Got a Backflow Test Letter From Louisville Water?

Louisville Water sends its notices in a set order. According to its program page, the order is a 90-day install letter, a 14-day install letter, a 30-day testing letter, and a 14-day testing letter. The first two are about getting a device installed. The last two are about getting a device tested.

So the number on your letter tells you two things: whether Louisville Water is asking for an install or a test, and how many days you have. A 14-day letter follows an earlier notice, which means the clock is already short. Louisville Water’s sample 30-day notice says the test is due “within 30 days of this notice.”

• 90-day install letter: your service needs an approved backflow device installed.
• 14-day install letter: the follow-up on the install request.
• 30-day testing letter: the device you have is due for its test.
• 14-day testing letter: the follow-up on the test request.

Louisville Water’s program covers multi-family, commercial, irrigation and fire services. Its Cross Connection Control Brochure says all commercial and industrial domestic services, and all fire and irrigation services, must have a Louisville Water approved backflow prevention device installed.

Irrigation is not only for businesses. The program page lists residential irrigation too, so a homeowner with a lawn sprinkler system can get a letter. We test commercial backflow devices only and do not test irrigation systems, so for a sprinkler letter, an irrigation contractor is the one to call. If you are not sure why your property got one, the letter and the program page are the place to start.

Every year. The brochure says customers with main containment backflow preventers must have a certified technician test the device on an annual basis, and the program page says active irrigation services must be tested annually.

That means the 30-day testing letter is not a one-time thing.

You do. Louisville Water’s program page tells customers to contact a contractor of their choice, whether a plumbing, irrigation or fire sprinkler contractor. Louisville Water does not assign one.

Its sample 30-day notice also says the customer is responsible for all costs of the test and any repair. That is why it pays to call early. We usually answer the phone live, and you can always reach Tina or Doug, the owners, so you are not waiting on a callback while your deadline runs.

“Fantastic business, ethical and fair.”

The results go to Louisville Water on its Backflow Prevention Device Test and Maintenance Form, which is linked from the program page. The brochure says Louisville Water may forward results to the Kentucky Division of Plumbing or to Louisville Metro Public Health and Wellness.

Louisville Water has printed more than one email address for test reports over the years, on its web page and on older letters. Use the contact shown on the current program page, or call Louisville Water to confirm, so the report does not go to an old inbox.

Read the letter for two things: whether it asks for an install or a test, and the date it was sent. Then call a contractor before the deadline gets close. When you call us, tell Tina which letter you have and its date, and how many devices are on the property.

We give you a two-hour arrival window instead of making you wait all day, which matters when the device sits in a business that has to stay open. Our backflow testing page covers the visit itself.