Before you break ground: checking for buried services

Every dig carries the risk of hitting something you did not know was there. Electricity cables, gas, water and telecoms all sit at varying depths, and older properties in Kent frequently have services running where no plan says they should.

Do this before the bucket touches the ground

• Look for clues above ground. Meter boxes, inspection covers, stop taps, lamp posts and street cabinets all indicate a run going somewhere.
• Ask the property owner what has been done previously. Extensions, outbuildings, hot tubs and garden lighting all mean a cable was laid at some point.
• Scan the area with a cable avoidance tool, working in both directions, and mark what you find on the surface.
• Dig trial holes by hand near anything you have detected before using the machine.

Hire the tool, it is not expensive

We hire Leica laser levels and cable avoidance tools alongside our excavators, so you can add one to your delivery. Compared with the cost of an emergency repair, a court appearance or an injury, it is a very small line on the invoice.

If you are unsure, hire an operator with the machine. Experienced operators read ground conditions and spot the signs of a buried service long before an inexperienced one would.