Replies

1. 
   davidmeiland | Jul 30, 2007 06:48am | #1

   Around here that is run into 2" conduit before it enters the building, and then to the panel. Otherwise it's direct burial.

1. 
   BillHartmann | Jul 30, 2007 08:01am | #2

   You can't direct bury SE cable.It has to be USE cable for direct burial. But either cable needs to be protected where it can be damaged. A USE is more likely to be damaged as it runs from ground up and SE would run from high down.And USE does not have flame resistance jacket so it is not suppose to be run inside other that "immedatially" to a termination. The code is not realy clear on the wording, but I think that is what is ment..
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   A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.

2. 
   BillHartmann | Jul 30, 2007 08:03am | #3

   Any cable can be run in conduit.

   If this is just a short distance to sleave it and protect the cable from phyisical damage then it just has to fit comfortablely.

   But if you want to pull it then you need to use the conduit sizing computations and the conduit would be fairly big. And even then I thihnk that it would be much better to use wire rather than the cable.

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   A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
1. 
   bhackford | Jul 30, 2007 09:28pm | #4

   I am trying to save money and stay away from CU.  I need to run 125' under ground to a barn.

3. 
   edlee | Jul 31, 2007 01:17am | #5

   Many electricians and inspectors consider it a code violation to install SE or SER in underground conduit  (here's a pretty thorough debate from another site about it: http://forums.mikeholt.com/showthread.php?t=86929). So if you think you want to do that, check with the local inspector first.

   The alternative is to use aluminum wire rated for direct burial, like USE, or wet-rated individual aluminum conductors, and either pipe it all the way from panel to panel or have it emerge from the ground and splice it.

   My usual method to go that distance is to use direct-burial cable in the pipe.  It's relatively cheap and I figure it's a good long-lasting installation, due to the 2 layers of protection. 

   Ed

    

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   Edited 7/30/2007 6:34 pm ET by edlee

4. 
   RaffASOC | Feb 03, 2020 12:02pm | #6

   SER cannot be placed in conduit if you intend to bury it. If it is at least 18" or greater above ground, then it can be placed in conduit for additional protection if preferred, but just a reminder to use conduit that maintains at least a 40% free-space within the conduit. The reason you can't use SER in conduit that you may intend to bury is that with SER 2-2-2-4, the 4 wire is a bare ground and all buried conduit produced condensation regardless of whether it's been made water-tight.