Backflow Installation for a New Business

Your use decides it, not your landlord or your plumber. Each Valley water provider keeps a list of uses that need protection at the water service, and the assembly type that goes with each.

A few examples from the lists:

Anything not on a list is decided case by case. Phoenix's Planning and Development Director makes that call, and Mesa evaluates any premises with cross-connection potential by degree of hazard (City Code 8-1-3(G)).

Phoenix treats tenant improvements and changes in occupancy as new construction (TRT 00635). So a salon moving into a former shoe store, or a dental office into a former insurance agency, gets reviewed under today's rules even if the building has been there for decades. Our FAQ on what a change of use triggers covers the trigger in detail. This page is about getting the assembly in.

1. 1Plans show the assembly. Mesa requires manufacturer, model and size on approved plans, and a note that a recognized tester will test it (City Code 8-1-6). Phoenix site plans show the location and type of each secondary assembly and the piping back to the meter (TRT 00634).
2. 2Permit. Phoenix uses a backflow installation permit application (in its TRT 00336 packet) that asks whether the install is new or a retrofit, which system it's on and whether it's an RP, double check or PVB. Gilbert is the exception: its FAQ says new construction installations don't need a separate backflow permit.
3. 3Install. Scottsdale gives 45 days from the permit to finish.
4. 4Test and file. The assembly can't go into service until a certified tester passes it. Phoenix wants the original certified test report for its inventory, then annual reports after that.
5. 5Certificate of occupancy. Tempe won't issue one until the test results and an inspection request are in (33-107(d)). Scottsdale won't issue a temporary one until the assembly is tested and working.

Miss step 4 and step 5 waits. That's the part that delays openings.

The service assembly sits as close as practicable to the meter, before the first branch line, and somewhere a tester can reach. Phoenix bars RPs and double checks from basements, meter boxes, pits and vaults, and wants PVBs above ground. Mesa and Scottsdale require the assembly to be at least the diameter of the service connection. An RP also needs somewhere for its relief water to go, so it isn't tucked into a planter bed with no drainage. Full location rules are on backflow assembly relocation.

The service assembly protects the city. Your equipment may need its own devices to protect your water. Mesa's point-of-use list (City Code 8-1-9) names a device for dozens of items: an RP for carbonated beverage dispensers, a double check or dual check for ice makers, vacuum breakers or similar for shampoo basins and pedicure stations. Point-of-use assemblies there sit no more than 5 feet above the floor and get tested yearly. Restaurants should read restaurant backflow testing too.

• The existing assembly already matches your use. If the space has the right type and size near the meter, it may only need a test in your name. Ask the city before buying a new one.
• The landlord's service assembly already covers the building. In a multi-tenant center the owner often carries it. Your lease decides who tests it. See who pays for backflow testing.
• Fire sprinkler work goes through the fire department and a fire protection contractor. Fire backflow assemblies and fire sprinkler work are outside what HQ does.

HQ installs domestic and irrigation backflow assemblies for new businesses and tenant improvements: we pull the permit, set the assembly to the city's detail, test it and file the report so it's in before your certificate of occupancy. We can also handle the rest of the plumbing in the space. You get a free estimate and an upfront price before work starts. Related: commercial plumbing, medical and dental plumbing, salon plumbing and gas line installation.