A backwater preventer can play an important role in keeping your house safe and stable! There are actually several reasons why you might need one at your property based on location and topography.
A backflow preventer is a valve system that stops the water in your main water supply from creating a reverse flow in the wrong direction. Once in place, a backwater preventer will ensure that clean, sanitary water gets to your pipes. This will keep all of your drinking water, bathing water and home-use water clean.
Stephens Plumbing is more than qualified for installing and testing backflow prevention systems just for you.
Backflow can be defined as the unwanted reversal of flow of non-potable water or other fluids through a “cross-connection” and into the pipes of a public water system or a consumer’s private potable water system. It’s often described that there are two types of backflow: backsiphonage and backpressure backflow.
A cross-connection is any temporary or permanent connection between a public water system or consumer’s potable (i.e., drinking) water system and any source or system containing nonpotable water or other substances. An example is the piping between a public water system or consumer’s potable water system and an auxiliary water system, cooling system, or irrigation system.
Backpressure backflow is backflow caused by a downstream pressure that is greater than the upstream or supply pressure in a public water system or consumer’s potable water system.
Backpressure (i.e., downstream pressure that is greater than the potable water supply pressure) can result from an increase in downstream pressure, a reduction in the potable water supply pressure, or a combination of both.
Increases in downstream pressure can be created by pumps, temperature increases in boilers, etc. Reductions in potable water supply pressure occur whenever the amount of water being used exceeds the amount of water being supplied, such as during water line flushing, fire fighting, or breaks in water mains.
Backsiphonage is backflow caused by a negative pressure (i.e., a vacuum ~ or partial vacuum) in a Public water system or consumer’s potable water system. The effect is similar to drinking water through a straw. Backsiphonage can occur when there is a stoppage of water supply due to nearby fire fighting, a break in a water main, etc.
Backflow into a public water system can pollute or contaminate the water in that system (i.e., backflow into a public water system can make the water in that system unusable or unsafe to drink), and each water supplier has a responsibility to provide water that is usable and safe to drink under all foreseeable circumstances.
Furthermore, consumers generally have absolute faith that water delivered to them through a public water system is always safe to drink. For these reasons, each water supplier must take reasonable precautions to protect its public water system against backflow.
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