TL;DR
A backflow device for irrigation is the protective assembly on a sprinkler system's supply line that prevents yard water, laden with fertilizer, pet waste, and soil bacteria, from siphoning back into the home's drinking water when pressure drops. Codes assign the type by hazard and geometry: pressure vacuum breakers (PVB) are the residential standard, reduced pressure zone (RPZ) assemblies protect against the highest hazards, and atmospheric vacuum breakers serve single zones.
What it means
A backflow device for irrigation is the protective assembly on a sprinkler system's supply line that prevents yard water, laden with fertilizer, pet waste, and soil bacteria, from siphoning back into the home's drinking water when pressure drops. Codes assign the type by hazard and geometry: pressure vacuum breakers (PVB) are the residential standard, reduced pressure zone (RPZ) assemblies protect against the highest hazards, and atmospheric vacuum breakers serve single zones. Many utilities require professional testing at installation and annually, with results filed with the water purveyor. Installed above ground, PVBs are also the first casualty of a missed winterization.
Where it sits in the glossary
Backflow device for irrigation is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.
Why Ohio homeowners should know it
This is a term Ohio homeowners encounter when reading contractor quotes, hiring paperwork, or inspection reports. Understanding it well enough to ask one good follow-up question is usually all the protection a homeowner needs.
ProFix Directory keeps definitions short on the index page and saves the longer context — Ohio-specific rules, where the term comes from, and which ProFix tools touch it — for these per-term pages so the term is easy to cite and easy to share.
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See also
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