Call 811 – Before You Dig

Call 811 from anywhere in the country a few days prior to digging and your call will automatically be routed to your local one call center. Do this before you start a project on your property that requires digging, such as landscaping, putting in a fence or adding a deck.  They will contact all utilities that provide service to your property. Those utility companies will send out a locator to mark their access lines on your property.  Although you may have to wait 48 hours (not including weekends and holidays), you will be aware of service lines. This can prevent any accidents such as chopping up a line  that provides service to your home or to your neighborhood.

Remember the 811 process

  • Notify your local one call center by calling 811 or making an online request 2-3 days before work begins. Be sure to check our state map to find out how far in advance you need to call.
  • Wait the required amount of time for affected utility operators to respond to your request.
  • Confirm that all affected utility operators have responded to your request and marked underground utilities.
  • Respect the marks.
  • Dig Carefully around the marks with care.

When you call, the operator at your local 811 center will be able to answer your questions.  If you’d like any additional details about using the 811 service, want to know the timeframe in which you can expect buried lines on your dig site to be marked or would like information about how or whether you will be notified when the marks are complete, the operator can talk you through the process.  For more information, check out the website at 811-Before you dig