Inspect the backflow preventer as its own asset on a tablet, against the NFPA 25 items that actually apply to an assembly — and hand the customer a report that names every finding, its severity and its code reference.
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If you service water-based fire protection systems, the backflow prevention assembly is one of the line items on the visit — and one of the ones most likely to end up as a handwritten note that never makes it cleanly onto the report. Fire Inspect Hub treats it as its own asset with its own record. The standard behind it lives on our NFPA 25 page, and the wider water-based workflow on our fire sprinkler inspection software page.
§13.7 covers backflow prevention assemblies on a water-based fire protection system. On the annual visit the assembly is inspected along with the rest of the system: it is in service, the control valves are locked or supervised in the correct position, the valve area is accessible, the gauges read properly and the strainers and filters are clean. Separately, §13.7.1.3 calls for the assembly to be inspected internally every five years — components operating correctly, moving freely, and in good condition.
Ten items on the annual visit, across four sections — each carrying its own NFPA reference and its own severity if it fails:
| Item | Reference | If it fails |
|---|---|---|
| System in service on inspection | §4.1 | Impairment |
| Prior inspection reports / logs on site | §4.3 | Non-Critical |
| Plans of systems on site | §4.3 | Non-Critical |
| Modifications to system documented | §4.3 | Non-Critical |
| Item | Reference | If it fails |
|---|---|---|
| Valve area accessible | §13.3.1 | Non-Critical |
| Control valves accessible | §13.3.1 | Non-Critical |
| Backflow valve locked open / tamper | §13.3.2 | Impairment |
| Tamper switches appear operational | §13.3.3 | Critical |
| Item | Reference | If it fails |
|---|---|---|
| Gauges appear operating properly | §13.2.1 | Critical |
| Strainers and filters cleaned | §13.4.4 | Critical |
The five-year section is a toggle on the same record — turn it on for the visit where it is due, and it adds the §13.7.1.3 internal inspection of the assembly alongside the other five-year valve and component items.
A standalone backflow assembly has no system main drain (§13.2.5), no system waterflow alarm devices (§13.2.6) and no alarm panel to reset (§13.2.7). Those three items are removed for backflow assets — not asked on the form, not printed on the report.
That is a deliberate piece of work, not a cosmetic one. An inapplicable item that still gets asked is an invitation to answer it, and an answered item for equipment that does not exist is a false line on a compliance record.
When an item fails, the inspector writes the finding and picks its severity. The asset's status rolls up from the worst finding on it:
No failed items on the assembly.
An advisory finding — documentation gaps, accessibility.
A deficiency on the assembly's condition or function.
The assembly or its valve is out of service.
Every open deficiency lands in a DEFICIENCY FINDINGS table on the report — the asset, the item that failed, the NFPA reference, the severity and the inspector's own description. Items the inspector corrected during the visit are listed in their own section instead, so a fix made in the field is not handed over as an open item. The report says what was found. Nothing is inferred, upgraded or smoothed on the way to the document.
Not a mockup — this is a real report generated by the software for a backflow preventer, one open Non-Critical finding and all:
The full document carries the client and job header with the Brycer ID, an executive summary listing each asset with its serial number, location and status, the per-asset item-by-item detail above, the inspector's comments, the open-deficiency table, and the signature and compliance-date block.
If your AHJ uses Brycer — the Compliance Engine — Fire Inspect Hub cuts the re-keying. The report carries the client's Brycer ID and the per-asset compliance status, and a Brycer Assistant screen lays the values out field by field so you copy them straight across instead of re-typing from paper. New to Brycer? See our Brycer explainer.
For the standard itself, see our NFPA 25 overview; for the full water-based ITM workflow, our fire sprinkler inspection software page. Dry-pipe valves have their own page — dry pipe trip test software — and wet-pipe sprinkler coverage is on our NFPA 13 sprinkler inspection page. To weigh platforms, see our comparison of fire inspection software.
§13.7 covers the assembly on a water-based system: it is inspected on the annual visit — in service, valves locked or supervised, valve area accessible, gauges reading properly, strainers clean — and §13.7.1.3 calls for an internal inspection every five years.
The preventer is its own asset — manufacturer, model, serial number, size and location — inspected against ten annual items across general status (§4.1, §4.3), control valves (§13.3.1–§13.3.3), gauges (§13.2.1) and strainer maintenance (§13.4.4). The five-year section adds the §13.7.1.3 internal inspection.
No. The system main drain (§13.2.5), system waterflow alarm devices (§13.2.6) and alarm panel reset (§13.2.7) are removed for backflow assets — not asked on the form, not printed on the report.
Each failed item carries the inspector's severity — Non-Critical, Critical or Impairment — with its own description and code reference, collected into a DEFICIENCY FINDINGS table on the report. Items corrected during the visit are listed separately rather than filed as open.
A PDF report: client and job header with the Brycer ID, an executive summary of every asset with serial, location and status, the per-asset item detail with NFPA references, inspector comments, the open-deficiency table, and the signature and date block. A real generated example is linked above.
Yes — it cuts the re-keying. The report carries the Brycer ID and per-asset compliance status, and the Brycer Assistant screen lays the values out field by field to copy across.
Per user, month-to-month, with a free tier. $54 per user, per month — the same rate at any team size, with no long contract.