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Be careful where you put those fence posts


JohnfromUK
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https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10949199/Moment-man-building-fence-gets-nasty-surprise-gas-main-EXPLODES-feet-Video.html

Since no one was hurt, it does with hindsight look quite spectacular and the pressure used must be high. 

A year of so ago the council contractors were doing minor work on a blocked culvert and came across a single house gas feed - and it must have been installed by cowboys as it was only 6" or less under the surface of the grass verge.  I know when I had some work done on my house mains gas feed (moving the inlet to the house) it has to be quite deep (600mm?) by law.  I believe the high pressure mains have to be deeper.

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13 minutes ago, oowee said:

It should have given him a clue the refusal on the drop before the explosion. That chap will be in for the high jump for that negligence I hope he has good insurance. 

If the pipe was too shallow (and I strongly suspect a high pressure main would be well below the 18" or so a fence post might need) - he will not be liable.  A farmer locally hit a very main gas pipe with a subsoiler.  He had checked before - and was told it was well below his depth - and so wasn't liable when it turned out to be much less deep than required.

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41 minutes ago, JohnfromUK said:

If the pipe was too shallow (and I strongly suspect a high pressure main would be well below the 18" or so a fence post might need) - he will not be liable.  A farmer locally hit a very main gas pipe with a subsoiler.  He had checked before - and was told it was well below his depth - and so wasn't liable when it turned out to be much less deep than required.

I wonder if he even checked. Whenever we used to drill (much deeper) lots of work went into testing in advance. Do farmers even have to check? 

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51 minutes ago, GingerCat said:

Given all the machinery right there at the site  (electrics etc) I think he's lucky it didn't ignight. 

Am no eggspurt, but it seems to me like it may have locally ignited underground, but energy required to move the soil and rocks means that by the time it broke the surface, the conflagration was effectively extinguished.

The guy was very lucky.

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10 minutes ago, oowee said:

Do farmers even have to check?

Probably not.   This land had the pipe installed when North Sea gas was piped across - and the line is marked with Red/Orange caps on posts where it crosses roads etc.  In this case (it's a farm where I shoot occasionally, so I know the manager) he knew the pipe was there and thought he had been told there was no danger of them ever hitting it as it was very deep.  Being as he was getting sub-soiling done - which was deeper than 'normal' for that bit of land, he decided to check - and was told the pipe was well below what the sub-soiler would reach ..............  As far as I remember it was only a minor impact/damage and I think it broke the shear pin (or whatever they have on the sub-soiler.  I don't think it badly damaged the main, but unless it leaked I can't remember how they knew it was the gas main they hit (rather than a rock).  Manager said that it was expensive to repair as they had to dig down, but that may have been more to inspect for damage.

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Why can't we have a report these days without this stupid music.   I have hunted just north of there and one day we came across a pipe which was leaking and what looked like gas was spaying 100ft in the air. My guide casually walked up to it and tasted it.  Salt water they pump into the wells.   It was one of those half crown sixpence situations I can tell you.

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