Backflow Prevention

Backflow is the reversal of water's normal direction of flow. When water passes through a water meter into a customer's home or business it should not flow back into the County water main. If it does, the condition is referred to as "backflow." Backflow prevention is keeping the unintentional reversal of water flow from occurring.

The elimination of opportunities for backflow are critical to a water utility because of the potential for contamination of the water system. In the absence of backflow prevention devices, water can be drawn from individual users back into the distribution system. Here it may be accessed by other users. If the users from which the water backflows are industrial customers or otherwise pointerle dangerous materials, the public system can become contaminated.

Cobb Water is serious about the mission to protect customers, water resources and the environment. Our objective is to monitor and implement devices which will prevent water supply from becoming contaminated, even unintentionally. To combat the dangers of backflow cross connections, education in their recognition and prevention is needed. Working with the public as a team, the Cobb County Water System will provide direction to medium and high risk Cobb businesses on the installation of appropriate backflow prevention devices.