Hi - our utilities are in an area where the bobcat will constantly be running. The utility locating company said they need to lay down thick plywood but my PB says that won't do anything. They said the wood will just break and will move due to the bobcat turning and suggested that mulch could help but it will be expensive to haul in. My main concern is att fiber gets damaged and we are out of service (we wfh...) Anyone try laying something on top of utilities and what did you use? TIA
Buried Utilities
- Thread starter NYinATX
- Start date
- May 23, 2015
- 25,695
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
How deep are the utility lines? Who paid for the BlueStake utility mapping? They should be able to tell you depth and location.
- Jun 7, 2017
- 9,967
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Jandy Aquapure 1400
I have never heard this before buried utilities are usually an issue for digging, not running on the surface with construction equipment. My builder did lay plywood sheets but it was only because it protected the grass from having to be redone. It worked.
Had the same problem. I contacted my cable company (Spectrum) and said I needed to move the cable and how much does it cost. They said $45, maybe nothing at all. So I had them come and run a new cable but hold off on burying it. I kept it rolled up and out of the way, still using the existing cable. There were a few close calls in cutting the old cable but ultimately I did not need the new one, but I had them come and bury it anyway and now I use the new cable and have the old one as a backup. So basically just look into the cost of getting a new cable and if reasonable have it on standby if needed.
My power cable went through the same area but that is supposed to be way deeper than internet and phone, so it was not a concern.
My power cable went through the same area but that is supposed to be way deeper than internet and phone, so it was not a concern.
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In areas that the excavator is turning for every trip and the ground needs to be protected a steel plate is used that is supplied by the excavator.
- Jul 17, 2019
- 4,069
- Pool Size
- 13000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Out dig was over all of our buried utilities (electric, gas, water, and 2 ISP lines). The gas, electric and water were fine but I would count on your at&t lines being cut.
Mine went out within the first hour of the bobcat running over that part of the yard. Luckily the pool builder and at&t guy were on good terms. At&t came out the next day and ran a temporary line from the box to the side of our house. He took great care in rerouting the line, even taping it down where it crossed the driveway and affixing the line to the side of the house with duct tape so that it would be off the ground and out of the way of any digging. That temporary line held up the entire construction then the pb called him back at the end of the build and he ran the buried permanent line.
Mine went out within the first hour of the bobcat running over that part of the yard. Luckily the pool builder and at&t guy were on good terms. At&t came out the next day and ran a temporary line from the box to the side of our house. He took great care in rerouting the line, even taping it down where it crossed the driveway and affixing the line to the side of the house with duct tape so that it would be off the ground and out of the way of any digging. That temporary line held up the entire construction then the pb called him back at the end of the build and he ran the buried permanent line.
Using mulch instead of plywood doesn’t make any sense. If they advise against plywood because it will break, then using already broken pieces of wood (ie mulch) would not be a logical solution.
A bobcat is small enough that 3/4” plywood would likely be plenty good enough to protect your lawn and any buried utilities underground. If it was a backhoe, that’s another story and like mentioned, those tend to use steel plates where needed to protect the ground.
- Dec 13, 2020
- 905
- Pool Size
- 19600
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Jandy Aquapure 1400
If your AT&T fiber is like mine, then your concern is justified. In the yard it's buried at about 9 inches most places. A neighbor's runs on the ground under our common hedge. The ground load of a bobcat is about 5psi or 700 pounds per square foot. Plywood will help at this level, but won't preclude a problem. Everything depends on the soil type and moisture content. Packed gravel will be no problem. Wet clay will. It's correct that a "neutral steer" with the tracks running in opposite directions would tear it. Mulch will do nothing. Unfortunately imo the best option is to go ahead while planning for the worst. When my fiber was torn by a contractor (ironically, a Google fiber install at 1 foot depth), they had it fixed within 30 hours. Of course they had to trench across the yard to do it (a 3" wide wire trench, but still...). Annoying but not the end of the world. I hung out at Starbucks to get wfh done 
reggiehammond
Gold Supporter
- Oct 4, 2020
- 2,253
- Pool Size
- 30000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-60 Plus
AT&T Fiber lines are “buried” so deep that there’s always numerous subreddit posts about lawn mowers taking them out!
Your concerns are justified. There is no good way to tell how deep it really is without digging it up and no way to tell how far down they will disturb. Locating equipment is notoriously inaccurate for this. 2 layers of thick ply wood would do the job, however if it is in a place where the equipment will be turning it will not work well unless you have a designated person to keep putting it back in place (not likely ) As mentioned in the other post, your best bet would be a steel plate designed for this. Usually the pool builders will do there own excavation and are not equipped to handle these situations. You would most likely need to contact a real excavation company and rent the steel plate this would protect all the utilities in that trench. All utilities company handle underground utilities differently so you would need to contact them to see how they would handle a break and get a cost to potentially reroute the line to see Wich of these options are the most cost effective.
I’ve seen this type of thing used in the past. Your builder may be able to rent them.
My gut reaction is the utility can’t tell you not to drive common construction equipment on top of your own land but every state is different plus your concern is wfh.
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My gut reaction is the utility can’t tell you not to drive common construction equipment on top of your own land but every state is different plus your concern is wfh.
9+ times out of 10 they will replace it for free to retain the customer who balks at a repair charge.