water and electric installation

Hi, I also wanted to ask anyone expert in this field what the legal requirements in Spain are?

Is it ok for the electricity to only be buried down about 8 inches into the ground as it travels around the plot? Must it be armour plated under Spanish building regulations? Is it ok for the water and the electric supply to share the same underground conduit?

Any professional advice gratefully received.

Best regards, Carl

 Please dont kill yourself.

No seriously.... dont think about doing this yourself especially if you value your life. The cost of an electrician to do what you need is nothing compared to what it will cost you to fix what you do wrong when it goes wrong.

Do not even THINK about mixing water and electrical conduits, your just asking for trouble.

Electrical cables should be buried by regulation to 70cm underground, then covered in cement, about 15cm thick and then with plastic covering over the top in bright yellow stating that there is electricity cables beneath. 

If its a garden light, the rules are more relaxed... But all the same, keep the tubing in one piece, use waterproof exterior plastic tubing, and make sure people know where the cables are in the future, so your gardener doesnt cut through them with a spade. AND EARTH EVERYTHING EXTERIOR.

The 70cm rule applies to heavy load cables, not garden lights, we are talking supplies to a shed, or exterior socket.

Feel free to post for more information but please consider that it wont cost you that much to get a professional to do it, just make sure that if you are not sure about what you are doing, get help from a pro.

Cheers

Hi Costa, thanks for the reply but I want to be clear here.

I have NO intention of touching it - it's something the builder is doing.

My technocal explanation wasn't quite correct - The electric and water do not share the same conduit - they share the same trench in the ground.

Are the dimensions you give of the depth of the cables Spanish building regulations? Should the electric cable not be encased in armour cabling, or in Spain is it ok to put it in plastic cabling? Also the point about painting the area in yellow is sensible - again is that your idea or is that Spanish regulation?

Thanks, Carl

 Electric and water are never supposed to be in the same trench, I dont have any photos of my previous work, but let me try and explain.

Water pipes and Electrical tubing should be kept seperate at all times, buried in its own cement casing.

The yellow tape over concrete and above cabling in the ground is obligatory.

The electrical conduit outdoors should be inside RED large tubing, unless it is for sockets or lights.

The builder should only really be doing the trenches or cementing in, if he is doing the electrics then it doesnt sound to me like he is doing a very good job.

Im quite a stickler for doing things right in my new installations, basically its far cheaper in the long run if you do it right first time around.

All what I have stated is Spanish Regs and (hopefully also) common sense. If you have any more questions feel free to ask!

Hi there, thanks again - that makes perfect sense. thete is that red tubing the goes into the house. They used that to run the cabling into the house, however it ends when it comes out of the house and the tubing from the electric supply to the house is somply a black mesh type tubing and is only 6-8 inches and shares the trench.

you've been really helpful Costa. I'll talk to the builder tomorrow.

Many thanks, Carl

 Once inside the house the standard tubing to use is black currogated 20mm and 25mm pipe. For the oven it should be 32mm.