splicing electric wire, how?

[copperhead46]

We don't want to, but, we have no choice, so how can we splice into the electric wiring going into the house. This will be about two feet underground. We have fianlly got a well dug and now need to wire it into the existing wire that comes from the pump that is in the creek. I was thinking about putting some pvc pipe over the splice and filling it with silacone..........any thoughts or better ideas?
P.J.

[Harry Chickpea]

http://www.uraseal.com/electric/index.htm

[agmantoo]

This may not meet code but it will work and is readily accessible....Go to a submersible pump source and get a splice kit. Lowe's should have a kit. Get a roll of good 3 M electrical tape. After splicing wrap everything individually then wrap as a whole. Sometimes you do what you have to do!

[RosewoodfarmVA]

I've joined all three ends, taped, then stuffed the joint into a bottle then caulked the opening of the bottle. You just have to stagger the wire nuts/joints so that they will all slide into the bottle, then fill hole with caulk. It's waterproof and easy to find, though I'm not sure how many years it's good for before the bottle goes bad...

[watcher]

I wouldn't fool around with home remedies for this. It ain't worth the effort and the possibility of losing power when it fails at the worse possible time. Can you say hello Mr Murphy?

You can find underground/waterproof splice kits at almost any hardware store and they really aren't that expensive. They usually consist of a splice block and a heat shrink tube with a sealant. For smaller wire one block/kit will handle all three or four wires. For the larger wires its one wire per block/kit.

Instructions come with the kit but here's how you do it. You slide the sleeve on the wire first, if you don't you'll have to repeat the following (don't ask). Then you strip the wire ends, secure them in the block, pull the sleeve around the block then apply heat. A heat gun works best but a propane torch works if you go slow and are careful.

I've had to use them twice. Once for the wire to my pump, picked that one up at Lowe's. But when I had to splice the wire from my power pole to my trailer I had to go to a electrical supply house. Took three kits at, IIRC, $12/kit.

[Bearfootfarm]

I was thinking about putting some pvc pipe over the splice and filling it with silacone..........any thoughts or better ideas?

That's very similar to what I saw the phone company do when they repaired a line that was cut

[copperhead46]

Great ideas and links, thank you so much, I knew I could get some good answers here.
P.J.

[megafatcat]

Wet silicone will conduct electricity. If you must do it yourself, solder the joint and then use heat shrink tubing. Then use any and all means to protect.

[coffee]

for my money it would bee faster and easier to go to the fuse box and run it from there ,, then it can be on a fuse by its self ,
and it stops a lot of crap that can happen with rigging

[cfabe]

I also say don't splice it underground and either put in an above ground junction box out there or run the wire back to the house and splice it inside. The splice will eventually leak and fail.

[Ross]

I agree with Coffee.

[Oldcountryboy]

Code states that all splices have to be readily accessable. Meaning it has to be done inside a junction box and easy to get to. Therefore you will need to do the splicing or tapping somewhere else besides underground.

[YuccaFlatsRanch]

Splice above ground and add a weatherproof outdoor electrical outlet while you are at it. In fact the electrical outlet can act as the splice. You never know when it is handy to have a source of electrical power close by. Saves running hundreds of feet of extension cord.

Getting ready to do the same thing or at least close. Neighbor gave me hundreds of feet of aluminum 2 gauge wire. Will be running electricity to my barns for the first time. Yea!!!

[Harry Chickpea]

FWIW, when I put in our line for the power company, it had to run in 3" conduit, and had a pull box at 150' so that if the line did need replacement it could be slipped out and a new line pulled through. The junction there is a green box above ground.