Watering Restrictions

Greeley has a mandatory watering schedule . All Greeley water users must follow the schedule and refrain from watering between noon and 5 p.m. The City allows 3 days for flexibility, although watering once or twice in the spring and fall dependent on rainfall and temperature is encouraged.

The City of Greeley first instituted lawn watering restrictions in 1907. The first rules were similar to the current restrictions.

2011 Mandatory Watering Schedule
Watering Suggestions
Reporting Violations
Fines
Restrictions for New Lawns
Outdoor Water Tips
Restriction Flyer in English• En Español

Mandatory Watering Schedule

Beginning April 15 , Greeley water customers may water three days a week, with no watering between noon and 5 p.m. The schedule below must be followed for homes served by the Greeley Water & Sewer Department:
Greeley's 2011 Mandatory Watering Schedule
  Single family residences & duplexes with even numbered addresses ending in:

0, 2, 4, 6, 8 		Single family residences & duplexes with odd numbered addresses ending in:

1, 3, 5, 7, 9 		All others: home owner association common areas, multi-family residences, apartments, businesses, government, non-profit, churches, commercial, industries, and institutions.
January 1 -
April 14 		No Lawn Watering No Lawn Watering No Lawn Watering
April 15 -
December 31

Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday
No Watering 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Monday, Wednesday, Saturday
No Watering 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. 		Sunday, Tuesday, Friday
No Watering 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

  • New lawn watering variances are available with proper soil amendment (4 cubic yards of compost per 1,000 square feet of lawn). If a new lawn is installed you must apply for a permit/variance, if you want to water more than 3 days per week.

  • Hand watering of brown spots in a lawn is allowed on any day. We encourage you not to hand water your lawn between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Hand watering of trees, shrubs, flower and vegetable gardens may be watered at any time by hand, drip irrigation, low volume, bubblers or by weeping-type soaker hoses. Using a watering can or someone holding a hose with a restrictive nozzle is considered watering by hand. Hand watering does not include utilizing a hose with a sprinkler or manually operating an irrigation controller.

     
  • No hosing paved surfaces, including but not limited to: decks, driveways, patios, and sidewalks.

  • Occasional washing/hosing off vinyl siding, washing out roof gutters, washing in preparation for paint or staining is allowed within reason.

  • Home car washing is allowed anytime with a restrictive nozzle hose and bucket, and minimal runoff.

How Much Should I Water?

Watering Suggestions
Month Watering Days per Week Inches Required per Week
January Water trees and shrubs when needed. 0
February Water trees and shrubs when needed. 0
March Water trees and shrubs when needed. 0
April 1 Day Per Week - After 4/15 0.5"
May 1 Day Per Week 1"
June 2 Days Per Week 1.25"
July 3 Days Per Week 1.5"
August 3 Days Per Week 1.25"
September 1 Day Per Week 1"
October 1 Day Per Week--Until 10-15
Blow-out Sprinklers/Disconnect Hoses 		0.5"
November Water trees and shrubs when needed. 0
December Water trees and shrubs when needed. 0
 

If you don’t know how many inches of water your sprinkler system disseminates per hour, please sign up for a sprinkler system audit. Most spray heads disseminate approximately 2 inches of water per hour and most rotor sprinklers disseminate approximately 1/3 of an inch per hour, although these are generalizations.

Below is an example on how you can translate inches of water into minutes.

It is May and you have spray heads in the front yard. The lawn needs an inch of water per week. You could water each zone for 30 minutes on one day. A better option is to water 15 minutes two days per week. The best option would be to use the cycle and soak method: water each zone 7 minutes and wait 30 minutes to let it soak in. While waiting, water other areas of the lawn. Then water the first area again for 7-8 minutes. You will need to follow this procedure two days per week.



Reporting Water Violations

A person's name is kept confidential when they report a watering restriction. You can report violations in many ways, it helps to leave an exact address and the date and time of the violation.

Call: 970-336-4134
E-mail

Water Restriction Fines

On the first offense, we issue a warning reminding you to follow Greeley's watering restrictions. You will either find a notice on your door or receive a letter in the mail. If you are found in non-compliance after the warning, you will receive a first violation ticket and will have to appear in court.
  • A flow restrictor will allow water use only indoors
  • Subsequent violations will be fined at the 4th violation level.
  • The fines are the amount of times one is caught within one calendar year.

  • Although the City will try to give warnings administratively, we are no longer required by the ordinance to warn you before serving a ticket.

  • View the current watering restrictions and make sure you are in compliance.


Residential Fines
1st violation $100
2nd violation $250
3rd violation $500
4th violation $500 + Flow Restrictor
 
 


 


 


 

Commercial Fines

1st violation

$200

2nd violation

$500

3rd violation

$1000

4th violation

$500 + Flow Restrictor