A backflow preventer is the valve that keeps sprinkler water, fertilizer, and anything else in your yard or building from being pulled back into the drinking water. Colorado water providers require testable assemblies to be checked, usually every year, and most send a notice when yours is due.
Singer Plumbing Co.'s owner, Gabriel Singer, is an ABPA-certified backflow tester (ABPA certification #06-2610861, current through October 2029). Backflow testing is our main service. We test residential and commercial backflow assemblies across Denver and the surrounding metro, make repairs on the spot when we can, tag the assembly, and file the report the way your water provider requires.
When you need a backflow test
- Your water provider sent a letter or email saying your annual test is due
- A new irrigation system or backflow assembly was just installed
- The assembly was repaired, rebuilt, or moved
- It cracked over the winter or sprays when the system is turned on in spring
- You're a property manager with test dates across several buildings
What a backflow test includes
- Checking the assembly type, size, and serial number against your provider's records
- Testing each check valve and relief valve with a differential pressure gauge calibrated October 2026 and traceable to NIST
- Noting anything that failed and why
- Tagging the assembly with the service date, our business information, and the tester's certification number, as Colorado now requires
- Filing the report with your water provider, and a copy for you
- A price for any repair before the work starts
Rules depend on your water provider
The state sets the framework, but each water provider runs its own program, with its own deadlines, filing system, and penalties. Pick yours:
All of them side by side: backflow testing requirements by provider. Managing several properties? See commercial and HOA backflow testing. Plumbing or irrigation company without a certified tester? Subcontract your backflow tests.
Backflow tests come due every year. Get a free reminder before next year's test, or add it to your calendar →
What it costs
First test $95 per device for new customers. Around the Denver metro, published prices for a standard test run about $90 to $125 per assembly, before any trip or filing fees. What changes the price →
If the assembly fails
A failed test usually means debris on a check valve or a worn rubber part, not a whole new assembly. Many failures can be cleaned or rebuilt with a repair kit, then retested the same visit, after you approve the price. If the body is cracked, usually from a missed winterization, the assembly has to be replaced. Replacing an assembly is installation work, which in Colorado requires a licensed plumber; we'll tell you exactly what's needed and do the retest once the new one is in.
Backflow testing and your sprinkler blowout
The backflow preventer is also the part most likely to crack over a Colorado winter. During a sprinkler blowout we drain it and leave the test cocks partly open so trapped water can't split the body. In spring, the startup is a good time to schedule the annual test, because the system is being turned back on anyway. When to turn sprinklers back on →
Not sure what you have?
Most homes have a pressure vacuum breaker (PVB) on the sprinkler system. Commercial buildings often have double check (DCVA) or reduced pressure (RPZ) assemblies. How to tell them apart →
Property managers
If you manage rentals or HOAs with several assemblies, send us the addresses and due dates. We'll schedule the tests together and send each report with photos and a single invoice. How we work with property managers →
Recent backflow tests
Photos from our own jobs. Locations and customer details are left out.