Before any excavation in South Carolina, someone has to contact SC 811, the state's one-call center. The law requires notice at least three full working days before digging, and it applies to a homeowner setting fence posts just as much as to a contractor with an excavator.
Once a request is filed, each utility with lines in the area sends a locator to mark them with paint or flags. The colors are standard: red for electric, yellow for gas, orange for communications and fiber, blue for drinking water, and green for sewer and drain lines. White marks show where the digging is planned.
What the marks don't cover matters just as much. Utilities only mark the lines they own. A private line from your house to a detached garage, a well pump, a pool, or a yard light won't show up. That's why we ask about every private line on the property before we cut, and dig by hand near anything we're unsure about.
At GI Construction, the 811 ticket is the first step of every job, not a formality. It protects your neighbors' service, it protects our crew, and it keeps a planned project from turning into an emergency repair.