Certified backflow testing that keeps you compliant
Backflow testing and prevention for commercial properties, municipalities and facilities, from a Master Plumber who is backflow certified. Protect the drinking water supply and stay on the right side of your water supplier.
What backflow testing protects
Clean water flows into a building one way. If pressure in the street main drops, water that has already been used inside a building can be pulled backward into the supply. A backflow preventer is the valve assembly that stops that from happening.
Because those valves wear over time, testable assemblies are checked on a set schedule. A certified tester confirms they still hold, and the results go on record for your water supplier.
Who usually needs it
- Commercial properties and storefronts
- Multi-unit and mixed-use buildings
- Facilities with high-demand water systems
- Municipal buildings
- Any property that received a testing notice from its water supplier
How a backflow test works
Schedule the test
Call or send a request with the property address and, if you have it, the notice from your water supplier.
Test the assembly
A certified tester checks that the backflow preventer's valves hold and that it is protecting the water supply as it should.
Repair if it fails
Worn parts are repaired or the assembly is replaced, then it is tested again.
Keep your records
Results are documented so you can meet your water supplier's requirement.
The backflow preventers you are most likely to have
Which assembly a property needs depends on the hazard it protects against. These are the common testable types.
- Reduced pressure zone (RPZ)
- The highest level of protection, used where a building's water could carry a real health hazard. It has two check valves and a relief valve that dumps water rather than let it flow backward.
- Double check valve assembly
- Two independent check valves in series, common on fire sprinkler lines and on connections where the hazard is lower. Each valve is tested to confirm it holds.
- Pressure vacuum breaker
- Often found on irrigation systems. It lets air in to break a siphon if pressure drops, and it has to be installed above the highest point it serves.
Not sure which one you have, or whether it is testable? The tag on the assembly or your water supplier's notice usually says. If not, we can identify it on site.
One plumber for the test and everything around it
Because the tester is also a Master Plumber, a failed assembly, a leaking valve or a mechanical room that needs work does not mean calling someone else. The same company handles commercial repairs, water heaters, restrooms and sewer lines.
Backflow questions
Backflow is water flowing the wrong way, from a building's plumbing back into the public water supply. It can happen when pressure in the city main drops or when pressure inside a building rises. A backflow preventer is a valve assembly that stops it.
Backflow test due? Get it on the schedule.
Call the shop or send a request with your property address and the notice from your water supplier.
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