Annual backflow testing in Seminole County: what the rule requires of managers

Suppose you take over an office building in unincorporated Seminole County, and the files hold leases, a pest contract and nothing at all about the assembly beside the water meter. Then the county's utility sends a notice: the assembly is due for its annual test, and the clock has started. The notice is the local end of a state rule and a county ordinance.

What does Florida's cross-connection rule require?

Rule 62-555.360 of the Florida Administrative Code prohibits cross-connections unless backflow protection keeps water from flowing back into the public water system. The Department of Environmental Protection's program page defines a cross-connection as any temporary or permanent connection between a drinking water system and a source of nonpotable water or other substances, such as the piping to an irrigation system, a cooling system or an auxiliary water system.

The rule puts the program on the water supplier. Each community water system must keep a written plan that says which customers need protection at the service connection, whether the utility or the customer tests and maintains it, how often assemblies are tested, and what qualifications a tester needs. Assemblies at non-residential service connections are tested after installation or repair and at least annually; residential ones at least every two years. A residential service connection is one two inches or less in diameter that serves a building containing only dwelling units.

Because each water system runs its own program, the one that applies to your property is the one belonging to the utility that supplies its water.

How does Seminole County enforce it?

Seminole County's Cross-Connection Control Program runs under Ordinance 2014-23, part of Chapter 270 of the county code. The county is responsible for the water up to and including the meter. Backflow prevention assemblies are required on all service connections on the customer's side of the meter, and they are tested annually.

The ordinance sets the mechanics:

• The Utilities Operations Division notifies the owner or customer when a test is due, and the test has to be done within 30 days of that notice.
• At commercial and industrial premises, the owner pays for the inspections and tests. Residential customers have their assemblies tested and repaired by the county as part of the rate structure, though replacing an assembly that cannot be repaired is the customer's cost.
• An owner who skips the test gets a second notice. The owner has 30 days after the first notice and 15 days after the second before the county may terminate water service, or the county may test the assembly at the owner's expense.
• An assembly that is bypassed or altered so it no longer works means immediate termination. Violations can also bring fines and fees under the county's rate resolution and code enforcement action.

The ordinance does not say in so many words which side of the residential line an apartment complex falls on, so ask the Utilities Operations Division how your account is classified before assuming the county will test it.

Which properties need which kind of assembly?

The ordinance lists premises and the assembly each needs at the service connection. The list is a guide, not a complete one, and the division may require more protection where conditions warrant it.

Testing takes a water shutdown that usually lasts five to twenty minutes, according to the ordinance. Facilities that cannot lose water need parallel assemblies, and multi-story buildings with flushometer toilets are required to have them. Tell tenants before test day.

What happens when an assembly fails a test?

The ordinance gives a commercial or industrial owner 30 days from the inspection report to repair or replace a failed assembly, and asks for the tester's affirmation of compliance within 10 days of the repair. The county's program page is stricter: it gives the owner or customer 20 days from the failed notice, for residential and commercial properties alike, requires the repair to be approved through the county's Cross Connection Control Inspector, and asks for the affirmation report by email within 24 to 48 hours of completion. When the two differ, follow the dates on your notice and confirm with the program office.

One small item belongs in every painting contract: test cocks and identification tags on assemblies must not be painted, the ordinance says.

Who may test a backflow preventer in Seminole County?

A tester must be certified through the University of Florida TREEO program for backflow assembly testers or another USC/FCCHR or FDEP approved program, and approved by the Utilities Operations Division. To get on the county's Tester's List, a tester supplies a copy of the current certification and its expiration date, a recent calibration of the test equipment and a valid Seminole County occupational license. A tester whose certification expires is removed. The program page links the current Certified Backflow Assembly Testers List, so check a name against it before booking. DEP adds that mechanical backflow preventers have to be tested with properly calibrated gauge equipment.

What should a manager keep on file?

The ordinance makes the owner or customer keep accurate records of tests and repairs and give the county copies on forms it approves. A file per assembly answers any notice quickly:

1. 1Service address, water meter number and utility account number.
2. 2Device type, size, manufacturer, model and serial number, and its location on the property.
3. 3The installation date and the first test, which the ordinance requires right after installation.
4. 4Each annual test report, with the tester's name and certification.
5. 5Every repair, the retest and the affirmation of compliance sent to the county.
6. 6The county's notices, with the date each arrived, since the 30-day and 15-day periods run from receipt.

Backflow testing is one of the trades 1Stop dispatches, and Seminole County is in its service region. Our vendor vetting guide covers the license and insurance checks, and you can send a request.