Backflow Testing in Dunn, NC

Signs your Dunn property needs attention

• You want to tap a lawn sprinkler system into city water
• A business is opening or remodeling in an older downtown building
• The annual test date for your assembly is coming up
• An assembly outdoors is dripping, cracked or was hit by a mower
• You inherited a device with no test history on file

Dunn's rules and setting

The City of Dunn treats its own Cape Fear River water and runs about 115 miles of water lines. Its cross-connection ordinance covers three kinds of customers: industrial, commercial and irrigation. Each has to obtain a permit from the City and install an approved backflow prevention assembly on the property, ahead of any branching of the private system. Assemblies are then tested annually by certified testers, and the reports are kept on file with the City. The City publishes a backflow test and maintenance report form for this.

The phrase "before any branching" is the practical part. The assembly has to sit upstream of every tee and fixture it protects, which usually means close to the meter. A sprinkler line spliced into a hose bib or tied in after other branches won't meet the rule.

Dunn has an older housing stock, with about two-thirds of homes built before 1980. In older houses the supply line from the meter is often original, and adding irrigation can mean replacing a section of that line to place the assembly correctly. City crews make water taps and repair City services and mains; plumbing on your side of the meter is yours to arrange.

What affects the cost

• Permit and new install versus a test on an existing device
• Assembly type and size, from a small residential irrigation unit to a commercial line
• Condition of the supply pipe where the device has to be placed
• Parts if the test fails and the checks need rebuilding
• Development paperwork through Dunn Planning and Inspections, which handles permits online through Cloud Permit

What to expect on the call

You'll be connected with an independent plumber who works in Dunn. Explain whether you're adding irrigation, opening a business, or just need this year's test. If a device is leaking, close the valve on the irrigation branch or the main shutoff. Ask the plumber to confirm the test report reaches the City so it's on file under your account.