axis and we'll die and the the earth will plunge into the sun and create a supernova and cause other alien civilizations in other galaxies to die and I don't care. I previously had a heavy 12 gauge outdoor extension cord running out the door of the front garage and out to the new garage and nobody died.  Anyway, figured I would easily be able to push that romex through a 2 inch pipe for 20 feet with three 90 degree sweeps.  Hell no. Tried from one side, won't go. The other side, won't go. Got out my fish tape. Won't go. Other side, won't go. Got out my video snake...can't see sh*t.  Blockage appears to be between the 90 that's imbedded in concrete, and the 90 the dumps down into the trench.  I had bought 2 test caps, little milky plastic plates that fit into the end of the pipes that I used to keep mud and dirt out of the pipes while I was test fitting them. 2 were accounted for.  They are thin and fit together, could I possibly have left Lowe's with 3 accidentally and now one is inside?  ARRRRRGHH.

 

So I cut the pipe, a couple inches off the concrete, in the first part of the 90 degree. That should put me close enough to smash open the thin test cap.  I have a spare 2 inch coupling, so if I cut it there before the bend really starts, I should be able to rejoin the pipe. Now the pipe is cut, I can see what's going on (a little), and pass the fish tape through from the short end without any difficulty whatsoever.  ???? I pass the fish tape through from the long side without any difficulty whatsoever. ?!?!?!?!?!  Okay, so whatever the hell happened, I apparently wasn't persistent enough with attempting to pass the fish tape.  Lets dig out around and glue the coupling in, and call it a day.

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA FML 😡

 

Coupling won't fit. 90 degree pipe has greater OD than straight pipe. Can I sand it down? 20 minutes later says nope. Okay, I'll get a mill bit and round out the coupling with a drill (sold the lathe, don'tcha know).  Well, that's not happening either.

 

An hour later and I've now forced a 2" fernco coupling onto a 2 1/8" pipe and my brand new conduit already has a repair in it that is most probably not up to code.  I run the fish tape, pull the wire, and today will at least have the start to getting a light in the new garage.  <sigh>

 

😀

[Furbird]

This is why I ran my 130 or however many feet of cable through 10 foot sections at a time and assembled it as I went.  I wasn't about to attempt to pull that mofo through all that garbage.  It's like 7- 90's on my run 🤣