Call Before You Dig!

 

Call before you...WHAT?

‘Tis a season for planting. Homeowners are gearing up for improving their properties, making plans, buying trees and shrubs, and maybe even installing irrigation, fences or mailboxes. No doubt, this will involve digging holes or trenches.

Before you begin, you'd better find out what you're getting into. There could be electric power lines, outdoor lighting, conduits, gas lines, fuel oil pipes, buried telephone or internet cables, fiber optics, potable water or irrigation pipes/valves, sewage/drain pipes. You don’t want to cut through any of those. Accidents, some with very serious consequences, can occur if safety isn’t heeded, including explosions, flooding, electrocutions. Make a list of all utilities and contractors that you THINK might be involved.

Mark the specific area(s) where you’ll be working, so utilities aren’t flagging or painting your entire yard.

To find out utility locations, Dial 811 - Call Before You Dig, to make “a locate request.” It shouldn’t cost you anything, but it might. (Get that settled up-front.) The call center will contact all utilities in your area that subscribe to this service. You should receive a confirmation “ticket” or some such communication telling you which services have been contacted. Bear in mind, though, that not all utilities or contractors subscribe to this service! If you suspect that a utility wasn’t included on the list, double-check. Personally call the contractor, if necessary.

Here are a few of the most neglectful or uninformed contractors:

• Cable TV companies;
• Invisible dog fence installers;
• Irrigation contractors;
• Security firms.

In some cases they have no idea where their lines were buried. “It was so long ago…”

Utilities and contractors that have been notified must come to your property to mark their lines, usually with flags or paint, within a specified period of time particular to your state or area.

The markings are color-coded.

Red: Electric power lines, cables or conduit, and lighting cables.
Yellow: Gas, oil, steam, petroleum, or gaseous materials.
Orange: Communication, alarm or signal lines, cables or conduits, and fiber.
Blue: Potable water.
Purple: Slurry, irrigation and reclaimed water.
Green: Sewers, drainage facilities or other drain lines.

Once you’ve waited the few days required, check your list to confirm that the notified utilities have responded. If some didn’t, report it.

When you’ve done everything required for your safety, proceed with caution. Be sure not to dig where markings have been displayed. Dig promptly before the markings disappear due to wind, rain or landscape maintenance. Avoid surprises.

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