Free checklist
Backflow prevention assembly annual maintenance checklist
The annual backflow preventer service is the deep pass: the measurements, cleanings and tests a quarterly round doesn't reach. This checklist keeps the full service on record with the photos that make it defensible later. Work is commonly verified against the local water authority requirements, ASSE guidance. Confirm the edition your authority having jurisdiction has adopted.
The checklist
Every item, and the photo evidence it needs
The photo count on each row is what RTI would require before the item can be submitted. Work the list here and watch the gate hold, or load it into RTI and let it enforce the real thing.
Before isolation
Owner notified before water service is interrupted
Owner told when and for how long service downstream of the assembly will be off, so occupants and processes that rely on it are planned for.
No photoImpairment procedure followed on a fire service assembly
Where the assembly feeds sprinklers or standpipes, the monitoring company and owner are notified and the owner's impairment procedure is in place.
No photo
Certified test
Check valves tested for tightness with a calibrated test kit
Each check holds the required differential without leaking through, reading recorded on the test form.
Relief valve tested for opening and reseating
Relief valve opens at the correct differential and closes fully afterward with no continued drip.
Test gauge calibration verified before testing
Gauge calibration sticker current and within the required interval before the test is trusted.
As-found readings recorded before any cleaning or repair
The first test result is written down as found, so a failure is still reported to the water purveyor even when the assembly passes after repair.
No photo
Shutoff and physical condition
Shutoff valves exercised full stroke and checked for tight shutoff
Valve closes fully with no bypass flow, then reopens fully without sticking.
Assembly body and fittings inspected for corrosion or damage
No pitting, cracking or previous repair points showing signs of failure.
Installed orientation and clearances match its approval
Assembly mounted in a flow orientation its approval allows, with the clearance to floor, wall or grade the water authority requires, and any change since last test reported.
Return to service
Shutoffs reopened and water service restored
Both shutoffs fully open, test cocks closed, the owner told service is back, and on a fire line the monitoring company told it is restored.
Assembly left protected as found after the test
Any enclosure, pit cover, insulation, heater or heat trace found on the assembly put back and on, so it is left no less protected than before the test.
Assembly tag updated with this test
Tag on the body shows this test's date, result and tester, readable and fixed to the assembly.
Closeout
Test results recorded on the required report form
Form filled out completely with readings, dates, tester certification number and assembly identification.
Report filed with the water authority and copy retained on site
Submission confirmed (not just mailed), and a copy kept with the building's mechanical records.
No photo
What usually sends this back
The failures are almost always the evidence, not the work
- Test performed but the report never actually submitted to the water authority, leaving the certification lapsed.
- Relief valve tested for opening but not confirmed to reseat and stop dripping afterward.
- Gauge used for the test out of calibration, invalidating the result even though it passed.
Verified against
Common questions
6 answers
- What does this backflow prevention assembly annual checklist cover?
- 14 items across 5 sections, covering before isolation, certified test, shutoff and physical condition, return to service, and more. Each item spells out what the person walking the job is actually looking for, not just a box to tick.
- Who should run this inspection?
- A certified backflow tester, often a specialty subcontractor rather than the general service tech.
- When in the schedule should this walk happen?
- Once a year, timed to meet the water authority's required test window for the assembly's certification.
- Why do these items ask for a photo?
- 10 of the 14 items call for photo evidence, 11 photos in all. A checklist answer without the photo is a claim; the photo is what makes the record worth something in a dispute and lets a reviewer approve work without re-walking the job.
- What most often fails a backflow prevention assembly annual inspection?
- Test performed but the report never actually submitted to the water authority, leaving the certification lapsed. Relief valve tested for opening but not confirmed to reseat and stop dripping afterward. Gauge used for the test out of calibration, invalidating the result even though it passed.
- Can I use this checklist in RTI?
- Yes. Start a free RTI workspace, build this list as a checklist, and the Photo Gate holds the submit button until every mandatory item is answered and its photos are attached. Approved inspections roll into a branded turnover package with a tamper evident audit trail.
Run it with the Photo Gate
A checklist nobody can submit half-finished
Load this list into RTI, stick a QR tag on the area it covers, and the submit button stays locked until every mandatory item is answered and the 11 required photos exist. Approved walks roll into a branded turnover package with a tamper evident record behind every line.
See all 508 checklists · 6741 items and 5984 photo requirements in total.