Public and Private Utilities

Private Facilities may not be marked by the underground facility operators.

Not all underground facilities buried in your yard belong to facility operators and therefore, some marks may be missing after you contact Tennessee 811. Here are just a few examples of underground facilities that may be present in your yard that YOU are responsible for having located yourself:

• Water or sewer lines from the main line to your home. 
• Propane lines, including the main line from your tank to your home or between a home and other buildings such as a garage located on your land. 
• Electric and gas lines are generally only located up to the meter. However they may continue beyond the meter to other buildings on your properties. Also, other buried electric lines or gas lines may have been installed to outbuildings, yard lights, or other places in your yard. 
• Irrigation lines 

If you have any private underground facilities on your property, it is your responsibility to have them located. The underground facility operator did not install them, and cannot locate them for you. 

Since it is important to have these private lines located, we will provide a short list of private locators that do business in Tennessee. We do not endorse, or recommend, any specific company. Feel free to contact any you wish for private locating.

Public Utilities

Public utilities are owned and maintained by municipalities or utility companies and are part of a large public network. Examples of public utilities are water mains, buried electric lines, gas mains, fiber optic and telecommunications lines, and sewers.

When approaching a home, the public utility will usually end at the meter, or the point of service. (Points of service can also be a transformer, vault, valve, or junction box.)

Private Utilities

Private utilities extend beyond the public utility network and are typically the responsibility of the property owner.

Examples would include:

• Power to detached garages, barns, pool heaters, and landscape lighting
• Lines to septic systems, water lines between the water meter and your home
• Sewer lines between the city or county sewer system and your home
• Irrigation systems
• Invisible pet fences
• Propane, grills, and wells
  
  Homeowners should hire a private locator to get private lines located. If you need someone to locate private utility lines, you can search online for ‘private utility locating companies near me.’