I purchased a house back in May and this was originally missed in the inspections. I have no idea how long it's been like this, but I've been thinking of how I can fix this as soon as I noticed.
The detached garage gets its power from this buried romex wire that is exposed to the elements. It looks like it was originally protected by some sort of non-outdoor conduit at some point. It's now rusted through and exposed. The ~~romex~~ UF insulation still seems intact, but I'd obviously like to protect this more permanently.
The wire is powering a single outlet and light that is just above where this exits the ground and enters the garage.
I was thinking I could use some correct type of caulk (something for asphalt?) in combination with some correct conduit to make this safer. I can probably disconnect it from the outlet and pull it through to install conduit piping from the top. Or find something outdoor rated that is more U-shaped that can be bonded to the back wall to also protect this.
Anyone have any ideas? I'd very much like to avoid digging this up completely. If I were to server this wire in the process, there's nothing I can do other than digging up the driveway.
Edit: thanks for all the comments everyone! I did go back to check and it is actually UF cable. I assumed romex but went back to check. After removing all the cobwebs and actually rubbing away the dust, I could make it out. I didn't realize you could bury any cable right into the asphalt like that.
So obviously this all isn't very ideal but they actually made at least two mistakes here. That pipe is not rated for being outside and also Romex isn't allowed to be used in wet areas such as underground. Only something like UF cable would be allowed to be ran buried like this.
There's two things that you can do here, the right way and easy way. The right way would be to rip the whole wire out and run it properly. The easier way would be to kill the outlet at the breaker, disconnect the wire from the outlet and to carefully remove the pipe and replace with a PVC pipe that won't rust. Get one from the electrical aisle because those won't degrade in the sun.
Thanks, you pointing out the difference between romex and UF got me to go back out and specifically check the cable. It is in fact UF. I didn't realize cable could be buried directly like this without some sort of protective conduit the whole way so didn't think to check the level of cable it was.
I think I will do what you and a handful of others suggested, and disconnect the breaker then replace the pipe from the top. I think I will also get an AFCI breaker that was also mentioned just in case.