Licensed plumbers, written pricing, serving Yonkers
New York State and the Westchester County Department of Health require an annual certified backflow test on commercial buildings, lawn irrigation systems, and any connection that could send used water back into the public supply. Action Construction handles that full cycle in Yonkers, NY: installing the assembly, repairing it when it fails, running the certified annual test, and filing the report with the City of Yonkers Water Bureau so the property stays compliant.
A backflow preventer is a valve assembly that stops water from reversing direction and flowing back into the potable supply. A pressure drop in the public main, from a hydrant draw, a water main break, or heavy demand during a fire, can pull water backward through any cross connection, and without a preventer that back siphoned water carries whatever it touched on the way, lawn chemicals, boiler treatment, or process water, into the drinking supply.
New York State, under the Department of Health cross connection control rules, and the local water authority require these assemblies on commercial buildings, lawn irrigation systems, boiler make up lines, fire suppression systems, and other points where non potable water could reach the drinking supply. If your property has an irrigation system, a boiler, a commercial kitchen, or a fire sprinkler service, it almost certainly has at least one assembly the water authority expects to see tested every year, and often more than one.
Each assembly has to be tested by a plumber who holds the state backflow tester certification every year, with the results filed with the water authority. In Yonkers the report goes to the City of Yonkers Water Bureau. We run the test with a calibrated differential pressure gauge, closing the shutoffs, opening the test cocks in sequence, and watching how the check valves hold and when the relief valve opens. That takes twenty to thirty minutes per device on most assemblies, and we submit the report for you so nothing lapses.
If you have received a testing notice with a deadline, that notice sets the clock. An untested assembly can lead to a violation and, for a continued lapse, the water authority is authorized to shut the service until the test is filed. Testing several devices on one visit lowers the cost per device, so it is worth having every assembly on the property done in the same trip.
When an assembly fails its test, the internal checks or the relief valve usually need a rebuild kit, and older brass bodies sometimes need full replacement. We stock rebuild kits for the common makes and can often repair and retest on the same trip so the property does not sit noncompliant while a part is ordered.
New installations are
Because we also handle the plumbing behind the assembly, a failed device that is causing pressure complaints or discolored water gets diagnosed as part of the whole system, not just swapped and handed back.
Irrigation backflow assemblies usually sit outside and are exposed to freezing. We handle the spring startup and test when the system is recharged, and the fall winterization that blows the lines down and drains or removes the assembly so it does not crack over the winter. A cracked assembly discovered in April is a replacement and a delayed startup on top of it, so the fall service pays for itself. For a property that runs irrigation on a separate meter, the assembly on that line still has to be tested every year.
Backflow work is one line item on our broader commercial plumbing services, and a failed assembly on a domestic line can present as pressure or water quality problems that first look like a hidden leak.
For anything outside backflow, our Yonkers plumbing services hub has the full list.
The two types we see most are the double check valve assembly, used on lower hazard connections such as lawn irrigation and some fire lines, and the reduced pressure zone assembly, used where the hazard to the potable supply is higher, such as a boiler with chemical treatment or a commercial process line. A reduced pressure assembly has a relief port that dumps water if the internal checks foul, so a puddle under one after a pressure event is usually a sign it did its job and now needs service, not a sign it is broken. Assemblies mounted outside for irrigation fail most often from freeze damage and from grit in the first check.
Assemblies in mechanical rooms fail from
We identify the make, model, and size on site, match the rebuild kit or the replacement to it, and record the serial number on the report so the next annual test starts from a known history rather than a blank sheet.
It is an annual certified test that confirms the backflow assembly still prevents reverse flow. It takes about twenty to thirty minutes per device using a calibrated gauge. The cost is a modest flat fee per assembly, lower per device when several are tested in one visit, with any repair or replacement quoted separately if a device fails.
No. New York requires the annual test to be performed by a plumber holding the state backflow tester certification, using calibrated equipment that is itself recertified on a schedule, with the results filed with the water authority. A property owner cannot self certify.
A plumber who holds the backflow tester certification does. We perform certified testing and also install and repair the assemblies, so a failed test can be corrected and retested without bringing in a second company or leaving the property out of compliance while parts are ordered.
The price reflects the certified tester license, the calibrated gauge that has to be sent out for recertification, and the report filing with the water authority, not just the minutes on site. Testing multiple devices in one visit spreads that fixed cost and lowers the per device price.
The water authority can issue a violation, and for a continued lapse it is authorized to terminate water service until the assembly is tested and the report is filed. Catching up is usually a single test visit, so it is worth booking as soon as a notice arrives rather than waiting for a second letter.
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