Texas State Law concerning posthole digging

[baleflipper]

I learned today that the state of Texas has a law on the books that requires you to call 811, 2 weeks before digging post holes on your property.
A "representative will come identify any utilities under your land." You are liable for any wiring or gas or water lines you hit digging post holes.
To my way of thinking a land owner will know if an easement is on the property. My thoughts on this is we have lost more property rights. There are no utilities under ground on my land . I was informed that before I can dig corner posts holes I must call 811. I was also told this also holds true for mesquite root plowing also.
Our property rights are being taken, If a pipe line from Canada wants to cross your land you cant stop them. If a developer needs water for land that does not even join yours they can condemn an easement for water lines and power lines.
Just thought I would share this with yall.

 

[slick4591]

Hit something without calling and having things checked out and you are liable. Don't think you can even buy insurance to cover your butt for that. Be smart and call.

 

[TexasBred]

Easements are surveyed and recorded.......walking out there and actually finding the exact location of the pipeline, buried telephone lines etc. is a totally different animal. I know it burns your rear but probably best to call if you know you're within the bounds of an existing easement and unsure what's underneath. Most pipelines are plainly marked. Water meters are normally just inside your property lines...any pipe on your side of the meter is yours.

 

[baleflipper]

I am not talking 10 acre tracts here,I have owned this land over 30 yrs. Neighbor hood of 800 acres.There are no easements for utility's.
My point is we really don't own our land if some entity wants it.

 

[john250]

Neighbor up the road drilled into a 6" water line on his first post. Had a nice little fountain going for a while.
I don't doubt that YOU know where all the utilities are, but most people don't.

 

[herefordlover]

we know pretty close to where all our are if we get close we call lucky there just near the edge of the road or just inside the fence

 

[dun]

Our phone line meanders over an area about 200 feet wide as it makes it's way to the house 3/4 of mile from the road. I couldn;t believe it and neither could the guy marking it. We put in a couple of hundred feet of water line and crossed over the phone line 5-6 times.

 

[Anonymous]

Dun it's all those rOcks they had to go around

 

[Brute 23]

From the oil & gas side not all lines are recorded. People find lines all the time the RRC has no clue about. Plus, just because they are not active does not mean they are not dangerous.

Calling covers your butt.

 

[dun]

Dun it's all those rOcks they had to go around

That is correct. Those long ridges of limestone that are just under the surface and extend 30 foot deep and hundreds of feet long

 

[greybeard]

I have 1/4 mile of buried phone line, and when they laid it, I told them (ATT) that they HAD to stay @ least 8' away from the fence. They agreed. A couple months later, I was digging a trench about 1/2 a backhoe width from that fence and was pretty dismayed to find the cut end of a nearly new phone line in the bucket. They came out and put in a whole new line and this time put it where I told them. No cost to me, but next time I probably will call.

 

[highgrit]

Same deal here I call now before I dig. When I put my gate poles in I drilled through a 200+ pair line. I don't know what that means but the cable was almost 8" around. We had quite the pissing match going on untill I showed them my survey, and property deed. They were 4 1/2 feet outside of the easement for the utilities, and lucky me.

 

[James T]

I am not talking 10 acre tracts here,I have owned this land over 30 yrs. Neighbor hood of 800 acres.There are no easements for utility's.
My point is we really don't own our land if some entity wants it.

That's a different subject -----> imminent domain. Yes, they can take portion for a right away if it serves the welfare of the public.
I had a pipeline company wanting to run a new line over my place about the time I had it up for sale. There was nothing I could do about it other than try to negotiate a good price for giving them rights. That digging post holes thing is new to me. Sounds like someone trying to defray liability issues which is a big topic now days, which comes under the heading of "risk assessment".

 

[hillbilly beef man]

Same deal here I call now before I dig. When I put my gate poles in I drilled through a 200+ pair line. I don't know what that means but the cable was almost 8" around..

A 200 pr line is capable of having 200 different phone lines inside of it. It takes two wires to make each telephone work, so a 200 pr has 400 wires inside of it that is about the size of a piece of uncooked spaghetti.

 

[highgrit]

Sure looked like alot more wires than 400. They were real small and in bundles that were braided together. They used a litle red dot with jelly in them to put the lines back together.

 

[Anonymous]

Be grateful they weren't fiber optic. That would have been worth them going after you for

 

[High Cotton]

Be grateful they weren't fiber optic. That would have been worth them going after you for

Thats the truth. Cut fiber optic lines can come with a $500,000+ repair bill. The city has insurance insurance if I hit something. I have hit miss marked gas, electric, and cable lines. They were all service lines no mains thank goodness. If I'm doing more than pulling aspahalt or curb and gutter I will find the line first. It's a PITA but it could save yours and or your crews life.

 

[houstoncutter]

Its the law and I think its a good one. While some folks may have had there land for 100's of years others have just bought it. The law says everybody calls, end of story. I recently cleared a fenceline where the phone company had put the lines to close and not deep enough. I ripped lines for a quarter of a mile... They come out shook their heads and asked me if I had called for a mark...I showed em where the lines had been marked and that was the end of the hassle.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

I ripped lines for a quarter of a mile... They come out shook their heads and asked me if I had called for a mark...I showed em where the lines had been marked and that was the end of the hassle.

Where I am its not a law but very strongly encouraged.

The line of work my husband is in, they frequently call "Miss Utility" (that's what its called here) for various jobs they will be working on. I cannot begin to tell you how many times he and his boss have dug up phone lines, water lines, electric lines etc......nowhere near where "Miss Utility" marked. BUT, because they did their due diligence in calling and having it marked, they were not held liable.

Katherine

 

[greybeard]

Be grateful they weren't fiber optic. That would have been worth them going after you for

Thats the truth. Cut fiber optic lines can come with a $500,000+ repair bill. The city has insurance insurance if I hit something. I have hit miss marked gas, electric, and cable lines. They were all service lines no mains thank goodness. If I'm doing more than pulling aspahalt or curb and gutter I will find the line first. It's a PITA but it could save yours and or your crews life.

They had a little tornado or straight line wind blow down a wooden power pole in our little town a couple of years ago, and Entergy's emergency crew just moved over and augered a new hole thru the sidewalk a couple feet over. Drilled right thru a major trunk line and killed every phone within 10+ mile radius--police sta--hospital--the little airport--everybody's phone went silent. Took att days to sort it all out. I asked one of the Entergy guys a couple days later--"Aren't you guys the ones running the TV commercials about "call before you dig"?
He didn't think it was funny.