Last updated 2026-08-19
TL;DR
Colorado does not run a standalone backflow tester board. Public water systems follow Regulation 11 and expect testers with ANSI-accredited credentials such as ASSE 5110. Install or repair work goes through the State Plumbing Board at DORA. Local utilities still control their tester lists. Confirm fees and forms with those agencies. There is no honest statewide price or processing clock.
What board regulates backflow testers in Colorado?
People search for a backflow tester board in Colorado because they want one phone number and one pocket card. That board does not exist. Three separate desks split the work, and none of them prints the single license you are picturing.
The Water Quality Control Commission adopts Regulation 11, the Colorado Primary Drinking Water Regulations, codified at 5 CCR 1002-11. CDPHE's Water Quality Control Division runs the drinking water program that sits on that rule. [1][2]
Regulation 11 binds public water systems. It does not mail you a tester license. Systems must run a cross-connection control program, keep assemblies tested, and show CDPHE the paper. You show up as the person the system is willing to treat as a certified tester.
Plumbing is a different desk. The State Plumbing Board at the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) licenses people who practice plumbing. The statute is Title 12, Article 155 of the Colorado Revised Statutes. The board rules are 3 CCR 720-1. [3][4][5]
Local water suppliers add a third gate. Denver Water publishes contractor engineering standards that include backflow and cross-connection provisions. Colorado Springs Utilities keeps its own backflow prevention pages and contractor expectations. Special districts often copy those packets and then add a local twist. [9][13]
So if someone tells you to just call the board, ask which desk they mean. CDPHE owns the water-system rule. DORA owns the plumbing license. The utility owns the list that lets your test report count.
I would start with the utility you actually want to invoice, then work backward into the credential they accept, then decide if DORA even belongs in your first year.
The same split shows up in other states, with different labels. Read how Arizona and Idaho divide drinking-water rules and plumbing boards before you assume a Colorado packet will travel.
Do you need a license for backflow tester in Colorado?
You need a recognized tester certification to test assemblies that public water systems count under Regulation 11. You need a Colorado plumbing license, or to work under someone who has one, if you install, repair, or replace those assemblies. A local utility tester list is a third gate. Colorado does not issue a single statewide backflow tester license from one board. [1][3][5]
Read that again if you are coming from a state that prints a tester license number.
Testing means hanging a differential pressure gauge, recording the readings, and filing the report the supplier wants. Most Colorado utilities look for an ANSI-accredited tester credential for that work. ASSE 5110 is the card they see most. [8]
Repair and installation are plumbing. Title 12, Article 155 is the practice act. If you cut into potable piping, swap a reduced-pressure assembly, or rebuild internals, you are in DORA's world. Confirm the line with the board and with the water supplier before you bid a rebuild. [3][5]
Some testers stay on the test-only side for years. It is real work. It is also a volume business with seasonal spikes before irrigation startup and before the annual deadlines the supplier set.
Here is the order I would follow. Get the tester certification first. Add the plumbing license when repair calls start bouncing because you cannot touch the device. Do not print "licensed backflow tester, State of Colorado" on a van. That phrase is not a real license class.
Confirm current application steps on DORA's plumbing applications page. Do not trust a social post for the form name. [6]
| Desk | What they control | What they do not issue |
|---|---|---|
| CDPHE and Regulation 11 | Public water system cross-connection programs | A personal tester license |
| DORA State Plumbing Board | Plumbing licenses and trade practice | A backflow-only tester card |
| Local water supplier | Tester list and report acceptance | Statewide authority |
How much does backflow tester cost in Colorado?
There is no official statewide backflow tester fee. Course tuition is set by schools, often several hundred dollars and sometimes more than $1,000 for a full tester class with the written and hands-on exam bundled. State plumbing application and exam fees live on DORA's plumbing applications page and they change, so confirm the live schedule. Gauge kits, calibration, insurance, and truck costs sit on top. [6]
I will not invent a current DORA dollar amount. Boards change fees. If a blog lists a number without a dated fee schedule, ignore it.
Tester class prices move with the instructor, the city, and whether the school sits on the Front Range or the Western Slope. Community colleges and trade schools publish their own catalogs. Call two of them. Ask what credential sits on the completion card. Ask if the hands-on exam is included.
Gauge kit money is separate. You need a differential pressure gauge outfit that can test reduced-pressure, double-check, and pressure-vacuum-breaker assemblies. New mid-grade manufacturer kits often land in the mid hundreds to around a thousand dollars. That range comes from the open equipment market, not from a state price list, and it moves. Calibration is not optional. Budget a calibration cycle every year, or on the interval the manufacturer printed. Cheap uncalibrated gauges get you bounced off a utility list.
ASSEPath publishes a $149 one-time ASSE 5110/5115 Tester Kit for the paper and study side. It does not replace the school, the certifier, or DORA.
Insurance is the line new testers skip and then regret. Most utilities and general contractors want liability coverage before you hang a gauge on their site. Quotes vary with your other trades. I would not start commercial accounts bare.
First-year costs nobody puts on the sales flyer: report copies, fuel on the I-25 corridor, a place to store a pulled assembly if you also hold a plumbing license, city business licenses, and the days you lose sitting in a utility orientation. Those costs are real and they are not standardized.
Wage context if you are deciding whether to bother: BLS lists median pay for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters at $61,550 a year in the 2023 Occupational Outlook Handbook data. That is national, not a Colorado tester salary survey. Nobody has a clean public dataset for tester-only income in this state. [10]
If you are budgeting against another market, the California cost breakdown is a useful contrast because school and license stacks look different there. Confirm every Colorado official fee with DORA and every course price with the school.
How long does backflow tester take in Colorado?
A tester course is usually about a week of class and lab if you already know basic plumbing. The certification cycle for ASSE-style tester credentials is commonly three years before recertification. A Colorado journeyman plumbing license is a multi-year apprenticeship path, not a weekend. Confirm current exam seats and application processing with DORA. There is no published statewide clock I would trust for a promise that you will be testing by a given date. [5][6][8][10]
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook states, "Apprenticeships typically last 4 to 5 years." That is the plumbing trade path, not the tester class. [10]
If your plan is test-only work, the calendar is the course week, the day you get the card, the day your gauge comes back from calibration, and however long the first utility takes to put you on a list. Some suppliers add you after an email. Others want a packet and a meeting. I have no honest statewide median for that wait.
If your plan includes install and repair, add the Plumbing Board path. Out-of-state plumbers sometimes ask about endorsement. Do not assume reciprocity. Ask DORA. Read the current board rules. [4][6]
Recertification will sneak up on you. Put the expiration on a calendar the day the card arrives. A lapsed card means rejected reports. Utilities do not care that you meant to renew.
Seasonal reality: spring irrigation startup and the weeks before a supplier's annual test deadline are when testers are booked solid. Winter is when you take the class if you can. That is practical timing, not a legal requirement.
What does Regulation 11 actually require of testers?
Public water systems in Colorado must run a cross-connection control program under Regulation 11 (5 CCR 1002-11). Assemblies that protect the public system get tested when they are installed, after they are repaired, and at least annually. The supplier, not you, owns compliance. Your job is a valid credential, a calibrated gauge, and a complete test report the system will accept. [1][2]
EPA's Cross-Connection Control Manual states, "Backflow is the undesirable reversal of flow of water or mixtures of water and other liquids, gases, or other substances into the distribution pipes of the potable supply of water from any source or sources." That is the hazard Regulation 11 is built to stop. [7]
Colorado's rule is a primacy drinking-water regulation sitting on the federal Safe Drinking Water Act and 40 CFR Part 141. EPA does not license testers. The state drinking-water program oversees systems. Testers show up inside the system's program. [11][12]
Read the current Regulation 11 text, including the definitions section, not a 2014 slide deck. The Water Quality Control Commission amends the rule. Older handouts still circulate in shops and they drift.
What testers actually feel from the rule is simple. The report has to be complete. Failed assemblies have to be visible to the owner and to the supplier. The gauge has to be in calibration. The card has to be current. If any of those four break, the system cannot count the test.
I would print the CDPHE cross-connection control program page and the current Regulation 11 PDF and keep both in the truck folder. When a property manager argues with you about annual testing, you point at the system duty, not at your opinion. [1][2]
Do you need a Colorado plumbing license to test backflow?
Not for gauge-and-report work at many Colorado suppliers. Yes for install, replacement, and rebuild work, unless you are working under a licensed plumber the way the Plumbing Practice Act allows. Confirm both sides in writing. Local amendments exist, and DORA is the board that will care if you crossed the line. [3][5][6]
Testing with gauges is not the same as performing plumbing. DORA's State Plumbing Board regulates the trade. Title 12, Article 155 and 3 CCR 720-1 are the documents, not a Facebook thread. [4][5]
I would not take a rebuild job on a hospital reduced-pressure assembly without a plumbing license. That is how people get fined and how reports get rejected.
Fire-line and irrigation accounts blur this for newcomers. The backflow assembly still sits on potable piping. The water supplier still wants a clean tester credential. The plumbing board still cares who cut the pipe. Treat those as separate permissions.
If you already hold a journeyman or master card, you still need the tester certification the utility listed. A plumbing license does not make you a tester. The reverse is also true.
Is ASSE 5110 accepted for backflow tester work in Colorado?
Yes. ASSE 5110 is the tester credential Colorado water systems see most often. Regulation 11 points systems at certified technicians as the current rule defines that term. ASSE Series 5000 is the professional qualifications family that includes the 5110 tester and 5115 repairer tracks. [1][8]
Other ANSI-accredited tester programs exist, including credentials associated with ABPA. I would not pick a school based on a logo you like. Pick the credential your target utilities already print on their tester application.
Call two utilities you want to work for and ask which card they stamp. Then take that class. If Denver Water, a special district, and a mountain town all say ASSE 5110, stop shopping for exotic initials.
ASSE 5115 is the repairer track. It matters if you will rebuild. It does not replace a Colorado plumbing license. Hold both ideas at once. [5][8]
Confirm the live definition of a certified tester in Regulation 11 before you argue with a supplier. The rule text wins. [1]
How do you get on a water utility tester list in Colorado?
You get paid when a water supplier accepts your report. That means their list. Denver Water, Colorado Springs Utilities, Aurora, Fort Collins, and dozens of special districts each keep their own process. There is no statewide roster I would trust. [9][13]
A typical packet is a cert card, a gauge calibration certificate, and contact information. Some suppliers want an insurance certificate. Some want you to sit through a short orientation. A few still want paper forms. Submit what they asked for. Do not argue that another city accepted you.
Denver Water's contractor engineering standards are the document to read if you will work inside that system. Colorado Springs Utilities publishes its own backflow prevention contractor material. Smaller districts may point you at a single staff engineer and a PDF from 2019. Call anyway. [9][13]
Failed-test routing is part of getting listed, even if nobody says it that way. Ask where a fail goes. Ask how fast. If the supplier cannot tell you, you will be the person who eats the angry phone call from the building owner.
I would get listed with the two suppliers closest to your shop before you print postcards. Distance on the Front Range is time. Time is the real cost.
What paper do first-year testers in Colorado actually keep?
Keep the certification card and its expiration, gauge calibration certificates, a copy of every test report, failed-test notices you sent the owner and the supplier, insurance certificates, your plumbing license if you have one, and any city business license the town requires. That folder is your whole defense when someone disputes a job.
Failed assemblies are where testers get in trouble. The owner has to fix it. The supplier has to know. Your report is the trigger. Keep the PDF.
Regulation 11 makes the supplier responsible for the program. Your paper is how they prove annual tests happened. Sloppy testers make sloppy programs, and CDPHE talks to systems, not to your marketing site. [1][2]
I still see people text a photo of a gauge and call it a report. Do not do that. Use the form the supplier named. If they accept a software platform, use that platform. If they want their PDF, use their PDF.
Calibration stickers fade. Scan the certificate the day it arrives. Set a reminder 30 days before it expires.
If you hold a DORA plumbing license, keep that card in the same folder. Inspectors and facility managers will ask for both on the same visit. [3][6]
Paper is boring. Paper is also the only thing that still exists when a property manager claims you never showed up.
What happens if you test without the right credentials?
The water system can reject the report. The owner pays twice. CDPHE can lean on the system if the cross-connection program is sloppy. DORA can come after unlicensed plumbing if you touched the device. I would not test as a favor without a current card and a calibrated gauge. [1][3][5]
Rejected reports are not a slap on the wrist. The assembly is still due. The supplier's clock is still running. You look like the problem even when the owner hired you cheap on purpose.
Unlicensed plumbing is a board issue, not a water-quality pep talk. Read Title 12, Article 155 before you rebuild just this once. [5]
Insurance also gets picky after a bad test or a flooded mechanical room. A lapsed cert or a gauge that missed calibration is a claims headache you do not need in year one.
How is the Colorado path different from nearby states?
Colorado splits the work across a drinking-water rule, a plumbing board, and local supplier lists. That pattern is common. The labels and the fees are not portable.
California's tester board path runs through a much larger county and water-purveyor patchwork. Florida and Illinois hang credentials on different agencies again. Do not assume your Colorado ASSE card plus a DORA license is a national ticket.
I would treat every new state as a new paper path. Read that state's rule. Call that state's plumbing board. Call the first utility you want to invoice. Then spend money.
Mountain and plains suppliers inside Colorado already disagree with each other on packet details. Crossing a state line only adds another disagreement.
What should you confirm before you spend money in Colorado?
Confirm which credential the utilities you want actually accept. Confirm whether your first-year work even needs a DORA plumbing license. Confirm the live fee and form names on DORA's plumbing applications page. Confirm a gauge calibration lab you can reach. Confirm whether the city wants a business license. None of that is a guarantee of approval or of a start date. [6][9]
I would not buy a second truck until two suppliers have accepted your card and you have a month of paid tests. The romantic version of this trade skips that step. The bills do not.
If you want study paper for the ASSE 5110/5115 track, ASSEPath keeps that kit at /start. The legal path is still CDPHE, DORA, and the water supplier. This site is an independent publisher, not a law firm and not a service company.
Read Regulation 11 yourself. Read the Plumbing Board rules yourself. Then go to work. [1][4]
Frequently asked questions
Do you need a license for backflow tester in Colorado?
You need a recognized tester certification to test assemblies public water systems count under Regulation 11. You need a DORA plumbing license, or to work under one, if you install, repair, or replace assemblies. Local utilities still run their own tester lists. Colorado does not issue one statewide backflow tester license from a single board. Confirm the split with DORA and the supplier.
How much does backflow tester cost in Colorado?
There is no official statewide tester fee. Schools set tuition, often several hundred dollars and sometimes over $1,000. DORA plumbing application and exam fees are on the board's applications page and change, so confirm there. Add a gauge kit, calibration, insurance, and ordinary first-year truck costs. Do not trust undated blog prices for board fees.
How long does backflow tester take in Colorado?
A tester course is usually about a week if you already know basic plumbing. ASSE-style cards commonly run on a three-year recert cycle. A journeyman plumbing license follows a multi-year apprenticeship. Utility list processing is local and unpublished as a statewide median. Confirm seats and application timing with DORA. Nobody can honestly promise a start date.
Who is the backflow tester board in Colorado?
There is not one. The Water Quality Control Commission writes Regulation 11. CDPHE runs the drinking-water program. The State Plumbing Board at DORA licenses plumbers. Each water supplier decides who gets on its tester list. Call the desk that matches the task, not a fictional statewide tester board.
Does CDPHE issue backflow tester licenses?
No. CDPHE oversees public water systems under Regulation 11. Systems must run cross-connection control programs and use certified testers as the current rule defines that term. CDPHE does not mail personal tester license numbers. Your card comes from an accredited certifier. Your list status comes from the water supplier.
Can I test backflow in Colorado with only ASSE 5110?
Often yes for gauge-and-report work, if the water supplier accepts ASSE 5110 and your gauge is in calibration. That card does not authorize install or rebuild work by itself. Those jobs sit under the Plumbing Practice Act. Ask the two utilities you want to invoice which card they stamp before you enroll.
How often do backflow preventers need testing in Colorado?
Regulation 11 requires public water systems to have assemblies tested on installation, after repair, and at least annually. Some suppliers set tighter local clocks. The duty sits on the system. Your report is how they prove the test happened. Read the current 5 CCR 1002-11 text rather than an old shop handout.
Do I need to recertify as a backflow tester in Colorado?
Yes if you want reports accepted. ASSE-style tester credentials commonly expire on a three-year cycle. Confirm the date on your card and with the certifier. Utilities reject lapsed cards. Recertification is separate from any DORA plumbing renewal you also hold. Put both dates on a calendar the day the cards arrive.
Can I install a backflow preventer without a plumbing license in Colorado?
Treat install, replacement, and rebuild work as plumbing unless DORA tells you otherwise in writing. Title 12, Article 155 is the practice act. A tester certification is not a substitute. Working under a licensed plumber is the usual legal path if you do not hold your own card. Confirm before you cut pipe.
Are ABPA certifications accepted in Colorado?
Many Colorado suppliers accept ANSI-accredited tester credentials, and ABPA cards show up in utility packets. Acceptance is still local. Regulation 11's current definitions section is the state-level document. Call the water supplier you want to invoice and ask which card they stamp. Do not enroll based on a logo you like.
How do I find approved tester courses in Colorado?
Look at community colleges and trade schools on the Front Range and the Western Slope, then verify the completion card matches what your target utilities accept. Ask if the written and hands-on exams are bundled. CDPHE does not publish a single official school list that replaces that phone call. Confirm the credential, more than the brochure.
What gauge do I need to test backflow assemblies in Colorado?
You need a differential pressure gauge outfit that can test reduced-pressure, double-check, and pressure-vacuum-breaker assemblies, plus a current calibration certificate. Utilities bounce uncalibrated gauges. Mid-grade new kits often cost in the mid hundreds to around a thousand dollars on the open market. Confirm the supplier's calibration interval before you buy the cheapest listing.
Does Denver Water require its own tester certification?
Denver Water runs its own contractor process and engineering standards for work inside its system. It still sits under Regulation 11. Expect to submit your tester credential, calibration paper, and whatever packet that standards set names. Being listed in another Colorado city does not auto-enroll you. Read Denver Water's current contractor documents.
Can out-of-state testers work in Colorado?
An out-of-state tester card is not a Colorado hall pass. Water suppliers decide which credentials they accept. Install and repair still run through DORA if the work is plumbing. Ask DORA about endorsement if you already hold a plumbing license. Ask the first utility about their list. Confirm both before you drive.
Sources
- Colorado Secretary of State, 5 CCR 1002-11 Colorado Primary Drinking Water Regulations: Regulation 11 (5 CCR 1002-11) is the Colorado Primary Drinking Water Regulation that requires public water systems to run cross-connection control programs and keep protecting assemblies tested.
- CDPHE Water Quality Control Division, Drinking Water Cross-Connection Control program page: CDPHE administers the drinking-water cross-connection control program that public water systems and testers use to follow Regulation 11.
- Colorado DORA State Plumbing Board, Laws, Rules and Policies: The State Plumbing Board at DORA publishes the laws, rules, and policies that govern plumbing practice in Colorado.
- Colorado Secretary of State, 3 CCR 720-1 State Plumbing Board Rules: 3 CCR 720-1 contains the State Plumbing Board rules that implement the plumbing practice act.
- Colorado General Assembly OLLS, Colorado Revised Statutes 2023 Title 12: Title 12, Article 155 of the Colorado Revised Statutes is the plumbers practice act administered by the State Plumbing Board.
- Colorado DORA State Plumbing Board, Applications page: Current plumbing license applications and the live fee schedule are posted on DORA's plumbing applications page and must be confirmed there.
- U.S. EPA, Cross-Connection Control Manual (EPA 816-R-03-002): EPA defines backflow as the undesirable reversal of flow of water or mixtures of water and other liquids, gases, or other substances into the distribution pipes of the potable supply of water from any source or sources.
- Denver Water, contractor engineering standards: Denver Water publishes contractor engineering standards that include the cross-connection and backflow provisions testers and installers work under inside that system.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters: BLS reported median pay of $61,550 a year (2023) for plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters and states that apprenticeships typically last 4 to 5 years.
- eCFR, 40 CFR Part 141 National Primary Drinking Water Regulations: 40 CFR Part 141 sets the federal National Primary Drinking Water Regulations that Colorado implements through its primacy program and Regulation 11.
- U.S. EPA, Overview of the Safe Drinking Water Act: The Safe Drinking Water Act is the federal statute under which EPA and primacy states regulate public water systems.
- Colorado Springs Utilities, Backflow Prevention page: Colorado Springs Utilities publishes its own backflow prevention contractor and customer requirements, separate from Denver Water and from CDPHE.