November 10, 2025Nov 10 Humour me on this one please! In Luang Prabang, the electricity company is busy installing street lighting. They cut a deep groove into the pavement using a power saw, lay down heavy black rubber insualted pipe that's about 4cm diameter, then cement over that pipe to return the pavement to its original condition. The trench where the pipe is laid twists and turns around obstacles (such as trees), and surfaces every 30 metres or so, where the street lamp will be placed. But there is no electrical cable inside the piping..... I assume that since they have cemented over the pipe, then they intend to push the electrical cable through the pipe, and they must have done this on previous jobs - so know that it works ok. But how?? On a hotel-build in Phuket yonks ago I did all the electrical cabling and I can tell you that it was impossible to push an electrical cable 30 metres inside a pipe....... The pipes have no string or 'pull wire' inside. So how do they thread the electrical cable up the pipe and around corners...?
November 10, 2025Nov 10 5 minutes ago, simon43 said: Humour me on this one please! In Luang Prabang, the electricity company is busy installing street lighting. They cut a deep groove into the pavement using a power saw, lay down heavy black rubber insualted pipe that's about 4cm diameter, then cement over that pipe to return the pavement to its original condition. The trench where the pipe is laid twists and turns around obstacles (such as trees), and surfaces every 30 metres or so, where the street lamp will be placed. But there is no electrical cable inside the piping..... I assume that since they have cemented over the pipe, then they intend to push the electrical cable through the pipe, and they must have done this on previous jobs - so know that it works ok. But how?? On a hotel-build in Phuket yonks ago I did all the electrical cabling and I can tell you that it was impossible to push an electrical cable 30 metres inside a pipe....... The pipes have no string or 'pull wire' inside. So how do they thread the electrical cable up the pipe and around corners...? I assume you mean HDPE piping. There should be a draw wire or some other means of installing the cable. If no there could be problems ahead.
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Author I've examined where the pipes surface - there is no drawstring! But they have completed working street-lighting in other parts of town already, so clearly they know what they are doing 🙂 I need to attend when they are getting the elec tric cable through the pipe - or perhaps I'll ask the crew working on this 🙂
November 10, 2025Nov 10 4 minutes ago, simon43 said: I've examined where the pipes surface - there is no drawstring! But they have completed working street-lighting in other parts of town already, so clearly they know what they are doing So you mean the OP is just a troll?
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Popular Post First they place a piece of chicken at one end of the pipe. At the other end they release a rat with a length of string tied to its tail !!
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Author 1 minute ago, CallumWK said: So you mean the OP is just a troll? Sigh.... They have fully completed some sections of the street lighting, but in my part of town they are still laying the underground pipes - with no wire inside! I'm interested in why they don't use fully insulated cabling in the first place, or how they actually get the wire through the pipe.
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Author 1 minute ago, terryq said: First they place a piece of chicken at one end of the pipe. At the other end they release a rat with a length of string tied to its tail !! Well, there may be some truth in that! Perhaps they tie a strong fishing line to a metal ball weight and then 'blow' it up the pipe to the next opening some 30 metres away..
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Author Ah - Dr Google has the answer! https://www.google.com/search?q=how+is+electric+cable+passed+inside+pipe+for+street+lighting%3F&oq=how+is+electric+cable+passed+inside+pipe+for+street+lighting%3F&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOdIBCTE5MTM0ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
November 10, 2025Nov 10 6 minutes ago, timendres said: I like this thread. Thank you. Me to 👍 Come on members, share the LOVE. Let's all like ♥️
November 10, 2025Nov 10 20 minutes ago, simon43 said: Sigh.... They have fully completed some sections of the street lighting, but in my part of town they are still laying the underground pipes - with no wire inside! I'm interested in why they don't use fully insulated cabling in the first place, or how they actually get the wire through the pipe. There's a pretty good chance they don't know yet what wires they'll need to pull, to run whatever someone decides to use for lights. etc. Look up "fish tape".
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Author 2 minutes ago, impulse said: There's a pretty good chance they don't know yet what wires they'll need to pull, to run whatever someone decides to use for lights. etc. Look up "fish tape". If you follow my link above, that is what is mentioned. I'm sure they know what wire, since they have already completed cabling half the town 🙂
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Straight runs: fish tape works fine. Corners, curvy or obstructed runs: vacuum-and-mouse method every time.
November 10, 2025Nov 10 Sixty years ago I saw the same thing in Scotland. When it was complete the electricians used a small machine like a mouse to pull a wire through the empty tube and ateched the cable to wire.
November 10, 2025Nov 10 6 hours ago, simon43 said: Sigh.... They have fully completed some sections of the street lighting, but in my part of town they are still laying the underground pipes - with no wire inside! I'm interested in why they don't use fully insulated cabling in the first place, or how they actually get the wire through the pipe. Someone will steal it. They install it when they need to.
November 11, 2025Nov 11 they are likely the black tubes they are installing which are meant for the fibre cables to clean up all the mess everywhere, feeding cables through will be easy to start and get tricky once there are lots in there pulling fibre is a PITA anyway, i got a 200m run which goes through underground pipes for about 50m + 20m but it doesn't seem the companies have been instructed to do it yet, if they ever will.
November 11, 2025Nov 11 On 11/10/2025 at 3:15 PM, Photoguy21 said: I assume you mean HDPE piping. There should be a draw wire or some other means of installing the cable. If no there could be problems ahead. Twenty yeara ago my village in pattaya installed all wires / pipes etc underground: - They dug trenes and then laid concrete pipes about 18 inches in diameter with acccess holes at the corner of every internal soi. - Then a small dog was enticed (by food smells) to run through the main pipe, with a lightweight very strong string attched to the dogs collar. - Then at the soi corners the string was retrieved and then manually thread along the much smaller length of pipe. It all worked and was completed quickly. - Then the electric cables, telephone and more cables were installed into the houses and then it was closed at every entrance with a large amunt of concete. - As could be expected there was some failure with electricity and tel. cables to some houses, but the main pipe couldn't be opened. - I don't know the rest of the story .. except there were some less than satisfeid home buyers.
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