Looking for company to bore under driveway

[ObscureRefMan]

Does anyone know of any company that does underground boring? I'm looking to run an electrical line from one light post to another, on either side of my driveway. Also, I tried doing my own "water boring", and that didn't end well.

I've seen a few different tools that do this; Hammerhead Borer, Missile Mole, etc. But I can't seem to find a company that has one (or similar). There are companies that do major boring work, but I think they're too big for my small project. I even had one company tell me if they did it, they'd have to charge me around $1500. Thanks!

 

[Sneakers]

I'd bet an electrician would have those talents. But he'd also want to run the electric.

 

[ObscureRefMan]

I'd bet an electrician would have those talents. But he'd also want to run the electric.

It was actually the electrician who suggested I farm this out. He didn't want to charge me HIS rate to dig/trench.

 

[Kyle]

One of the equipment rental places might rent out a pneumatic mole.

 

[glhs837]

The issue is that the equipment to do this properly is very costly. Looks like the least expensive one is 10K a month to rent. And if you could get one for a week, the odds of operating it perfectly the first time seem low.

https://foursite-pape-production.s3.amazonaws.com/ditchwitchwest.com/af88ecd4-2552-4d5e-b2fd-acac7d37bfb6.pdf

Although if you can find an "Underwunder" that might be doable. Home Depot rents a flex shaft auger........ Not sure that would have the reach though

 

[Clem72]

I did this a few years ago with a fairly skinny driveway (about 12 ft wide). dug a hole on one side, the other side was aligned with the side of the house so the ground sloped away.

Took 2 inch pvc pipe and beat a foot or two at a time, then fed a garden hose with a reducer on the front down the pipe to blast out the dirt. Worked pretty well, but would not have done if there were any rocks or hard clay.

You might also try one of those flexible dryer duct cleaning brushes and affix a dirt auger bit to the front instead of the brush.

Hell, if it's just electric you could but some direct-bury power cable (DBC) and get yourself some 1/4" pipe and just knock it through then use it to pull the cable back through behind.

 

[Ken King]

Have you tried contacting local well drillers? I bet some of them can do directional drilling.

edit - Just did a quick search for directional drilling and Winslow Pump and Well Inc popped up.

​

 

[Kyle]

If the driveway is 10 feet or less I've seen someone hammer a ground rod through to pull a single strand of UF.

 

[Sneakers]

I've done it about 10 feet with just a garden hose and a jet stream nozzle. Took a while, but it did work. If the distance were longer, I'd use PVC pipe and put the nozzle on one end, hose adapter on the other. Use the stiffness of the PVC to push thru, and it won't drift much.

Maybe a little different approach? Cut thru the driveway down to the dirt, dig the trench, lay the cable and backfill. Put some decorative cobblestone or pavers in place of the driveway you tore out. Most of that you can do yourself.

 

[DoWhat]

Call Automatic Rain Lawn Sprinklers.

Automatic Rain Lawn Sprinklers | Southern Maryland Irrigation & Lighting

Automatic Rain Lawn Sprinklers & Landscape Lighting - 28+ years of irrigation and lighting installation. Residential and commercial services in Southern Maryland. Free estimate!

www.automaticraininfo.com

They used some kind of ditchwitch and guided the new water lines without digging ditches.