How deep can a trench be without shoring?

5 feet
Trenches 5 feet (1.5 meters) deep or greater require a protective system unless the excavation is made entirely in stable rock. If less than 5 feet deep, a competent person may determine that a protective system is not required.

What depth must a trench be?

A trench is defined as a narrow excavation (in relation to its length) made below the surface of the ground. In general, the depth of a trench is greater than its width, but the width of a trench (measured at the bottom) is not greater than 15 feet (4.6 m). What are the dangers of trenching and excavation operations?

What is considered a deep excavation?

Deep excavations, on the other hand, are defined as being any excavation which is more than 4.5 metres in depth – a considerable height indeed. Deep excavations are trickier to plan and implement than shallow excavations, for a variety of reasons, which is why they tend to only be carried out by trained professionals.

Is a 5 foot deep trench considered a confined space?

Some examples of confined spaces include storage tanks, sewers, manholes, tunnels, ship voids, pipelines, silos, wells, pits and trenches. In the United States, any pit or trench with a depth equal to or greater than 4 feet is classified as a permit-required confined space.

What two requirements must be met so that a trench does not need to have a protective system installed?

The standard does not require the installation and use of a protective system when an excavation (1) is made entirely in stable rock, or (2) is less than 5 feet deep and a competent person has examined the ground and found no indication of a potential cave-in.

How deep can you dig without support?

The basis of the rule is that, if a trench is under 1.2m deep, then people can enter the trench without the sides of the excavation being supported or battered back. This rule is no longer something that should be considered. 1.2m is no longer the threshold for the need to support an excavation.

Can a trench be wider than 15 feet?

According to OSHA, a trench is a narrow excavation (compared to its length) made beneath the ground’s surface. Usually, a trench’s depth is relatively larger than its width, whereas the width at the bottom is never greater than 4.6 meters or 15 feet.

What is benching a trench?

Benching is a method of protecting employees from cave-ins by excavating the sides of an excavation to form one or a series of horizontal levels or steps, usually with vertical or near-vertical surfaces between levels. For Type B soil the trench excavation is permitted in cohesive soil only. …

How deep can you safely dig?

There is no legal minimum depth that you can dig before calling 811. This is due to the fact that environmental conditions such as ground settlement, rainfall, floods, surface runoff, soil erosion and deposits can change the depth of topsoil, reducing or increasing the cover for underground services.

How much trench Can you dig in a day?

Trencher Production “That’s one trench with one operator, opening up 10,000 feet of trench per day, whereas one excavator can open up 1,000 to 1,500 feet per day.

When a trench is 4 feet or more in depth?

The requirements are: In trenches that are 4 feet or more in depth, provide a means of access and egress. Spacing between ladders, stairs or ramps should not be more than 50 feet. No worker should have to travel more than 25 feet laterally to reach a means of egress (exit).