An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so said Benjamin Franklin. Backflow prevention assemblies are installed where a trained inspector finds a place in a plumbing system where a hazard could contaminate drinking water. They assure an assembly is installed to provide proper protection. The assemblies are tested annually to assure ongoing protection is maintained. So, where do you turn when you need a replacement part, or can you help to understand the backflow assembly in place?

For more than 47 years, BAVCO, a master parts distributor of OEM backflow prevention parts, repair information, and industry knowledge, has been at the forefront of backflow prevention. It started in the early 1950s when Casey Purzycki purchased an established plumbing company; by the early 1960s, he had expanded into commercial plumbing and backflow prevention. As a family-owned and -operated company, his sons Jim and Bob would join the business, with Jim earning his plumbing license and backflow certification by the age of 17. 

When Jim Purzycki worked alongside his father as a serviceman at their family plumbing business, the growth of testing and maintaining backflow preventers began to take off. To service his customers, he would go to a local wholesaler and order a repair kit, which either wasn’t in stock or would take weeks to arrive. 

He told his father, “Let’s get material in stock so that when we get a repair call, we have the parts already in stock to do the job.” He smiles as he tells the rest of the story: “My father, like many other contractors,  wouldn’t buy repair parts until we sold the job. I convinced him to let me get some common repair parts in stock  so I could get jobs done more efficiently.” 

His friendly competitors took notice and began asking to borrow the repair kits, later asking to purchase them. What started as a time-saving effort at the family plumbing company soon grew into a wholesale parts distributor shipping OEM repair parts across the United States. This focused niche business of carrying and selling OEM parts to assure backflow preventers are in working condition to protect drinking water, turned into BAVCO. The company was established in 1977, with a motto, Every Part for Every Assembly Guaranteed in Stock, which soon led to the company’s growth.

To Jim Purzycki, it is imperative to stock every possible OEM part (still available) needed to repair a backflow assembly. BAVCO carries 25 manufacturer brands representing approximately 2,500 approved assemblies and approximately 15,000 SKUs. BAVCO’s got it, and it’s in one or all of the three U.S. distribution centers with space totaling almost 40,000 square feet. From these locations in Long Beach, Calif., San Antonio, Texas & Charlotte, N.C., the company guarantees if you have an order in by 3 p.m. PST, it’s guaranteed to be delivered within 2 days.

“We are laser-focused on backflow prevention,” Jim Purzycki notes, and it’s not only parts that BAVCO carries. “We started by selling repair parts, and sometimes we would need to replace assemblies, so we started stocking assemblies,” he says. From there, the company would add many accessory items, selling shut-off valves and replacement parts. Testers also needed a reliable source of field test kits and other specialized tools to maintain backflow prevention assemblies. The list and BAVCO inventory of material testers needed to service backflow preventers began growing.

The Secret Sauce: Knowledge and People 

One of the key challenges in the backflow industry is the lack of product knowledge. Many technicians understand how to install a backflow assembly but struggle with repair or diagnostic issues. BAVCO’s team is highly trained in product repair and operating diagnostics, helping to bridge this gap. As Jim Purzycki explains, “There’s no computer to plug into a backflow assembly — it’s about understanding the plumbing system, the assembly,  and how they work.”

He adds: “When I first started in the business, there wasn’t a repository of knowledge on backflow preventers.” Without product knowledge, he noticed others were replacing rather than repairing the assemblies because repair parts were not easily available. 

“Backflow prevention spans multiple markets — plumbing, fire, irrigation, and waterworks — so I worked with different industries,” Jim Purzycki explains. “We became known for our product knowledge, and people relied on us for information, even if they weren’t buying from us. 

BAVCO became an information pioneer in backflow prevention by ensuring its team was highly trained on the products it sells. “We began by developing training materials for ourselves, and as we added employees, they would need to understand the nuances of the products, so we created a reference manual with breakdowns, specifications, and repair information for every approved backflow assembly ever made,” Jim Purzycki notes, adding, “It should be called an encyclopedia, as it includes every assembly since the 1940s. Today, it’s nearly 700 pages long, covering 2,500 different assemblies from 25 manufacturers.” 

He proudly notes that the manual is posted on the company’s website and available to everyone, including manufacturers who refer to it for additional information on their products and others.

An educated team is an efficient team and saves customers time and money. Often, customers approach the company about a backflow challenge, not knowing the exact product needed to correct the issue. BAVCO’s team members take great pride in their extensive knowledge base and in guiding its customers to the correct parts needed, and all salesmen do so without earning commissions. This ensures that customers have the correct products they need without being oversold on a project. “Backflow preventors are meant to be repaired, not replaced,” Jim Purzycki says, who equates it to not replacing your car if a tire goes flat. 

In addition to the Reference Manual, BAVCO is also a pioneer in developing repair videos. Today, it hosts a library of more than 40 videos on its website, from teaching the basic principles of backflow prevention design and operation to manufacturer-specific backflow prevention assemblies. 

A major issue today is the increasing use of non-OEM parts, which voids warranties, approvals, and working conditions. Jim Purzycki stresses the importance of using only original OEM repair parts, stating, “Backflow prevention assemblies undergo extensive testing and evaluation at the University of Southern California’s Foundation for Cross-Connection Control and Hydraulic Research—it’s like the FAA for airlines.” 

Manufacturers must produce assemblies and all their parts in their original configuration as approved. Any changes, even the smallest O-ring, can cause the approval process to start all over again. The approval process for assemblies is lengthy, taking about two years and involving lab and field testing, but it ensures the assembly and its approved OEM repair parts continue to protect our drinking water.

Next Generation Focuses on Technology

BAVCO’s foundation is built on exceptional customer service, product knowledge, and product training, all made possible by an engaged and cohesive team of employees. When asked whether he refers to his team as employees or team members, Jim Purzycki immediately responds with, “I call them by their name,” which sets the tone for a company culture built on respect, appreciation, and pride in working within a family-owned and operated company that treats its team as family. 

He sums it up this way: “What I love is that I’ve got employees who have worked here for 20 to 30 years. When we need a new employee, they say, ‘I’ve got a friend.’ They want their friends to work here because it is a good place to work. You know, it’s family, whether or not it’s the same mother and father — it’s the same concept of family.” 

If you happen to be at the company’s headquarters in Long Beach, Calif., on a Tuesday or Thursday morning, you will find Jim Purzycki in the company’s kitchen whipping up a homemade breakfast for all employees. Employees enjoy the warm feeling of family and appreciate the kind gesture. “They say, ‘thank you,’ and I reply ‘No, I thank you,” says Jim Purzycki.

When Jim Purzycki started BAVCO, his first employee was himself; the second was his nephew John Purzycki, a key cornerstone of the company’s operations. John Purzycki is celebrating his 45th  anniversary with the company, and 12 others are celebrating 20-plus years as well. It’s the employees who make BAVCO what it is and celebrate the company culture, keeping the family culture alive. 

Jim Purzycki’s family is fully integrated into the company, including sons Kevin and Phil Purzycki and Milo Anderson — who is his son-in-law, but Jim Purzycki doesn’t bother with “in-law” titles, or any titles for that matter (not even on any company cards). To him, Milo is a son, plain and simple. Today, Phil  Purzycki is learning the art of being at the helm – and slowly pushing Jim out of the big chair. And so it goes — on and on, truly a family company through and through. 

The next generations are making their mark on the company through technology. Milo Anderson is credited for streamlining the office and warehouse technologies to keep up with the hundreds of orders it ships out daily. Adding to the company’s forward approach, customers can order from their extensive online store;  if they have any questions after hours, every product is pictured on the website in its Reference Manual and on videos — all coordinated by Phil Purzycki and Milo Anderson. 

BAVCO’s product knowledge and laser focus on backflow prevention have grown the company immensely over the years in expertise as well as size. Every repair part, any time — guaranteed. After all, Jim Purzycki is famous for making a bet that every part for every assembly is in his stock. For more than 47 years, he has only lost the bet twice. His passion for backflow prevention, safety, family, and the art of customer service and company culture has made BAVCO the leader in its field. 

What started as Casey Purzycki hiring his son, Jim Purzycki, to work within his plumbing shop, to that same son starting BAVCO with his nephew as his first employee, to now having three distribution centers and servicing the entire United States, Jim Purzycki beams with heartfelt pride. 

“We now have 46 employees, all with families,” he notes. “We’re all making a living on a crazy idea I had almost 50 years ago — amazing!”