Pedicure chair drains into a ______ ______, and the hot and cold water must have a ______ ______ ______ backflow preventer.

Pedicure chair drains into a ______ ______, and the hot and cold water must have a ______ ______ ______ backflow preventer.

• A. Open Receptacle; Reduced Pressure Principle
• B. Open Receptacle; Backflow Preventer
• C. Closed Receptacle; Atmospheric Vacuum Breaker
• D. Open Tray; Check Valve

Answer: (A)

The situation tests how to protect potable water when a fixture drains to a open receptacle and could be exposed to cross-connection with wastewater. Because the chair’s drain goes into an open waste receptacle, there’s a risk that water from the supply could be drawn back into the supply piping if pressure changes or backflow occurs. To prevent that, the hot and cold water lines must be protected with a reduced pressure principle backflow preventer. The RPZ is designed to stop backflow in both backpressure and back-siphonage scenarios, providing a high level of protection for a high-hazard connection like a pedicure chair. The other options don’t offer the same comprehensive protection: a simple backflow device without the RPZ’s relief mechanism isn’t sufficient for high-hazard cross-connections, an atmospheric vacuum breaker isn’t reliable under continuous pressure and cannot protect against backpressure, and calling for an open receptacle is correct but a less robust device than an RPZ wouldn’t meet typical code requirements for this setup.

The situation tests how to protect potable water when a fixture drains to a open receptacle and could be exposed to cross-connection with wastewater. Because the chair’s drain goes into an open waste receptacle, there’s a risk that water from the supply could be drawn back into the supply piping if pressure changes or backflow occurs. To prevent that, the hot and cold water lines must be protected with a reduced pressure principle backflow preventer. The RPZ is designed to stop backflow in both backpressure and back-siphonage scenarios, providing a high level of protection for a high-hazard connection like a pedicure chair. The other options don’t offer the same comprehensive protection: a simple backflow device without the RPZ’s relief mechanism isn’t sufficient for high-hazard cross-connections, an atmospheric vacuum breaker isn’t reliable under continuous pressure and cannot protect against backpressure, and calling for an open receptacle is correct but a less robust device than an RPZ wouldn’t meet typical code requirements for this setup.