Protect Your Water from Contamination

Normally, your water supply is under 40 to 80 pounds of pressure when it enters your home or business. On rare occasions, this pressure is interrupted—perhaps by a water main break, a power failure, firefighters battling a nearby blaze, or some other disruption in water service. When there is a significant loss of pressure, water can flow back into the public water supply system. When water flows backward into the public water supply, it is called “back-siphonage” or “backflow”. Backflow can also occur when the customer’s water system has a higher pressure than the ELCO water system. In rare instances, backflow can contaminate the public water supply. Contamination occurs when a water supply line is connected to equipment containing a non-potable (unsafe to drink) substance. Such connections are called cross-connections and they are dangerous if no protective measures are taken.