Drinking water has a long way to go before it comes out of your faucet. Because of this, the integrity of the water lines is of great importance. As water always flows from its source, it is pushed through pipes under great pressure. Pipes are designed to move water in one direction, but occasionally a“Backflow” occurs in the pipe as a result of a break in the line, sudden loss of service due to damage, or peak demand at a fire hydrant. When Backflow occurs, the water reverses on itself and can introduce contaminants from within connected apparatuses.

Most Backflow assemblies include a check valve (or valves), a set of springs, and once in a while, a relief valve comes with it. Each of these parts must be tested annually and maintained. When a Backflow test is underway, the assembly is put under pressure, and each part is inspected. To pass inspection, check valves must be able to hold a minimum amount of pressure. As this is happening, the relief valves are open to see if a certain pressure differential is achieved. With the test results in hand, repairs are initiated if the minimum standards are not satisfied.

Cross Connections explain why and when Backflow devices are used. A cross connection is any connection between pipes that carries water, drinking or non-drinking water. So wherever cross connections exist, a Backflow device is required. When properly working,, the device helps to keep unsavory odors, tastes, or nasty chemicals from entering drinking water. Typical cross connections include: hot tubs, sprinklers, swimming pools, radiant heating systems, boilers, soda fountain machines, irrigation systems, and suppression systems. Call us today if you have any of these and we can make sure that all of your cross connections are protected.

These are devices that keep non-drinkable (non-potable) water from mixing with clean drinking water. Installed into the plumbing system, Backflow preventers usually consist of several valves that make sure that stagnant or polluted water beyond the Backflow preventer can’t escape into the drinking water.