Why you should schedule backflow installation and testing

Backflow installation and testing are extremely necessary for a lot of reasons. There are abundant and very apt reasons why plumbing experts recommend backflow testing for individuals. Backflow can pose a very serious hazard. Backflow occurs when the contaminated and dirty water flows back into the potable drinking water supply of a house, a factory, or even a manufacturing unit. One can avoid ingesting dirty water if the backflow prevention mechanism is followed. All stakeholders in homes and factories must take adequate measures to prevent the possibility of any such backflow from occurring. Most water supply units are also mandated to undergo backflow prevention checking and maintenance at regular intervals. These are just the many regulations instituted by the health and sanitation department authorities to combat the problem of backflow. 

Merely installing a backflow prevention device is not enough, but rather the authorities focus on helping the people to monitor the effectiveness of those prevention devices and to ensure that they do not indeed fail to perform their functions as intended. This is the reason backflow devices are so popular, as they help in providing a comprehensive cover against the occurrence of any form of backflow within the water supply lines. There are several cases where the wrong assembly of the backflow prevention apparatus can lead to the contamination of the whole drinking water supply. This is one of the most common reasons why they should be changed and checked every so often. This is also the reason why RPZ testing is so important to be conducted regularly. The fundamental reason behind any kind of backflow taking place is due to the change in pressure within the plumbing system and it is one of the main reasons why there is a chance of cross-contamination of the entire water supply line. 

The water flowing inside the pipes is maintained at a certain level of pressure to make it flow to the many different outlets, and if this pressure suddenly decreases, due to the freezing of the water, or any other reason, the contaminated water moves back into the system, thereby polluting the entire water supply. The reason for the occurrence of backflow can be attributed to two primary reasons, the first being back-siphonage, and the other being backpressure. Back-siphonage occurs when the pressure suddenly drops in the plumbing system allowing the water from below, which allows contaminated water to enter the system and pollute the potable drinking water supply. Backpressure, however, occurs when there is tremendous high pressure in the downstream plumbing, leading to the water there being pumped into the main water supply and polluting it. Cross-connections are points where the potable water system and the contaminated water connections meet. They are the most vulnerable parts for backflow occurrence and hence extra care needs to be applied to those zones to prevent any kind of vulnerability in the system that would lead to backflow. This is also why regular backflow testing is so essential, as it can check the functioning of the entire backflow prevention assembly device system.