Jul. 02, 2024
When undertaking any form of outdoor work, you need to follow certain rules. Especially if it involves some digging and application of total stations. For instance, in some cases, the law requires that you call before you begin or start the digging. Utility companies will come and mark their pipes and wires available on your property if you call ahead of time.
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To do the marking, they will use an underground wire locator.
The good news is that you can also get your underground wire locator and use it any time you want. This comprehensive post shares everything you need to know about underground wire locator.
As such, to learn more, be sure to go through this piece in its entirety. You can also ask questions in the comments sections, and we will be sure to get back to you.
A pipe and cable locator is a gadget that professionals use to find metallic and non-metallic wire lines underground. It comes in a range of models, but most of them feature a receiver and a transmitter.
The receiver and transmitter let you apply directly a signal to the utility line so that it is detected. With this method, you can trace the whole line to avoid damaging it amid construction or excavation work.
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The best underground wire locator should come with two primary parts; a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter will send an electrical signal that will be detected by the receiver. However, there has to be a way for the signal to travel through the line.
Cables and pipes made of non-conductor materials will have a tracer wire buried alongside them. If you like, you can use a metallic liner device that might be inserted into the pipe. That way, you can easily apply the signal.
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Suppose you own a pipe, utility, or cable locator that should be repaired, you can send it to several places. For more information, talk to an experienced engineer, and you will be assisted. They will share details on how you can repair your utility locator.
A locator comes with a vast range of models and specifications. Therefore, the type of batteries it uses depends on the model. You need to go through the user manual before attempting to replace the batteries.
Once you have called the utility services, they will show up as soon as possible. They will perform the test and mark all the areas where they have found underground pipes, wires, and cables.
To avoid problems, you can dig around the areas the experts have marked. It is also important that you ask them a few questions about the process when they are done marking. Note that you only need to call utility services if you don&#;t know how to use the wire detector.
This tool uses an electromagnetic field that originates from the underground wire being detected. The electromagnetic field comes from a circulating current. Suppose there is no electricity, you need to manually inject a particular signal. The same signal will then help generate the required magnetic field.
The field will then induce the receiver, and a voltage will be generated. When that happens, the voltage will change into sound. Some models come with a screen to make the entire process much easier.
The locator has some features that convert the voltage into a complex digital signal. There is an internal microprocessor that will transform the signal in a way that the screen understands. The screen will then transform the digital signal into numbers, letters, and graphics.
It is worth noting that the best underground wire locator can be used in a vast range of applications. It can be used to locate CATV cable, pet fence wiring, radio communication network line, utility pipes, power lines, and gas pipe.
You can use two methods to locate utility wires with the detector; passive and active methods.
When using this technique, you will have to inject any signal. It works best and will give you the most accurate results compared to the passive method
Using the passive method, you won&#;t have to inject a signal. The receiver will get a sense and then issue an audible tone. You can choose one of the options based on what you prefer the most. There is differential, null, or peak mode.
The peak mode will emit a climax sound when the receiver is directly above the utility wire being detected. With the null mode, the detector will go silent when it is right above the utility wire. The differential mode, but, will emit sound based on the position of the wire you want to detect.
Cable and pipe locators have become quite common these days, especially in construction sites. You can use them to find buried conduits and electrical lines. Compared to magnetic location devices, underground wire locators are more effective and accurate.
The gadgets are very powerful and can locate buried utility lines even in non-ferrous metals. The good thing is that some utility lines have reliable signals running through them. Power lines, for instance, emit a 60Hz that your underground utility locator can easily detect and alert you.
Note that you will need a transmitter for other types of cables and pipes. You will need to connect the transmitter to the exposed section of the pipe you are dealing with. By doing that, transmitting a signal through it becomes very easy.
The location device will get the signal to let you find the buried section of the cable or wire. There is a wide range of transmitters, and you need to work with one from a reputable dealer. Unless you do that, you won&#;t be able to find accurate readings from your device.
To get the right model, you should compare the signal clamps, alligator clamps, and inductive antennas. If your project is a simple one, you don&#;t have to invest in high-end transmitters.
A wire locator made for detecting underground cables will cost you hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Though you can opt for an affordable one, you should not expect much from them. As such, before buying your device, you need a comprehensive guide. Besides the rotary laser level, here are some of the things you need to consider when purchasing an underground utility detector.
We have already seen that there are active and passive detection methods. It is about how you locate. You can locate un-energized or energized cables. If you get a single device that can do all the work, you will be a lucky person.
Note that passive and active detectors cost different amounts of money. In that case, you need to decide based on the nature of the project at hand.
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Wire locators generate different levels of frequency. If you get a weaker one, you will never detect wires buried deep in the ground. Any frequency that is lower than 1 kHz is considered to be weak.
You need to go for a detector that transmits at least 10 kHz. But if you want the best results, you will need to go with around 33 kHz.
Weak frequency is bad because it will never be able to go through a bad conductor. A high frequency is also good because it can go through corrode conductors.
Your detector should also come with a screen as that would give you a great result. The screen lets you watch the moving graphics to help you know exactly where the cable is. Alongside the sound, you will get the accurate position of the utility cable you are trying to detect.
Quinn Equipment has mastered the game of providing you with the best cable detector for more than 25 years. Therefore, if you have a project that needs some excavation, you should get in touch with them. They have the best collection of devices with the primary features you need for a flawless user experience. Despite having the best models on the market, Quinn Equipment provides sells its products at the best prices.
A pipe and cable locator is a gadget that professionals use to find metallic and non-metallic wire lines underground. It comes in a range of models, but most of them feature a receiver and a transmitter.
The locator has some features that convert the voltage into a complex digital signal. There is an n internal microprocessor that will transform the signal in a way that the screen understands. The screen will then transform the digital signal into numbers, letters, and graphics.
There are active and passive detection methods. It is about how you locate. You can locate un-energized or energized cables. If you get a single device that can do all the work, you will be a lucky person.
Find out more about the best wire locators in this article.
Locating public and private underground utilities is vital to the safety of any job requiring excavation and could be the difference between finishing a construction or renovation project on time and on budget, or suffering the huge cost overruns and downtime of damage caused by a utility strike. So, it makes sense to review what is required for a clean, strike-free locate, the kinds of equipment required; and whether it makes sense to D-I-Y your locates with rental or wholly owned GPR equipment (ground penetrating radar) and electromagnetic pipe locating equipment or to hire someone to perform the locates for you.
811 One Call services are administered state by state throughout the U.S. and are required by law to locate all public utilities at any site before excavation, regardless of its scope. However, 811 locates only public utilities, not private ones, and One Call does not provide depths on its locates, only identification.
The problem is that more than 60% of all utility lines are private, which 811 will not locate, and if you attempt to dig or drill without knowing the depth of your electric and telecom lines, or your water, sewer, and gas pipes, you could knock out power to an entire neighborhood, cause a water emergency for a municipality, or cause serious injuries or death with a gas line explosion.
Anyone can rent or buy a ground penetrating radar unit and/or an electromagnetic locating system. However, just because the equipment is readily available near you does not mean you will be able to locate and map your subsurface utility infrastructure easily.
There are two major locating technologies for subsurface utility locates: ground penetrating radar (GPR) and electromagnetic locators (EM). Each has its benefits and its drawbacks, and there is a wide gap in pricing/expense between EM and GPR equipment, whether you are renting or buying it.
There are multiple kinds of locating units available, and it is important to know which kind you need for your job. For instance, GPR concrete scanning equipment, a small, handheld GPR device will not be able to accurately locate a sewer pipe three feet under the soil. An EM locator will not be able to read a PVC storm sewer line without the aid of a rodder dropped into the pipe to transmit a signal, but it can be used by itself to locate metallic pipes, while GPR can read metallic and non-metallic pipes.
The type of ground penetrating radar required to locate underground utilities has a purchase cost of somewhere between $14,000 and $100,000. As the number of available frequencies, the user interface, and GPS mapping applications expand, so does the cost. The basics of the GPR equipment, whether a single-frequency system or a multi-frequency system, consists of the wheeled base unit to roll over terrain, radar transmitter, receiver, a battery, and a user interface (software) usually read and controlled by a digital device like a tablet. Some low-cost GPR locators incorporate GPS, and higher priced equipment almost always includes GPS integration in the user interface, a larger array of attenae, and allows for multiple device access and cloud uploads.
&#;The type of ground penetrating radar equipment used is not a differentiator,&#; says GPRS Field Support Director Jamie Althauser. &#;Unlike laser scanners, where the equipment can make a great deal of difference, most GPR works the same way.&#;
Since GPR technology burst on the scene in the early s, the equipment has evolved to provide a simpler, cloud-based user interface (UI), and gone are the days of 10-pound batteries that died in an hour. Past that, however, the major breakthroughs have been in functionality and convenience.
&#;The hardware &#; ergonomics &#; the ability to move over terrain is the most important factor,&#; continues Althauser.
It is possible to rent GPR equipment for the cost of approximately $400 per month, and if you are searching for a single line in a small, defined area, this maybe a viable option. However, the difference, according to Althauser and most underground utility locating professionals, is the methodology used to execute the locate.
For instance, one variety of locators is from a brand called Impulse Radar. It is among the easiest to set up, and according to Althauser, you could &#;use it within five minutes, but you wouldn&#;t know how to interpret the data.&#;
The stakes on a utility locate are enormous. Utility strikes can cost a great deal of time, money, and put lives at risk. According to the Common Ground Alliance, 1,100 utility damage events and/or utility strikes occur per day. So, it is imperative that a utility locator have the best training possible.
A one-day online GPR course costs about $600 at the time of this writing. However, it covers only the most basic training and does not allow for any field training where students can practice deploying GPR and learning to read the signals in a variety of conditions, and it will not certify you for the minimum industry standard.
The minimum standard for a Level 1 NDT certification is eight hours of classroom training and 60 hours of practice/field training. This minimum standard of training costs about $1,000, with a similar cost per additional training level.
By contrast, GPRS Project Managers are required to complete the SIM Certification, a multi-level process that ensures they are trained far above the minimum standard. SIM stands for Subsurface Investigation Methodology, and it is how GPRS has achieved and maintained a 99.8%+ accuracy rate on all concrete scanning and underground utility locates on over 350,000 jobs.
The SIM Certification requires three times the industry standard for underground utility locating education.The SIM Certification requires 80 hours of classroom instruction and 320 hours of field training, far exceeding current industry standards. Every GPRS Project Manager is required to be SIM Certified so that they meet our rigorous locating standards. When they complete SIM training, Project Managers are experts in locating with a wide variety of equipment, including GPR and EM, which allows them to complete even the most complex locates quickly and efficiently.
Electromagnetic locating equipment has a cost of approximately $5,000. About 50% of the locating industry uses a product brand called Radio Detection (R.D.). GPRS currently deploys the Vivax V-loc Pro 3 locator. Both EM locators utilize electromagnetic frequencies to locate metallic pipes and will provide similar results, but GPRS chooses the Vivax because it provides a full-color display, and Vivax&#;s seamless, free GPS integration.
A VIVEX V-loc Pro 3 EM LocatorLike the GPR systems, EM locators are designed for ease of use, and you can rent the equipment for around $300 per week. It is important to remember, however, that the drawback to EM locating is that it cannot locate non-metallic pipes without the use of a rodder, and like GPR, requires proper training to use correctly.
The most accurate locators employ both GPR and EM in their subsurface utility locates because their experience has shown that the best way to get the job done right the first time is to use the best tool for the job. Highly trained locators understand that terrain, soil composition, age of the lines, and the location of surrounding structures are just some of the mitigating factors they need to take into consideration when scanning.
EM, while simpler to use, brings its own unique challenges for the operator. Aside from the limitation that it can only read metallic pipes, because it is a conductive technology rather than the reflective tech of GPR, you have to understand how to overcome:
When reading EM, the user is looking for the field, not the current itself, and it can be difficult to differentiate for the untrained eye, especially if that current has leapt from one pipe to another. That is why complete, accurate training is necessary for any equipment operator.
There is another way to accurately locate and verify the map of your underground utility infrastructure &#; hire a highly trained team of elite specialists with more than three times the expert training and experience required by most companies. When you hire GPRS, you know you&#;re hiring the most accurate in the business who will get the job done right &#; and fast &#; the first time.
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