UPHCA Pipeline Podcast Features Greg Hand on Backflow Training, Certification, and Water Safety
Backflow training is not just another class in the plumbing industry.
It protects drinking water. It helps contractors understand cross-connection risks. It gives plumbers, landscapers, irrigators, municipal workers, and water professionals the knowledge they need to test and understand backflow prevention assemblies correctly.
In this episode of the UPHCA Pipeline Podcast, the Utah Plumbing Heating Contractors Association sat down with Greg Hand, founder of Backflow Training Services and longtime backflow instructor now connected with the UPHCA Academy.
Greg has been called the “grandfather of backflow” in Utah, and after hearing his history, it is easy to understand why.
The conversation covered how Backflow Training Services began, what students experience during certification week, why hands-on training matters, how enforcement has changed in Utah, and why backflow certification continues to grow in importance across the state.
How Greg Hand Got Started in Backflow
Greg’s backflow story started where many strong trade stories begin: in the plumbing field.
As a plumber and instructor, he saw backflow as part of the trade. While teaching plumbing apprenticeship at Salt Lake Community College, Greg was introduced to the seriousness of backflow prevention and the role it plays in protecting public drinking water.
From there, the work grew.
He began teaching backflow concepts through Utah Valley Community College and Rural Water of Utah. Eventually, a need became clear: most backflow testers were concentrated in the Salt Lake Valley, and more training access was needed elsewhere.
That need helped launch what became Backflow Training Services.
Greg’s first class was held at the Quail Creek Water Treatment Plant near the Hurricane and St. George area in 1998. He started with one training stand and four assemblies. Over time, he collected used backflow preventers, repaired them, rebuilt them, and turned them into practical training equipment.
What started small became a major part of backflow certification training in Utah and beyond.
Backflow Training Services and the UPHCA Academy
Backflow Training Services is now part of the UPHCA Academy, creating a stronger home for backflow education and hands-on training.
That matters because backflow training is not something students can fully understand from a textbook alone.
Students need to see assemblies. They need to test them. They need to work through faults. They need to understand what can go wrong and how to identify it.
The Academy’s backflow lab gives students access to training stands, test equipment, classroom instruction, practical lab time, and experienced instructors who understand both the theory and the field reality.
Greg explained that the Academy acquired Backflow Training Services and that additional stands have been built to support growing training needs, including the St. George lab.
That expansion matters for Southern Utah.
Backflow training access in St. George helps support workers not only in Washington County, but also nearby areas of Nevada and Arizona where ABPA certification may be useful.
For contractors, water professionals, landscapers, irrigation workers, and municipal employees, having regional access to backflow training can reduce travel time and make certification more practical.
What Students Learn During Backflow Certification Week
One of the strongest parts of the podcast was Greg’s breakdown of what a backflow certification class actually looks like.
The class begins on Monday with classroom instruction. Students go through the manual and learn core backflow concepts, including:
- What backflow is
- Back siphonage
- Back pressure
- Thermal expansion
- Direct and indirect connections
- High hazard and low hazard conditions
- Backflow prevention assemblies and devices
This foundation matters because students must understand the concepts before they can test assemblies correctly.
On Tuesday, students move into the lab. They begin learning how to test all four assemblies step by step, without faults added.
On Wednesday, the lab work gets more challenging. Faults are added to the assemblies so students can learn to identify problems like leaky shutoff valves and leaky check valves.
On Thursday, students spend time practicing and preparing for the exam. Greg also discusses test anxiety, which he treats as a real part of the certification process. That is a practical detail many training programs overlook.
On Friday, students take the ABPA exam. The written exam includes 100 questions, and students need a 70% score to pass that portion. The practical exam requires students to test all four assemblies without instruction, while trained ABPA proctors observe. The practical portion must be performed correctly.
This structure gives students both classroom knowledge and hands-on testing experience.
That combination is the point.
Backflow work requires understanding, accuracy, and confidence.
ABPA Certification and Utah Certification
Greg also explained the difference between ABPA certification and Utah certification.
Students who pass the class and exam receive ABPA certification, which is recognized nationally. For those testing in Utah, there is also a Utah certification process and certification number used on backflow test reports.
This distinction matters for people who work across state lines.
A tester working in Utah needs to follow Utah’s certification requirements. A tester working in another state may rely on ABPA certification depending on that state’s requirements.
For anyone planning to test, inspect, or work with backflow prevention assemblies, it is important to understand both the national certification and state-specific requirements.
That is one reason formal training matters.
Recertification Every Three Years
Backflow certification is not a one-time event.
Greg explained that certification is valid for three years. After that, testers need to recertify.
Backflow Training Services offers recertification classes that begin later in the week and help returning testers get back up to speed before taking the same written and practical exams on Friday.
This is important because testers may go years between exams, and even experienced professionals can benefit from review, practice, and time in the lab.
The practical test requires precision. The written test requires a solid understanding of backflow concepts. Recertification helps keep testers sharp and current.
Why Hazard Level Matters
The podcast also covered an important concept for landscapers, excavators, irrigators, and contractors who work around backflow prevention: hazard level.
Greg explained that one of the first questions anyone should ask before selecting or installing an assembly is:
What is the hazard?
A high hazard condition can create serious health risk. A low hazard condition may still matter, but the risk is different.
From there, contractors and water professionals need to consider whether back pressure can occur. The type of hazard and the possibility of back pressure help determine which backflow prevention assembly or device may be appropriate.
That is not something to guess at.
The water purveyor often plays a key role in determining requirements and sending annual testing notices. The certified tester performs the test and submits the report so the water purveyor can verify that the water system is being protected.
This is exactly why backflow education is important.
The work is technical. The stakes are high. The details matter.
Backflow Enforcement Is Increasing in Utah
Greg also noted that backflow enforcement has increased significantly in recent years.
He attributed much of that change to greater emphasis on backflow administration among water purveyors. As more water purveyors comply with backflow program requirements, more assemblies are being identified, tested, and brought into regular reporting processes.
That means more demand for trained and certified backflow testers.
Greg mentioned that he used to teach only a few classes each year. Now, classes are held monthly, and sometimes more than once per month.
That growth reflects a real shift in the industry.
Backflow prevention is not a side issue. It is becoming a more visible and enforced part of protecting drinking water systems.
For plumbers, irrigation professionals, landscapers, municipal workers, and maintenance professionals, backflow certification can be a valuable skill and service area.
Training Built From Decades of Experience
When asked what sets this training apart, Greg pointed to experience.
He has spent nearly 40 years teaching, observing, correcting mistakes, improving instruction, and refining the way students learn backflow testing.
That experience shows up in the way the class is structured.
Students are not just rushed through information. They are taught the concepts, taken into the lab, shown the assemblies, given practice time, exposed to faults, and prepared for the pressure of testing.
Greg also talked about relating to students in a way they can understand.
Good instruction is not just about knowing the material. It is about teaching it in a way students can absorb, practice, and apply.
That is especially important in the trades, where classroom learning has to connect directly to what happens in the field.
A Permanent Home for Backflow Training
Before Backflow Training Services became part of the Academy, Greg moved equipment from location to location.
Training stands, hoses, equipment, and materials had to be loaded, transported, set up, tested, torn down, drained, and stored again.
That created a significant amount of time, labor, and logistics around every class.
Having a more permanent home through the UPHCA Academy changes that.
Students can come to a dedicated training environment. Instructors can work from an established lab. Equipment can stay set up and ready. The program can operate with more consistency.
That is good for students, instructors, and the industry.
It also helps UPHCA strengthen its role in workforce development and technical training.
Why This Matters for Utah’s Plumbing and Water Industries
Backflow prevention protects public drinking water.
That alone makes the work important.
But this episode also shows something bigger: the trades depend on people who are willing to teach, train, build equipment, answer questions, and pass knowledge forward.
Greg Hand’s work through Backflow Training Services has helped train backflow testers across Utah and beyond. The UPHCA Academy now helps carry that work forward with a dedicated training space and growing access in both Northern and Southern Utah.
For contractors and workers, backflow certification can create new opportunities.
For water purveyors, it helps support compliance and public safety.
For homeowners and businesses, it helps protect drinking water systems.
For the trade, it helps raise the standard of knowledge and professionalism.
That is exactly the kind of work UPHCA exists to support.
Learn More About Backflow Training
Anyone interested in certification or recertification can learn more through Backflow Training Services.
Those interested in broader trade education can visit the UPHCA Academy.
Contractors who want to stay connected to Utah’s plumbing, heating, HVAC, and mechanical trade community can learn more about UPHCA membership.
Backflow training is technical, practical, and important.
And thanks to instructors like Greg Hand, students have a clearer path to learning the work, passing the exam, and helping protect water systems across Utah.