In Accokeek, water service varies by address. Homes on WSSC Water must have testable backflow assemblies, such as irrigation vacuum breakers and RPZs, tested every year and after installation or repair by a WSSC-registered plumber with cross-connection certification. Homes on a private well have no utility test schedule but still benefit from proper protection. Call the number on this page to be connected with a local plumber in Accokeek.
Accokeek's mixed water picture
Accokeek was tobacco-farming country on the Potomac and is now mostly suburban, but not uniformly so. The median home here dates to 1997, yet west of Indian Head Highway the Moyaone Reserve holds individually designed mid-century homes on wooded lots of five acres or more. WSSC Water is the public utility for Prince George's County, but which Accokeek parcels have public water and sewer and which rely on a private well and a private onsite wastewater system depends on the address. Your water bill, or the lack of one, answers the question.
If WSSC serves you, its cross-connection program applies: testable assemblies are tested yearly and after any installation or repair, and WSSC does not do the testing itself. The county's cross-connection line is 301-206-8601. If you are on a well, no utility tracks your devices, but an irrigation line, a hose-end sprayer or a boiler can still contaminate your own supply without one.
Comparing your options
| Situation | Usual protection | Testing |
|---|---|---|
| WSSC home with in-ground irrigation | PVB or RPZ | Every year and after repair, by a certified technician |
| WSSC home with a treated boiler | Testable assembly or non-testable device, by setup | Yearly if testable |
| Well home with irrigation | Vacuum breaker or check assembly on the sprinkler branch | No utility schedule; periodic checks are sensible |
| Any home, outdoor faucets | Hose bib vacuum breaker | Visual check; replace if it leaks |
Signs to watch for
- A WSSC letter about an assembly on record
- Water dripping from a relief port or vacuum breaker cap
- Sprinkler zones losing pressure after a repair
- Odd taste or color at the tap after the irrigation runs, especially on a well
- Frost cracks on an exposed assembly
- A new irrigation system or boiler installed without any device on it
Timing through the year
Test irrigation assemblies at spring start-up, before regular watering begins. Drain them in fall, because Accokeek's wooded lots can hold frost in shady spots longer than open yards. Gas and propane installations in the county are permitted and inspected by WSSC, and so is plumbing work, so a device replacement during a larger project is coordinated through WSSC Permit Services at 301-206-4003.
Backflow Testing questions in Accokeek
My home is on a private well. Does backflow still matter?
How do I know which water utility serves my address?
Why does an in-ground sprinkler system need a backflow assembly?
Who pays for the test and any repairs?
More plumbing services in Accokeek
Backflow Testing nearby
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