Underground Utilities Contractor for Eastern CT & Western RI

• Water service linesNew services and replacements, meter pit to foundation, 48-inch bury, pressure-tested and inspected before backfill.
• Sewer lateralsGravity laterals on continuous pitch, cleanouts at the line, town or WPCA inspection coordinated at tie-in.
• Electric & generator conduitPrimary and secondary conduit runs, sweeps and pull boxes to utility spec, tracer wire, inspection-ready.
• Comms, fiber & joint trenchDuct bank and joint-trench design when multiple services run one alignment — one dig, every service placed to code.
• Storm drainageRoof leaders, catch basins, culverts, and underground detention on commercial pads — water managed below grade.
• Septic systemsWhere no sewer main exists — and across our rural towns it usually doesn't — the OWTS is the underground utility.

Underground utilities, answered

What counts as underground utilities?

Everything that serves a building from below grade: water service lines, sewer or septic laterals, storm drainage, electrical primary and secondary conduit, natural gas coordination, and communications duct (phone, cable, fiber). We install the trench, bedding, conduit or pipe, tracer wire, warning tape, and backfill to the owning utility's specification, then coordinate their inspection and tie-in.

Do you handle the 811 marking process?

Yes, on every job. In Connecticut that's Call Before You Dig (CBYD); in Rhode Island it's Dig Safe. Both run through 811. We place the ticket, wait out the legal marking window, and verify the marks against the plan before a bucket touches the ground. On congested streets we add private utility locating when the public marks don't tell the whole story.

How deep do underground utilities get buried?

Depth is set by code and by the owning utility. As a working rule in our region: water services at 48 inches to clear frost, sewer laterals at 48 inches with continuous pitch, electric primary at 24-30 inches in conduit, gas at 18-24 inches with marker tape, and communications at 18-24 inches. Separations matter as much as depths — water and sewer need 10 feet horizontal where achievable, 18 inches vertical at crossings.

Can water, electric, and comms share one trench?

Sometimes. Electric and communications can usually share a trench with 12 inches of vertical separation. Water and sewer must stay separate. Gas usually gets its own trench. A shared joint trench saves real money on long rural runs — we design it with each utility's blessing so their inspectors sign off without rework.

Do you work in both Connecticut and Rhode Island?

Yes. Our shop sits in Sterling, CT, minutes from the state line, and roughly a third of our utility work is in Rhode Island. The rules differ — CBYD vs. Dig Safe, CT DPH vs. RIDEM oversight, different health districts for wells and septic — and we run both permit systems weekly.

Who do you coordinate with on a typical connection?

The owning utility (municipal water and sewer departments, Norwich Public Utilities, Jewett City utilities, Kent County Water Authority, Eversource, and the comms carriers), the local building official for the permit, and the health district when wells or septic are in play. We schedule the utility's inspection so the trench closes once, not twice.