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Water Conservation
Water is plentiful, yet we must emphasize the importance of conservation and drought preparedness. While it may seem contradictory, the process of cleaning water to meet drinking standards is extensive and costly. Water supply systems have strict limits on distribution to ensure there’s enough available for residents, businesses, and emergencies like fires. Understanding the origins and treatment of drinkable water is also crucial.
Conservation Steps
In an effort to avoid activation of the Drought Contingency Plan, the city asks residents to conserve water to help us manage the water demand by following these easy steps. Practicing these steps year-round can aid in managing water demand and help conserve water.
Residents at odd-numbered addresses:
- If you water 3 days a week, you should water Monday, Wednesday and Friday,
- If you water 2 times a week, you should water on Wednesday and Sunday,
- If you water more than 3 times a week please consider reducing your watering to conserve water, and at a minimum set your timer to complete watering before 2:00 a.m.
Residents at even-numbered address:
- If you water 3 days a week, you should water Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
- If you water 2 times a week, you should water on Tuesday and Saturday,
- If you water more than 3 times a week please consider reducing your watering to conserve water, and at a minimum set your system timer to water before 2:00 a.m.
Watering on different days will assist us in managing the water demand by spreading the demand over more days.
The Message
The water conservation/drought contingency message is Do Not Waste Water. Use what you need but do not allow water to be wasted. This single item will make the biggest difference and will help us to achieve our water conservation goals. Please take the time to verify that your irrigation water is not running down the street.
More Information
View the city's Water Conservation - Drought Contingency Plan (PDF) and visit the Drought Information page for our latest drought notifications.
- Water your lawn between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.
- Check your irrigation system to verify that your water is going on the lawn and not on your sidewalks, driveways, streets or walls. You may need to adjust the spray angles on the sprinkler heads.
- Check your irrigation system through an entire cycle to verify that your water is staying on the lawn and soaking in, and not running down the street. You may need to water for a shorter time period and possibly more frequently allowing for the water to soak in and not run down the street.
- Check your irrigation system for leaks:
- Turn on each area and walk through the area served to verify no water is running out of the ground, or shooting straight up into the air. You may have a broken pipe or a damaged sprinkler head.
- With the irrigation system off for at least 30 minutes, check each sprinkler head and verify that no water is coming out of the sprinkler head, if the water is coming out of the sprinkler head this indicates that one of the valves is not closing completely.
- Shortly after the irrigation system turns off walk through the yard looking for sand or dirt washed up by the sprinkler system this will indicate a leak in an underground pipe.
- Reduce the level of water being used in bathtubs by one or two inches if a shower is not available.
- Check toilets for leaks.
- Turn off water when brushing your teeth until time to rinse.
- Never run the dishwasher without a full load.
- Place a stopper in the sink for rinsing pots, pans, and cooking utensils rather than turning on the faucet each time.
- Clean vegetables in a pan of water rather than turning on the faucet each time.
- Wash only a full load when using a washing machine.
- Use the lowest water level setting on the washing machine for lighter loads.
- Use cold water as often as possible to save energy and to conserve hot water for uses that cold water cannot serve.
- Check all water connections and faucets for leaks.
- Check for water leaks that you may be unaware of, such as a leak between the water meter and the house.