Commercial Service Requirements
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Section C - Underground
Services
General Requirements
If permanent underground service will be used to your non-residential
structure, the information in this section will assist you.
For non-residential underground services, the customer will supply the
trench, secondary service wire and conduit from Central Lincoln’s transformer or
hand hole to your service entrance equipment.
The following checklist will help you prepare your project for the
installation of an underground service. After you complete these items, Central
Lincoln will connect your service and install the metering equipment.
- Check for any local ordinances/covenants that may prevent you from
obtaining an underground service.
- Supply site drawings to our engineering department.
- Supply completed Load Data Sheet to our engineering department.
- Provide an easement for any permanent equipment installed on your
property and owned by Central Lincoln.
- Ask our engineering department where your underground service will
originate.
- Determine an approved meter location.
- Install required service equipment.
- Connect and label conductors at meter location.
- Provide trench, conduit and service conductors.
- Provide all excavation and backfill between your equipment and Central
Lincoln’s.
- Obtain an electrical inspection from the electrical inspection agency.
- Call our service office to order your service connection.
Getting Started
After you have started your Customer Request For Service and returned the
plan information to our engineering technician, they will inform you where your
service will originate.
Next determine the location of the meter base.
You are responsible for all trenching and materials from your meter location
on the site to Central Lincoln’s point of delivery (transformer, pole or hand
hole).
If there is not a point of delivery readily available, your engineering
technician will inform you of the additional trenching and materials that you
need to install.
The local electrical inspector must approve your installation before Central
Lincoln can schedule your connection.
Cable Limits
You are responsible for furnishing, installing, and maintaining all required
service entrance equipment, including the service conductors from the meter base
or instrument transformer enclosure to Central Lincoln’s designated point of
delivery. For services where instrument transformers (CT’s and PT’s) are
required, you will also need to run conduit from the instrument transformer
enclosure to the meter base. Central Lincoln will supply the instrument
transformers and meter wiring.
The number and size of secondary conductors must be approved by Central
Lincoln.
Underground Locates
If you are doing any trenching or excavation work, you are required to call
for underground utility locates two working days before you do any digging.
You must get underground utility locates by calling the "One Call" system at
1-800-332-2344. Once you have called and requested a locate, the one call
system will notify the utilities, or a locating service, that locates are
required.
There is no charge for this service. Utilities are required by state law to
belong to this service.
The state has established a color code system to identify each utility so
everyone can see what has been located. The color codes are:
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Color |
Utility |
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Red |
Electric |
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Yellow |
Gas/Oil |
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Orange |
Telephone/Cable TV |
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Blue |
Water |
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Green |
Sewer |
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White |
Area to be located |
The state requires that any digging within 24 inches of either side of the
location markings be done by hand.
Transformer Locations
Central Lincoln will install transformers, using the clearances listed below.
Clearances between padmounted transformers and structures must be measured
from the metal portion of the transformer closest to the building or structure.
This includes any overhangs within the following clearances:
3 ft. from non-combustible walls (including brick, concrete, steel
and stone), provided the side of the transformer facing the wall does not
have doors.
6 ft. from sprinkler valves, standpipes, and fire hydrants.
10 ft. from combustible walls (including stucco), doors, windows,
vents, fire escapes, wooden stairways, and other building openings.
15 ft. from the water’s edge of a swimming pool or any body of water.
20 ft. from facilities used to dispense or store hazardous liquids or
gases (e.g., service station gas pumps and tanks, propane bulk dispensing
tanks, and emergency generator fueling points).
Note: Additional clearances may be required. You will need to check with
your local authority (see Figure C-1).
Working Space
A clear and level working area equal to the full width of the padmount
operating compartments shall extend 10 feet minimum from the compartment
opening. A minimum of 5 feet of clear working area shall be provided on all
sides of padmount equipment withot operating compartments, including sides with
cooling fins (see Figure C-2).
Protection for Pad-Mounted Equipment
The following minimum clearances are required to protect equipment from
vehicular traffic (see Figure C-3):
5 feet from the back and sides of the device.
10 feet from the front of the transformer.
Guard posts are required when these minimum clearances cannot be met. The
customer is required to provide room for these guard posts, and Central Lincoln
will install them.
Service Equipment Installation Requirements
Your are responsible for installing:
Meter base and instrument transformer enclosure, if required.
Service entrance conductor.
Grounding (UFER or ground rods. Check with NEC and your local
electrical inspection agency).
Central Lincoln will install the meter (also instrument transformers, if
required).
Central Lincoln will install the meter and connect your equipment at Central
Lincoln's transformer or hand hole. Underground service wires will be the
customers responsibility to the transformer, vault or hand hole.
Manufactured Buildings
If you are installing an underground service to a manufactured building, our
service equipment can be installed one of two ways:
1. On a customer-owned meter post; or
2. On the manufactured building, if the following conditions are met.
- The manufacturer installed the service equipment at the time your
building was built.
- Or, the service equipment meets the meter base requirements listed
below.
Meter bases installed on manufactured buildings must:
- Be located on an outside wall of your building and accessible for
reading and testing.
- Be between 5 and 6 feet above finished grade.
- Not be in a walkway, breezeway or carport.
- Not be in an area that is being fenced, or where decking or foliage
will block easy access to it.
Landscaping and Other Obstacles
Landscaping and other obstructions shall not encroach on the clearances
specified in Figure C-3.
Trenching
The customer’s service trench must meet state and local regulatory
requirements. Trenches supplied for primary 7,200-volt systems owned by Central
Lincoln shall have a minimum of 48 inches cover from the top of the conductor or
conduit to the point of final grade.
Note: You are responsible for all trenching unless otherwise notified by
Central Lincoln personnel.
Contact your engineering technician before entering or installing any Central
Lincoln vaults or hand holes.
Trench Inspection
All Central Lincoln underground box and duct systems done by customers,
contractors or builders will require a final inspection and approval by a
Central Lincoln Operations Department inspector. The Central Lincoln inspector
must approve all jobs requiring trenching before the Central Lincoln service or
line crew can be dispatched to do the electrical installation.
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