Protect our water supply

The water that comes out of your tap is treated so it is safe to drink.  However, you may accidentally contaminate the water supply if there is a drop in water pressure and you have:

• submerged the end of a hose into a puddle of water  
• submerged the end of a tap in a pail or sink of dirty water
• left a hose inside your fish tank when you are cleaning it
• used a pesticide sprayer on your garden hose without installing a special valve

When these situations occur, it is called a cross-connection. The drop in water pressure allows the hose or tap to siphon the contaminated liquid back into the drinking water supply.

Prevent cross-connections

To protect the water supply and prevent a cross-connection from occurring, you and your family should:

• leaving a gap of at least 2.5 cm between the water supply (i.e., tap or end of a hose) and a potential contaminated water source
• attaching a hose connection vacuum breaker to outdoor garden taps
• installing a backflow prevention valve/device