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Tracer Wires

Lay the line. Leave it ready to locate.

Once the trench closes, the pipe still needs to be found. Copperhead® tracer wire, connectors, ground rods and access pits work together to give locating crews a superior signal path to follow along buried non-metal pipes and conduits.

  • Steel-core strength. Copper cladding carries the trace.
  • Sealed joins. Sound grounding. Terminals within reach.
  • Versatile wire and access points suited to your site.

How to choose the right tracer wire for the job

  • Choose wire for the way you install

    An open trench, a bore and a pipe burst put different demands on the wire. Start with the installation method.

  • Choose connectors for the join

    Straight splice or service branch? Match the connector to the wire size, construction and number of conductors.

  • Choose access and grounding for the site

    Give the locating crew a place to connect and a grounded circuit to trace. Match the pit base to the surface and the lid to the connections.

Choose wire for the way you install

For light-duty open-cut work, SuperFlex™ offers low recoil for easier placement beside the pipe. High Strength CCS provides a stronger open-cut option: Tapex lists 48 kg breaking strength for its 1 mm wire and 128 kg for 1.6 mm.

For directional drilling, SoloShot™ Extra-High Strength is purpose-built for the pull; Tapex’s 2 mm option lists 522 kg breaking strength. For pipe bursting and critical bores, consider stranded SoloShot™ Xtreme, listed by Tapex at 2,200 kg breaking strength.

Match gauge, reel length and service colour to the project. Breaking strength is not an allowable installation pull load.

Choose connectors for the join

For matched wire gauges, SnakeBite™ joins up to three compatible wires with a quarter-turn lock and no stripping. Dielectric gel protects the contact underground. Insert. Twist. Locked.

Twist-on connectors suit approved light-duty wire combinations and require wire preparation. Mainline-to-Service connectors let you add a lateral without cutting through the mainline wire.

SoloShot Xtreme needs a connector approved for its stranded pipe-burst cable. Choose the appropriate in-line splice or branch connector and check the exact conductor combination before ordering.

Choose access and grounding for the site

Use SnakePit® Lite Duty for light-traffic, off-road locations; adjustable models suit changing ground levels, with an anti-sink design on the XL. Concrete/Driveway and Roadway models cover their respective traffic applications. Confirm the project’s required load class for the selected assembly.

For direct connection and ground control at the surface, choose the two-terminal switchable lid. Crews can switch the ground from above without removing the lid. Single-terminal lids provide no separate ground connection.

Drive-in magnesium ground rods provide the earth path needed to complete the locating circuit. Copperhead’s 6.1 m lead gives flexibility in rod placement. Plan grounding at dead ends and access points to the approved system layout.