Water Restrictions in Arlington, Ft Worth, and Dallas, Texas

As the drought torturing most of the state of Texas continues, many cities have tightened water restrictions. Ft Worth, Dallas, and Arlington, TX are all under some form of watering ban – unless the watering is done with soaker hoses, hand-held hoses or drip irrigation. Foundation problems are even more troubling than browning lawns in times of severe drought – a little water in the top four inches or so of soil will keep grass looking lush, but dry clay-rich soil around foundations can cause them to dry out and crack, leaving houses unlevel.

Ft Worth watering restrictions are at Stage One, which means that on certain days, no watering is allowed / only certain types of property may be watered. On other days (twice a week) addresses ending in odd or even days may be watered.

In addition, watering before 10 a.m. and after 6 p.m. is banned, unless by soaker hose, hand-held hose or drip irrigation.

Other water conservation guidelines for Ft Worth include:

Maintaining your sprinkler system to ensure sure there are no broken or leaky heads

Checking irrigation zone coverage areas, so sidewalks and streets aren’t inadvertently watered

Setting sprinkler system timers to manual to ensure systems don’t go off during rain

In Dallas, watering restrictions have been in place for years that ban watering between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. from April 1 to October 31 every year. This summer, the mandate has has helped stave off Stage One, which occurs when reservoirs are 35% depleted (currently, the depletion is only 18%).

However, the City of Dallas has requested that customers voluntarily follow water conservation guidelines for Dallas; customers with addresses ending in an even number should only water on Sundays and Thursdays and customers with addresses ending in odd numbers should water only on Saturdays and Wednesdays. If Stage One is reached, the Drought Management Plan will be triggered and this watering schedule will be mandatory.

Arlington watering restrictions follow Ft Worth’s, in accordance with Tarrant County water conservation guidelines. Residential customers whose addresses end in odd numbers (1, 3, 5, 7 or 9) are permitted to water lawns and landscapes only on Sundays and Thursdays; Addresses ending in even numbers (2, 4, 6, 8 or 0) water on Wednesdays and Saturdays only. Nonresidential customers, including apartments, businesses, parks and common areas, can water only on Tuesday and Fridays. No outdoor watering is allowed on Mondays, and the 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. restrictions remain.

Use of soaker hoses is permitted, but they cannot be left unattended or cause a runoff. No hosing of paved areas, such as sidewalks, driveways and parking lots, is permitted, and vehicle washing is limited to the use of hand-held buckets and a hose with a positive shutoff valve. Vehicles may be washed anytime at a carwash. No hosing of buildings or other structures is allowed except for fire protection.

Residents who ignore the restrictions will get a warning. Residents who ignore the warnings could have their sprinkler system cut off or face fines up to $2,000. While this can mean browner grass for many in Dallas and Tarrant County, the real problem is dry, cracked foundations due to clay soil contracting as the drought causes the earth to dry out deeper and deeper. A foundation drip irrigation system is legal to use, inexpensive to run, and can save homeowners thousands in foundation repair costs.