RG-213/u: direct burial?

[W8JX]

Exactly the point that I'm making here.  A rework is much easier and less time consuming if the coax and other lines ARE in conduit.  Doing the installation with conduit does take more time and money the first time, but you'll never be sorry, especially if you have the need to pull more cables in the future--or if you need to pull back a cable because of a fault.

When ground is damp/wet using a square blade shovel you can slit open ground 6 inches at a time and lay in cable and tamp it shut at a rate of several feet a minute with a little practice and be done in a matter of minutes. It cable goes bad it is easy to remove or leave it in place. If you are running several cables to one place maybe a conduit makes sense but for one or two going same way direct burial is good. Also with direct burial you can run to several locations without digging trenches all over yard and a few days time too.

[K9KJM]

The 3 and 4 inch diameter corrugated plastic drainage pipe I mentioned that sells for 20 some bucks for a 100 foot roll comes in both solid and PERFORATED for the same price.  So if you are worried about moisture or water build up, Just get the perforated stuff.  Most any farm and fleet type store will have it in stock. 
Small sharp stones WILL damage coax jackets in the freeze/thaw cycle around here. So will the wife digging a hole to plant flowers.  Lots of us learned the hard way that in the end, It is better to put the coax inside some kind of conduit.

[W8JX]

The 3 and 4 inch diameter corrugated plastic drainage pipe I mentioned that sells for 20 some bucks for a 100 foot roll comes in both solid and PERFORATED for the same price.  So if you are worried about moisture or water build up, Just get the perforated stuff.  Most any farm and fleet type store will have it in stock. 
Small sharp stones WILL damage coax jackets in the freeze/thaw cycle around here. So will the wife digging a hole to plant flowers.  Lots of us learned the hard way that in the end, It is better to put the coax inside some kind of conduit.

That pipe will crush if not buried deep if run over by a car. I would use something smaller and stronger if i wanted to use conduit.

[K1CJS]

The 3 and 4 inch diameter corrugated plastic drainage pipe I mentioned that sells for 20 some bucks for a 100 foot roll comes in both solid and PERFORATED for the same price.  So if you are worried about moisture or water build up, Just get the perforated stuff.  Most any farm and fleet type store will have it in stock.  
Small sharp stones WILL damage coax jackets in the freeze/thaw cycle around here. So will the wife digging a hole to plant flowers.  Lots of us learned the hard way that in the end, It is better to put the coax inside some kind of conduit.

That pipe will crush if not buried deep if run over by a car. I would use something smaller and stronger if i wanted to use conduit.

That type pipe will not crush easily unless you run over it while its above ground, and coax will get crushed long before that corrugated pipe will if you only bury it a couple of inches below a driveway's surface..  The corrugations in that drain pipe prevent that from happening.  That pipe is originally meant for water drainage, and anything so meant isn't going to give 'way under the pressure of a car--and its usually buried down deep enough so that it won't freeze and will allow water to drain away.  In any event, most people don't drive cars over the lawn, nor run cabling under a driveway.  If you do and don't think about that beforehand you deserve what you get.

You do it your way and we'll do it ours, John.  Don't try to convinve us that your way is better, because it isn't--for several reasons.  I'm done here--I am not going to waste my time arguing with you any longer.  73.  

[W8JX]

You do it your way and we'll do it ours, John.  Don't try to convinve us that your way is better, because it isn't--for several reasons.  I'm done here--I am not going to waste my time arguing with you any longer.  73.  

     Well Chris some of us have  lived in country for 30 year and have buried a LOT of things (like drain lines, water pipes, leach fields and what have you).  The pipe in question being discussed here is drain tile and it WILL collapse if near surface and run over with a heavy vehicle, I have seen it. It is meant to be buried much deeper. The version with holes is used as drain tile or leach field runners but in both applications they are buried much deeper and better protected. The solid version is for interconnects. The ribbing it to prevent collapse when being buried in ground, not against cars never surface. Heck a decent riding mower will crush pipe laying on ground.  I have also see shrub roots go through it and plug it up more than once as it is not as strong as you imply. I have never seen white PVC damaged from drive over or root.

Of course you do not want to waste you time because you are wrong here but will never admit it. Moral is either go direct burial or PVC if you want a conduit. If you want to use drain tile either bury it deep were no tree or shrubs are present or make sure you never drive over it.  BTW you can run 213 over with a mower and cars just laying in yard time after time and not hurt it not so with drain tile.

[N0YXB]

I don't believe it's a matter of right and wrong, but a matter of what works for your circumstances.  I've got corrugated plastic drainage pipe buried 6-8 inches underground that I've occasionally driven over without crushing it.   

[W8JI]

I have about 2000-3000 feet of various pipes in the ground. I have never had a problem with the corrgated drain pipe crushing unless I crush it during install. I bury it about 18 inches deep minimum. As a matter of fact someone is in the backyard trenching right now and asomeone else is at the store picking up 250 feet of unperforated corregated. I'll put T's at 1/3 and 2/3 distance and drill holes at the low spots in the pipe bottom only, and lay rock below at the low areas.

http://www.w8ji.com/contest_station_w8ji.htm



I drive tractors and my F250HD diesel across pipes all the time, and two cross my stone driveway.

What you cannot do is tamp the soil with something or step on the pipe until it has at least six inches of packed dirt. For example I have crushed it by getting my tractor front tire in a fresh trench because I lined the wheel up with the trench before it had much dirt in it. Once there is a foot of dirt I can cross it any angle.

I have some thinner wall plastic drain pipe like for septic systems, too. It is easier to pull long cables through, and a little tougher. Maybe 5 or 8 of them between 50 and 300 feet long. 

I advise, no matter what type of pipe, having drainage at the low spots. If the spot is always wet then a sealed pipe with forced air venting might be necessary, or use hardline and flooded direct burial cables and just let the water pile up.

[W8JX]

I don't believe it's a matter of right and wrong, but a matter of what works for your circumstances.  I've got corrugated plastic drainage pipe buried 6-8 inches underground that I've occasionally driven over without crushing it.   

6 to 8 inches will work most of the time in somewhat firm ground but that means a trench 10 to 12 inches deep so top of pipe is 6 to 8 inches under surface. Depth is more critical in damp ground than firmer ground.

[W8JX]

I have about 2000-3000 feet of various pipes in the ground. I have never had a problem with the corrgated drain pipe crushing unless I crush it during install. I bury it about 18 inches deep minimum.

And at 18 inch minimum you will not have problems (except maybe soft ground and a cement truck hi hi) It is not to be viewed as a pipe that you dig a shallow trench and cover it up and roll. The ribbing on the tube is to prevent it from crushing under weight of dirt on it when buried deep and back filled. Once dirt sets around the the form of the pipe it basically carries load around pipe when buried deep enough unless it is very mushy.