How to Run Underground Power to a Shed the Easy Way

Things I Used in This Project:

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Welcome to the official April Wilkerson YouTube channel. I’m April and I’m the creator of Wilker Do’s. I'm not professional or have any training, so I just pick the project I want to tackle and figure it out step by step. On this channel you will find a variety of content like DIY home improvement, How-To’s, construction and more.

[AprilWilkerson]

Big thank you to FOREO for partnering with me on this video! Treat your significant other (or yourself) with a great gift by FOREO Sweden at the link below and don't forget to use the coupon code APRILW20 for 20% the UFO 2 collection here: foreo.se/o69q

[ron]

It is good practice to lay a yellow caution tape in the trench after some backfill has been added. When someone is digging in the area of the underground cable, they will encounter the caution tape before they get too close to the cable.

[michaelc.]

I’m sure others may have said the same, but it’s not allowed to run NM cable (some call it Romex, which is a trade name) in conduit that goes outdoors. If you are using cable that’s rated for direct burial, you should be okay (but good to check with inspector). So the wire from the panel to the junction box should be non-NM and something like THHN wires, but not standard NM). I’m a master electrician and ICC licensed electrical inspector.

[pawsnazzy]

April, when running power to my shop build, My son had a piece of rag that he tied to some nylon string. He then went in to garage where the conduit was going to the main panel turned on the shop vac and it sucked that rag & string thru in about 2 seconds and he tied and taped the wire and pulled it back to the shop, the whole thing took just a couple mins.

[lucianprescott]

Every electrical video I’ve ever watched will state “if your not comfortable doing this work, call in an electrician”, which is sound advice. However, anyone can do the manual labor (digging trenches, running the wire, backfilling) prior to calling in the electrician, thus saving a ton of money.
Had a project similar and ran a line 75’ from a house panel to a garage. Found out the code requirements, did the labor and then call the electrician. He was happy, because I had set up everything for him and all he had to do was set the wires in proper order. Saved 15 hundred on the project by doing some of the work myself.

[josephknapick]

Your first run of Romex to the GFCI is a code no-no, even inside of PVC conduit. NM cable (ROMEX) is not permitted in damp or wet locations [NEC 334.12B(4)] and the inside of raceways (including PVC conduit) located outdoors is considered a wet location per NEC 300.9. Your first run should be UF cable or individual THWN conductors. If the latter, the individual conductors should be placed in conduit all the way to the source panel.

[perrycollier]

April I used to work for a company that made a lubricant to pull electrical wires (romex). The lubricants are just glycerin so one might be able to save some money and just use glycerin. As always great video, very informative.

[Aepek]

1:45 can also buy fittings to allow for different bends, if don’t wanna flex the conduit like this (sweep 90s, [also called elbows], street, bell ends, saddle bends, etc); and if don’t want to buy the different fittings (or can’t find), you can heat up and bend the conduit yourself (pvc only, as emt not gonna be heated and bend, gotta use a bender; and ABS doesn’t heat well and wouldn’t even try it, imo)…..just a tip for ppl if feel weird about flexing the conduit how April did.

[georgevanvalkenburg]

ALWAYS READ THE COMMENTS. THE BRILLIANCE OF A COMMENTER IS NEVER OVERSTATED!

[mattstosh]

I watched this video 3 times. You make this appear simple. I can't even find the same PVC pieces at Lowes or Home Depot. Love that ( 5:02 ) smile while dealing with not-so-easy cable. Thank you for the video....

[glencrandall]

The hard part is digging the trench for the wire. Thank you for sharing. Have a great day and stay safe. Be careful the electrons can bite.🙂🙂

[Gkm]

There is flexible conduit, outdoor rated. I used that to run AC, along with outdoor-rated speaker wire, out to my shed. The great benefits: a) flexibility allows you to maneuver around large underground obstacles; b) zero underground junctions, so no leakage or seepage of water into your conduit. It’s been a godsend for Xmas lighting, as well as for outdoor stereo audio. I can run a powered subwoofer. The garden sounds amazing

[jimmyyounger]

Good work! But I'll add that 20 years ago I didn't anticipate my similar project would be more permanent than I anticipated at the time. (My purpose then was to get power to a deicer at a livestock water tank.) During this period, the PVC outlet's year-over-year exposure to the sun caused it to degrade and become chalky, brittle and inflexible. A little post movement during an unusually wet year with a super freeze cracked the riser pipe, and the hinged cover on the outlet box fell apart. If I had a do-over, I'd have gone with metal over PVC despite the added work.

[jljohnson]

This video was at just the right time as I am getting ready to feed electricity from my old shed to the new garage that is right next to the shed. Watching you do this is the exact same process that I will need. Thank you.

[abbayhvhreignsiloveyeshua]

Another quick project Wonderfully explained. This is time well spent on a Sunday. Thank you April, See you again Soon. Have a Blessed Week.

[antzlowe]

Hey April I am a beginner woodworker from New Zealand and I have watched I think all of your videos. I cant thank you enough for all your talant and know how. You explain everything so beginners like me can do anything when it comes to woodworking. I have subcribed to your channel and look forward to seeing alot more videos once again thank you.

[dennishinkle]

I ran direct burial wire and stayed away from PVC. A little extra work but worth it. You are truly great.👍♥️

[clinttalmadge]

Not including an advisory about the length of the wire run and amperage draw dictating the gauge of the wire needed can set a dangerous situation. As a clerk in the electrical department of a large DIY store, I had many customers who wanted to run 14 or 12 gauge wire in excess of 100' to run shop equipment in an stand alone workshop. I calculated on one case that the fellow would need 4 gauge for what he was proposing. He accused me of trying to make more money off him. I told him that I was paid by the hour and I made the same if he bought the right wire, the wrong wire or no wire at all. Please consider adding such advice.

[ThraX_]

Hey April,
Great video. The nice thing about PVC is if you run into this later on with a project again, you could use a heat gun and apply a slight offset off the metal building over the concrete lip into the ground (1:43). By just applying a few minutes of heat along the pipe, you can shape it without any fittings. I used to do this when I was an apprentice electrician years ago, and it would work great on jobs.

[arc]

Nice job!
It is important to understand voltage and amperage needs to be considered when determining depth of wire. A residential 20 amp circuit using 12/2 copper underground rated cable can be installed at a 12” depth as long as it is protected with GFCI device.
Electrical codes can be more stringent depending on where you live so please consult an electrician or electrical inspector in your area.
Also it is important to note that schedule 80 pvc should be used in this application.