I'm aware direct burial cable doesn't need to be run in conduit, however I'm burying my wire in a location where it could possibly be damaged so I thought using something like grey sch40 electrical conduit. My question is regarding termination of the wire. If I have pathlights or uplights, what is best way to run the wire out of the conduit and splice to the respective lights? I'm aware of the gel filled connector types for direct burial however I'm not sure how to terminate the conduit -- whether just to leave it open underground or use something like a 90 sweep to bring the conduit run closer to the surface. I've seen direct burial junction boxes, however this seems like a overkill. I've also seen the multiconnector style boxes sold by Volt Lighting and others, to create a hub and spoke configuration for wiring lights, however this leaves a lot of the direct burial wire coming out of the box and was wondering the best method how to run these wires "into" the conduit. I'm aware Volt makes a partial 3/4" conduit with slit run and I assume this is designed for protection and moisture control however I think it would be a lot easier to pull additional wire within a fully closed pipe, rather than one with a slit. Are there connectors at the end of the pvc conduit that would prevent accumulation of a lot of dirt within the pipe? Sorry I'm sure this has been asked before however I can't find any firm recommendation after looking on this site and the internet at large for a couple of hours. I'm aware with low voltage there isn't really a lot specifics as compared to say mains or line voltage and thus there doesn't seem to be a lot of specific products in this regard particularly with buried applications
Could you explain why you feel the place you’re planning to run the wire would be especially vulnerable? Without a photo or drawing of your yard or lighting plan, it’s difficult to offer meaningful guidance. When I have a photo, Not only will I get a literal lay of the land but i can often determine if there might be alternative problem solving approaches. In my case, the one situation where I protected wire was using steel conduit to run cable underneath my walkway. I really only used the steel pipe to make it easier to pull multiple wires underneath the walkway. The home run wires lead from my transformer on one side of my house to hubs on the other side of the walkway. I then connected multiple fixtures to each of my hubs.
The wire run is basically within a planting bed where I use a till for most of the bed in the spring. I have underground irrigation in this bed as well. I've definitely a time or too damaged the irrigation pipe. Although one solution would be to run the wire in conduit, the other would be to bury deeper.
Given that you have a pretty good idea how deep you need to dig to avoid the wire or conduit being damaged by garden tools, it sounds like you’ve figured out at least one solution. My point was that a photograph of your entire scenario and layout of the land would make it easier for people to propose alternative (and potentially more effective) approaches to addressing your concerns. HTH and good luck.
