I recently moved into a new house. I was trying to test out the sprinkler system. I turned on the sprinkler valve in the utility room. I also turned on the valve on the backflow device (I think – never done this before). When they are both open the backflow device sprays water everywhere. In the video below I have it only slightly turned on so the spray is much less than full blast.
Am I opening the valves incorrectly? Is the backflow device broken? Or is it something else?
Video of issue: https://youtu.be/FHcr1fxBZqk
Backflow picture:
Best Answer
If the inlet valve (bottom, in your picture) isn't opened enough, or if the other valves aren't set right, there's not enough pressure to activate the backflow preventer, so water just spews out the top and/or sides. Check out this video on how to properly "turn on" the pressure-vacuum breaker (PVB).