Earth rod question

dominic_b

Hi
I am digging a flowerbed in my garden and there is an earth rod inspection box in the lawn in the area where I want the flowerbed to be.
I was wondering if it's okay to dig the ground around the earth rod - I need to dig down about 45 cm as there is compacted earth underneath which I have to break up to improve drainage.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks.

meercat

i dont think that should be a problem
just be careful when digging around the box as there should be an earth cable connected to the rod(this cable should be mechanically protected though)

dingding

Just check it is an earth rod by opening the cover. Someone may have used the box for a different purpose. i would have thought it more usual for the box to be close to the house adjacent to the meter cabinet.

dominic_b

Hi,
Thanks for the feedback.
The Earth Rod is close to the house and close to the fuse box - I opened the cover and confirmed that it is the Earth Rod.
When I dug the ground around the Earth Box, I found what I assume is a section of the earth rod buried in the ground near the driven Earth Rod - it looks like the top may have started to bend when it was being put in and they just cut off the top 60 cm and dumped it there (along with all the other builders rubbish that I've dug up).
Also, the earth cable wasn't protected it any way - so will have to sort that out.
Ground is dug now, so thanks for your help.
Dominic.

indie armada

If you wish to cover the cable without disconnecting it, you can get pvc flexable conduit that is split, allowing you to sleve the cable while its in place.