Hide Unsightly Utility Boxes With This Clever Landscaping Hack

House styles, home design, and landscaping trends have all changed throughout the years. What hasn't changed is people's desire to be comfortable in their homes. For the most part, the idea of comfort requires utilities such as water, natural gas, and electricity. While these utilities add a measure of comfort and convenience to your everyday life, they can also add unsightly features to your yard. Water and gas meters have been commonplace in yards as long as those utilities have been used in homes. Over the decades, more large electrical utility boxes have appeared in yards as electric providers have transitioned from overhead to underground electrical lines. 

While water and gas meters are relatively small and easily hidden, the large electric utility boxes, properly known as pad-mounted transformers, are much bulkier and, in the views of many, much more unsightly. However, these boxes, which shouldn't be confused with the electric meter found on your house, can be hidden, or at least obscured, with a little imagination and creative landscaping.

Keep in mind, these boxes contain high-voltage electrical wires and equipment. So, they do present a potential danger. Additionally, electric company personnel do need to access these boxes periodically, so however you end up hiding it, you can't inhibit their ability to access it. However, there are several clever landscaping hacks that will hide unsightly utility boxes without blocking access to them for utility workers. But, before beginning any project to hide a utility box, be sure to check with your utility provider to make sure your planned project is allowed.

When it comes to hiding a utility box, a fence is perhaps the quickest solution. A fence not only hides a utility box, but it also creates a barrier that can help prevent children from playing near these high-voltage areas. A fence is also an outdoor update that can add value to your home.

There are a few things to keep in mind before constructing a fence around the utility box in your yard. The gate will need to remain unlocked so workers have access. Secondly, utility boxes have high-voltage wires leading to them underground. The same holds true for water and gas meters, where buried lines lead to the meters. Before digging holes, call 8-1-1 to determine the location of these lines. Additionally, according to guidelines issued by Boone Electric Cooperative, objects such as fences or shrubs should be at least four feet away from the sides of the box and 10 feet from the door panel.

These same guidelines apply to planting shrubbery around utility boxes: leave an access point for workers, check before you dig, and keep bushes the proper distance away. If you do it properly and choose the right bushes, they can not only hide your utility box but also attract birds to your yard.

If you are unable to utilize fences or bushes to hide your utility box, you can always consider a trellis which can be anchored without digging. With a bit of creativity, you can also repurpose items such as an old water hose to create a unique trellis and hide your utility box at the same time.