Backflow Test LogBackflow Test Log
Texas TCEQ backflow test form
Backflow Assembly Inventory, Fire-Line Alert & Annual Test Log Builder
Enter your assembly count, water supplier, fire-line status, and annual notice due date to generate a multi-valve test log and 30/7/1-day reminder schedule.
Fire line
Questions before you hire
Worksheet preview
Verified: 0 / 5 · Open items / red flags: 5
Ask the water supplier whether this assembly is on a fire line. Do not assume a plumber can test it.
Enter the date from the notice to see the countdown.
The email contains this worksheet. This plan also sends reminder emails 30, 7, and 1 day before the date you entered.
Block 1. Property and water supplier Label: TX Backflow Log Water supplier: Count of assemblies: 1 Next date you entered: Fire-line status: unknown Do not assume a plumber can test it. Ask the water supplier whether this assembly is on a fire line. Block 2. Questions before you hire a tester Ask: is filing the report included, which agency receives it, what happens if the assembly fails. [ ] Confirmed whether tester submits the official pass report directly to the water supplier [ ] Verified which municipal portal or agency address receives the completed test form [ ] Asked in writing what happens (repair vs. re-test fee) if an assembly fails [ ] Checked with the water supplier whether any valve is on a fire-protection line [ ] Recorded serial number and physical meter/vault/riser location for each assembly Block 3. Per-assembly test log Valve # | Serial / Size | Line type | Test date | Tester cert # | Submitted to utility (Y/N) 1 | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ | ________ Block 4. What this file is not We do not test and we do not file the report. Prepared by Backflow Test Log (backflowtestlog.com). Source notes read 2026-11-13. We are not a certified backflow tester; a water utility; a fire-line contractor.
In Texas, public water systems regulate commercial, industrial, irrigation, and fire-line cross-connections under Title 30, Texas Administrative Code (30 TAC) §290.44(h) and Customer Service Inspection rules under 30 TAC §290.46(j), administered by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Under 30 TAC §290.44(h)(1)(B) and §290.44(h)(4), every backflow prevention assembly installed to protect against a health hazard must be field-tested upon installation and annually thereafter by a TCEQ-licensed Backflow Prevention Assembly Tester (BPAT), documented on TCEQ Form TCEQ-20700 (Backflow Prevention Assembly Test and Maintenance Report) or an approved municipal portal equivalent. Official TCEQ cross-connection rules were read 2026-11-14: https://www.tceq.texas.gov/drinkingwater/cross-connection
Backflow Test Log is an independent digital publisher—not TCEQ, not a Texas municipality, and not a licensed BPAT—so our PDF does not replace Form TCEQ-20700. Instead, the inventory builder above and Texas BPAT log plans produce a pre-booking property checklist and optional 30, 7, and 1 day email reminders so Texas owners can verify counts, fire-riser rules, and submission windows before hiring.
For an example of published Texas contractor pricing, an El Paso commercial plumbing page read on 2026-11-13 on [[/|our annual backflow test home page]] listed testing at $75 to $200 per assembly; your own BPAT quote depends on city portal fees, valve size, and whether a fire sprinkler riser is involved.
What 30 TAC §290.44(h) requires vs. stricter Texas city ordinances
At the statewide baseline, 30 TAC §290.44(h)(1)(B) mandates annual BPAT testing on all assemblies protecting against health hazards—such as commercial kitchens, medical clinics, car washes, chemical-injected landscape systems, private well interconnections, and industrial facilities—while requiring installation testing on non-health assemblies. However, Texas municipalities are authorized to adopt local cross-connection ordinances stricter than the state floor.
Major Texas utilities—including Austin Water, Dallas Water Utilities, San Antonio Water System (SAWS), Houston Public Works, Fort Worth Water, and El Paso Water—routinely enforce annual testing across commercial containment assemblies, dedicated irrigation meters, and fire-protection risers alike. Always read the exact due date and assembly serial list printed on your Texas water supplier notice rather than assuming a low-hazard valve is exempt.
Inside TCEQ Form TCEQ-20700 and passing differential thresholds
The standard Texas Backflow Prevention Assembly Test and Maintenance Report (Form TCEQ-20700) captures two separate columns of gauge readings—“Initial Test” and “Test After Repair”—so utility reviewers can audit both the as-found condition of the valve and its post-maintenance performance. For a Reduced Pressure Principle Assembly (RPBA / RPZ), Check #1 must hold tight at >= 5.0 psid, the differential pressure relief valve must open at >= 2.0 psid, and Check #2 must hold >= 1.0 psid closed tight.
For a Double Check Valve Assembly (DCVA), both Check #1 and Check #2 must hold >= 1.0 psid independently. For a Pressure Vacuum Breaker (PVB) or Spill-Resistant Vacuum Breaker (SVB), the air inlet must open at >= 1.0 psid and the check valve must hold >= 1.0 psid. Under 30 TAC §290.44(h)(4)(B), the BPAT’s differential test gauge must be tested for accuracy annually, and both the gauge serial number and calibration date must appear on the signed report.
The 10-day BPAT portal submission window across Texas water utilities
Passing the physical gauge test in the mechanical room is only half of Texas compliance; the water purveyor considers an account delinquent until the BPAT files the signed report. Municipal cross-connection programs across Texas commonly require the licensed BPAT to upload or deliver the completed Test and Maintenance Report within 10 calendar days (and in some cities within 5 business days for failed health-hazard assemblies) through portals such as BSI Online, SC Tracking Solutions, VEPO, or city-hosted systems.
Before you approve a Texas service call, ask two direct questions from our tester booking checklist: first, whether the city’s third-party portal filing fee is included in the quoted price, and second, whether the BPAT emails you the portal confirmation receipt inside that 10-day submission window.
Customer Service Inspections (CSI) vs. annual BPAT backflow testing
Texas commercial owners frequently confuse a Customer Service Inspection (CSI, TCEQ Form TCEQ-20699 under 30 TAC §290.46(j)) with an annual backflow assembly test. A CSI is a plumbing cross-connection survey triggered by new construction, material plumbing modifications, or suspected contamination hazards, checking for lead solder and unprotected cross-connections.
A CSI inspector cannot test and certify a mechanical backflow preventer unless they separately hold an active TCEQ BPAT license (30 TAC Chapter 30, Subchapter B). Conversely, once an RPBA or DCVA is installed as a result of a CSI, ongoing annual gauge testing belongs to a licensed BPAT.
Texas fire-sprinkler risers and SFMO SCR licensing rules
If your Texas water notice lists a Double Check Detector Assembly (DCDA) or Reduced Pressure Detector Assembly (RPDA) on a permanently installed fire-protection sprinkler system, state fire marshal regulations under Texas Insurance Code Chapter 6003 come into play. Testing, closing control valves on, or repairing a fire-line backflow preventer in Texas generally requires the BPAT to be employed by a firm registered with the Texas State Fire Marshal’s Office under a Fire Sprinkler Contractor (SCR) license.
Hiring an standalone irrigation BPAT without SCR registration to test a commercial fire riser can result in a rejected utility filing and an alarm trouble dispatch. Mark Yes or Not Sure Yet in the workspace above and read fire line backflow test before booking.
Freeze-enclosure protection and non-testable AVB distinctions in Texas
Hard winter freezes across North, Central, and West Texas routinely split exposed outdoor brass RPBA bodies and warp check-valve seats on commercial strip centers and car washes. When replacing an insulated pouch or ASSE 1060 heated fiberglass enclosure, make sure the RPBA bottom relief drain flap stays unobstructed—wrapping foam tape tightly over an RPBA relief port violates 30 TAC cross-connection installation standards and floods the pipe insulation when the valve vents.
Also note on your property walk-through that simple hose-bibb Atmospheric Vacuum Breakers (AVBs, ASSE 1001) have zero test cocks and are not testable on Form TCEQ-20700; only testable mechanical assemblies equipped with shutoff valves and gauge test cocks (RPBA, RPDA, DCVA, DCDA, PVB, and SVB) belong in the assembly count you enter on your annual log.
Mandatory 3-year TCEQ record retention for Texas properties
Under 30 TAC §290.44(h)(4)(C) and §290.46(f)(3)(B), original signed TCEQ Test and Maintenance Reports must be retained for a minimum of 3 years for inspection by TCEQ regional investigators. Commercial landlords, restaurant operators, and property managers should keep a matching 3-year archive containing each Form TCEQ-20700 copy, gauge calibration date, repair parts list, and utility portal confirmation.
Use Texas checklist and reminder plans ($19 single PDF, $39/year for one property with 30/7/1-day reminders, or $149/year for up to five properties) so staggered municipal deadlines never slip past the 10-day filing window.
What is TCEQ Form TCEQ-20700 in Texas?
Form TCEQ-20700 is the official Texas Backflow Prevention Assembly Test and Maintenance Report completed and signed by a TCEQ-licensed Backflow Prevention Assembly Tester (BPAT) under 30 TAC §290.44(h).
How fast must a Texas BPAT submit the test report to the city?
Most Texas municipal cross-connection ordinances require the BPAT to upload or submit completed Test and Maintenance Reports within 10 days of testing (check your local water utility’s exact portal deadline).
How long must Texas backflow test reports be kept on file?
Under 30 TAC §290.44(h)(4)(C) and §290.46(f)(3)(B), signed backflow test and maintenance reports must be retained for at least 3 years.
Can any Texas BPAT test a commercial fire sprinkler backflow valve?
No. For permanently installed fire sprinkler systems in Texas, the BPAT must also work under a company holding an active Texas State Fire Marshal Fire Sprinkler Contractor (SCR) registration. Confirm with your water supplier before hiring.
How often must a Texas BPAT’s test gauge be calibrated?
Under 30 TAC §290.44(h)(4)(B), differential pressure gauges used for Texas backflow testing must be tested for accuracy annually, and the calibration date is logged on Form TCEQ-20700.
Is Backflow Test Log affiliated with TCEQ or a Texas water utility?
No. We are an independent publisher delivering a pre-booking PDF inventory checklist and 30/7/1-day email reminders. Your licensed BPAT performs the test and files Form TCEQ-20700.