A fire department connection can be used with a bypass to facilitate a forward flow test of the backflow preventer as described in NFPA 25 Annex A.
Is there anything prohibiting the FDC from being used as a drain outlet, as well? Sent in anonymously for discussion. Click Title to View | Submit Your Question | Subscribe
13 Comments
Pete H
11/20/2023 07:43:02 am
Wouldn't the check valve prevent the FDC being used as a drain outlet?
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Anthony
11/20/2023 08:08:19 am
The forward flow line ties in after the check and you have a butterfly valve at the riser. This is very common in my community. Great for anytime you need more than a 2 1/2'' hose valve or the riser room isn't close to an exterior wall or in a basement.
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Glenn Berger
11/20/2023 08:10:15 am
With the correct piping and valve arrangement, the potential is there.
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Dan Wilder
11/20/2023 08:31:39 am
Are you talking the piping to the FDC, not the using the actual FDC correct? Using the piping to the FDC, while unconventional, would be OK if it served the purpose of an actual drain....however, the less manipulation of the FDC itself the better in my mind.
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Chris
11/20/2023 08:34:34 am
I have tried this a few times and have also ran into many issues with it.
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Patrick S
11/20/2023 08:52:24 am
To control the flow from the FDC, plug one outlet, grab a double male adaptor on the other, throw 10' of hose with a Hose Monster.
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Chris
11/20/2023 09:32:52 am
Patrick, I would agree that this is a way to control it for option #3. Each of my comments has a workaround that can be done to avoid the issue, however the issue still creates a problem for most inspectors.
Andrew
11/23/2023 03:55:10 am
Fun fact, Knox wrenches come up on eBay from time to time ;)
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Alex
11/20/2023 08:45:11 am
If you use the same setup as described above with the bypass around the check valve, I do not see an issue. As Chris mentioned, you may want to use additional sections of hose to prevent property damage
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Eric R
11/20/2023 09:09:55 am
/edit: My comment below turned into a rant, so adding a quick answer to the top. You can do this in certain circumstances but you'd want to insure that you are not creating an issue with trapping water in the FDC line that may freeze or corrode the pipe./
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Chris
11/20/2023 09:42:18 am
Love this response Eric, you did a great job explaining it! Have you or anybody else in the community come up with a way to approximate the discharge of a drain? If anybody came up with an approved chart or rule of thumb for this, it would likely fulfill the forward flow requirements as you mentioned. Then, the added costs/design wouldn't be required for simple LH/OH systems.
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Casey Milhorn
11/20/2023 09:28:14 am
Everyone else has covered the "gotchas" pretty well, but I just wanted to add that this would be a great product to develop by one of the manufacturers out there. There's got to be a way to avoid so many penetrations through the wall and use the FDC connection as the FDC, forward flush connection, drain, inspectors test, PRV drain, etc....
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sean
11/26/2023 09:30:10 pm
forward flow yes, main drain is harder
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