On August 26, the Denver Board of Water Commissioners voted unanimously to end the lawn watering season. If you're a Denver Water or Arvada customer, lawn watering and all spray irrigation have to stop after September 30. Consolidated Mutual has since ended its irrigation season on the same date, and Golden's amended drought order runs through October 31 under rules that work differently from everyone else's.

That's a big change, and it's being reported in a way that has a lot of people believing outdoor watering is over entirely. It isn't. You can still water your trees, shrubs and perennials, and your annuals and vegetables until the first frost. And you do not need to rush your sprinkler winterization.

Below is where every provider we work with currently stands, what you're still allowed to do, and the one detail about flower beds that almost nobody has caught yet.

Last updated: September 4, 2026. Provider statuses last verified August 31, 2026.

Watering rules are set by each water provider and can change without notice. We update this page as new rules are announced. If your provider's rules have changed since this was published, let us know.

First, the sentence that clears up most of the confusion:

October 1 is a watering deadline, not a winterization deadline.

Two completely separate clocks are running this fall, and they're getting tangled together in almost every conversation we have.

The first clock is your water provider's rules. That's what changed on August 26, and for Denver Water and Arvada customers it stops lawn watering after September 30.

The second clock is the weather. Sprinkler winterization protects your pipes from freezing and bursting. That timing is set by the first hard freeze, exactly like it was last year and the year before. It has nothing to do with the watering rules, and it hasn't moved.

You do not need to be winterized by October 1. Worth separating two things that sound alike here. Shutting your system off is not the same as clearing the water out of it. Denver Water's guidance is about when to stop running the system. Winterization is about removing the water still sitting in the lines so it can't freeze and expand, and that's driven by the first hard freeze. Systems around the metro are typically fine well past the first of the month, and we run winterizations into November.

What you can still do after the cutoff

If you're a Denver Water customer, here's what the resolution actually allows once lawn watering ends.

Still allowed

• Hand watering trees, shrubs and perennials any day of the week with a hand-held hose and a shutoff nozzle, and annuals and vegetables the same way until the first frost
• Drip irrigation and other low-volume, non-spray irrigation for trees, shrubs and other plantings
• Recycled water customers continue on the standard watering rules, any day
• Running your system for installation, repair, or reasonable maintenance, as long as someone stays with it and no water is wasted
• High-traffic, active-use turf like parks and school fields, but only under a Denver Water approved water budget or variance

Not allowed

• Lawn watering of any kind
• All spray irrigation, regardless of what it's watering
• Misters, micro-sprays and spray stakes in planting beds and gardens (more on this below, because it catches almost everyone)
• Turf irrigation on commercial, multifamily, and HOA properties under the same rule
• Grass establishment, including new sod and seed, except under a Denver Water approved variance

The catch most people miss: your flower beds

There are really two rules here: Lawns are out entirely, no matter how you water them. And spray irrigation is out entirely, no matter what it's watering. Your beds pass the first test, because they aren't lawn. It's the second one that catches them.

A very large number of homes water their planting beds, gardens, and shrub areas with small mister stakes, micro-sprays, or pop-up spray heads. Those all count as spray irrigation. They have to shut off after the cutoff, even though the plants they're watering are exactly the plants you're still permitted to water.

So here's the question worth asking yourself. Are your beds watered by little spray heads or misters on stakes, or by drip line with emitters?

If you don't know, that's completely normal, and it's worth having someone look. Converting a mister zone to true drip line and emitters is usually a small, fast job, and it brings that zone back permanently no matter what the rules do next year.

One thing to watch for is the half-converted system. A zone that everyone calls "the drip zone" but that actually has a mix of emitters and a few spray stakes left over is very common, and it's out of compliance as long as anything on it sprays.

Quick reference: where each provider stands

Confirmed statuses were verified with the provider directly. Everything marked "last checked" reflects that provider's most recently published position, and most of those were published before Denver Water's August 26 vote. Confirm with your provider before you rely on it.

Don't guess from your city name. Water providers here don't follow city lines. Denver Water serves well past Denver's boundaries, several cities buy water from it as distributors, and a neighboring street can be on a different system entirely. The reliable answer is the provider name printed at the top of your water bill.

Provider by provider

Denver Water, Arvada, Aurora, South Adams County, Consolidated Mutual, Golden, Northglenn, Edgewater and Erie were verified against each provider's own published rules on September 4. The remaining providers reflect their most recently published position as of our August 31 check, and most of those positions were published before Denver Water's August 26 vote. Confirm with your provider before acting on any of it.

Denver Water

(Denver, Sheridan, Glendale, Littleton, parts of Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Centennial, Greenwood Village and Lone Tree)

Official Denver Water outdoor watering rules →

Denver Water serves the largest footprint on this list, roughly 1.5 million people. If you live in the City and County of Denver, or in Sheridan, Littleton, or parts of several surrounding cities, these rules apply to you.

Through September 30, Stage 1 mandatory restrictions remain in effect. Single-family homes with even-numbered addresses water Sundays and Thursdays. Odd-numbered addresses water Wednesdays and Saturdays. Multifamily, commercial, HOA and government properties water Tuesdays and Fridays. No watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

After September 30, lawn watering and all spray irrigation stop. Drip and hand watering for trees, shrubs and other plantings continue, any day.

The board's resolution stays in effect until it determines how and when lawn watering can resume, which is expected to carry into spring 2027.

On enforcement, Denver Water starts with a warning. For single-family residential customers, repeat violations carry charges of $250, then $500, then $1,000, and continued noncompliance can lead to restricted or suspended service until the violation is corrected and outstanding charges are paid. Non-residential accounts can face higher penalties, so commercial and HOA properties shouldn't assume the residential schedule applies to them. These are utility rules enforced through your water account, not criminal law, and charges can be appealed under Denver Water's Operating Rules.

Why the board acted. Streamflow into Denver Water's storage reservoirs between April and July measured 95,000 acre-feet, which is 22% of normal and the lowest level recorded in 110 years of record keeping. Storage sat at 73% full against a historic median of 94%, and staff project it could fall below 60% before the 2027 runoff season. The utility estimates ending lawn watering conserves roughly 5,000 acre-feet.

Denver Water also requires you to repair leaking or broken sprinkler components within 10 days, year-round, regardless of drought status.

On the positive side, Denver Water continues to offer turf removal discounts through Resource Central, plus rebates on smart irrigation controllers and free sprinkler system audits. Program terms change, so confirm what's currently available before you plan around a specific dollar figure.

Arvada

Official Arvada water restrictions page →

Arvada has been under Stage 1 restrictions since April 15 and is following Denver Water's October 1 cutoff. Arvada receives the majority of its supply from Denver Water and is contractually required to follow Denver Water's drought restrictions, so this wasn't optional.

Through September 30, it's two days per week. Single-family homes with even-numbered addresses water Sundays and Thursdays, odd-numbered addresses Wednesdays and Saturdays, and all other customers, including multifamily and commercial properties, water Tuesdays and Fridays. No watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

South Adams County Water & Sanitation

(Commerce City and Henderson)

Official South Adams County Water homepage →

The district sets its own drought rules through its own board. The SACWSD Board declared its own Stage 1 drought on May 13, 2026, and as of our last check it has not adopted an end-of-season lawn watering cutoff. Denver Water's October 1 decision does not change anything for South Adams customers.

Stage 1 rules. Two days per week based on your street address. No outdoor watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m., which is a permanent year-round rule here rather than a drought measure. The district is asking for a 20% cut in overall use and a 50% cut in outdoor irrigation. Hand watering with a shut-off nozzle, a drip system or a watering can is permitted at any time, and irrigation system maintenance is allowed at any time when a licensed contractor or district staff is actively observing it.

The district's own irrigation guidance for October through December is to water trees and shrubs as needed. That's their recommendation, not ours, and it's the same point we'd make about protecting the trees through a dry winter.

Fines for residential customers start with a warning, then $100, $250, and $500 for a third and any subsequent violation. Multifamily, commercial, school and church accounts run $250, $500 and $1,000. Hydrant violations run far higher.

The October 15 date, and what it actually is. The district's irrigation season runs April 15 through October 15. Separately, the non-potable irrigation system that serves the northern portion of the district is shut down the week of October 15. That's a maintenance shutdown, not a drought restriction, and it does not apply to every SACWSD customer. If you're on that non-potable system, your drip zones stop working when it goes off, because there's no water to deliver. Trees and beds you're trying to keep alive will need hand watering from a potable spigot, or winter watering, after that point.

South Adams also delayed the start of the 2026 season this spring, moving it from April 13 to May 4.

SACWSD drought and water use rules →

Aurora Water

(Aurora and parts of Centennial)

Official Aurora Water watering times page →

As of September 4, Aurora has not adopted an October 1 cutoff. If you're an Aurora customer, the Denver Water news does not apply to you, and you should not shut your system down on the assumption that it does. Aurora is the provider most likely to change position this fall, so check before you make a decision on it.

Aurora remains under Stage 1 with a 20% reduction target. Even addresses water Thursdays and Sundays, odd addresses Wednesdays and Saturdays, and multifamily and HOA common areas water Tuesdays and Fridays. No watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The following reflects Aurora's position as reported earlier this season rather than our September 4 check. Aurora has restricted new lawn installations and decorative water features, enforcement is active with escalating fines and possible shutoff for repeat violations, and Aurora's smart meters read usage in 15-minute intervals so off-schedule watering gets noticed quickly. Officials have described this year's supply outlook as the most serious in recent memory, so it's worth watching for further announcements.

Thornton

Official Thornton Water restrictions & drought page →

Thornton declared Stage 1 back on March 15 and takes a slightly different approach. You're limited to two days per week, but you choose your own two days rather than following an assigned schedule.

New sod or seed permits are available in May, June, September and October only. Thornton also requires repair of leaking irrigation systems within 10 days of notification. Fines start at $100.

No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Westminster and Federal Heights

Official Westminster drought information →

Westminster is under a Drought Watch with voluntary guidance of two to three days per week. Federal Heights receives about 98% of its water from Westminster, so Westminster's rules effectively apply there as well.

Westminster shares Standley Lake with Thornton and Northglenn, and supply levels have been tracking near 2002 lows, so mandatory rules remain possible.

No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Northglenn

Official Northglenn drought watch page →

Northglenn declared a Stage 2 drought in April, which makes it stricter than most of its metro neighbors. The city draws from the Clear Creek watershed and Standley Lake, both of which came in at some of the lowest levels on record.

Two days per week. Even addresses water Sundays and Thursdays, odd addresses Wednesdays and Saturdays, and commercial properties, apartments and HOA common areas water Tuesdays and Fridays. All outdoor watering must happen before 10 a.m. or after 6 p.m. No lawn watering on Mondays, with an exception for school district athletic fields and city parks.

Enforcement starts with a warning and a five-day grace period to fix the problem. After that, violations run $50, then $300, then $999 for a third and any subsequent violation. There's also a drought surcharge of $2 per 1,000 gallons for residential customers who exceed 18,000 gallons a month.

No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Broomfield

Official Broomfield water use and drought restrictions →

Broomfield is unusual in that it has a permanent year-round watering ordinance regardless of drought conditions. Even addresses water Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Odd addresses water Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Three days per week maximum, and the 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. prohibition applies year-round.

Ordinance 2294 added a 10-day repair requirement in early 2026. If your system has a visible leak or is causing runoff, you have 10 days from notification to fix it.

Broomfield has also requested voluntary reductions on top of the permanent ordinance. No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Centennial Water & Sanitation District

(Highlands Ranch)

Official Highlands Ranch Water homepage →

Highlands Ranch is under Stage 1 with assigned days, layered on top of the district's water budget system where each property gets an allocation based on lot size. Exceeding your budget triggers tiered surcharges.

Note that the 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. prohibition here runs May 1 through September 30 by code. When that window lapses at the end of September, it does not mean restrictions have ended. The assigned-day rules and your water budget still apply.

No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Consolidated Mutual Water

(Parts of Lakewood, Wheat Ridge and unincorporated central Jefferson County)

CMWC water use rules →

Consolidated Mutual has ended its irrigation season on October 1. The company posted the change in September, and it applies to its roughly 100,000 customers across a 24 square mile service area. If CMWC is the name on your bill, treat October 1 the same way a Denver Water customer would.

Through September 30, CMWC is at Stage Orange, the second stage in its five-stage drought plan, targeting a 25% reduction. Two days per week, even addresses Sundays and Thursdays, odd addresses Wednesdays and Saturdays. No watering with spray irrigation between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

CMWC's repair window is tighter than most, at five business days from notice rather than 10. The company also permits running an irrigation system for installation, repair or reasonable maintenance as long as it's attended, and allows watering new plant material on the day of planting.

This one matters for a specific reason. Consolidated Mutual's service area is checkerboarded with Denver Water's across Lakewood and Wheat Ridge, so two neighbors on the same street can be on different systems. Both now end October 1, but the rules underneath differ, so check your bill.

Golden

City of Golden water conservation →

Golden works differently from everyone else on this list, and if you're a Golden customer the general advice in this guide does not apply cleanly to you. Read this section rather than the summary above.

Golden declared Stage 1 effective May 1 and then amended the order on July 19 after Clear Creek hit record low flows. The amended order runs July 19 through October 31, 2026 unless rescinded earlier, so Golden's restrictions extend a month past most of its neighbors.

Under the amended order, every property gets two irrigation events per calendar week, where an event is the overnight window from 6 p.m. to 10 a.m. the next morning. The two-event limit applies to the entire property. You cannot split zones across different days to get more watering in.

The part most people miss. The limit covers drip irrigation too, and it applies to lawns, turfgrass, trees, shrubs and perennials alike. Golden's original May order exempted drip, and the amended order removed that exemption. So the standard advice this fall, which is to shut down turf zones and keep drip running, is not correct in Golden. Your drip runs inside the same two events as everything else.

No outdoor irrigation between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Leaks must be fixed within ten calendar days. At-home vehicle washing is not permitted, though commercial car washes are, since they recycle water.

Enforcement is progressive, starting with warnings and moving to surcharges. Residential penalties reach $200 by a third violation with possible service restriction or suspension. Multifamily, commercial and irrigation accounts reach $500, and the city has said egregious violations can carry penalties up to $1,000.

If conditions worsen, Golden City Council can declare Stage 2, which would cut lawn watering to once a week, or Stage 3, which would prohibit it entirely.

Englewood

Official Englewood watering schedule →

Englewood operates independently from Denver Water with its own mountain water sources. Restrictions here have moved from voluntary in the spring to mandatory. Two days per week, odd addresses Mondays and Thursdays, even addresses Tuesdays and Fridays, before 10 a.m. or after 6 p.m.

No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Edgewater

City of Edgewater water conservation →

Edgewater declared its own Stage 1 drought following Denver Water's action, and it buys the majority of its water from Denver Water. The city has said it typically follows Denver's lead on drought advisories.

Two days per week. Even addresses water Sundays and Thursdays, odd addresses Wednesdays and Saturdays, and multifamily and commercial properties water Tuesdays and Fridays. No outdoor watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on any day. City parks and Jeffco school campuses in Edgewater are on water budgets with a 20% reduction target instead of the day-of-week schedule.

Edgewater's own summer outdoor water rules already run April 1 through October 1. We have not seen a formal announcement that Edgewater is adopting Denver Water's October 1 lawn watering ban, but given where its water comes from, we'd expect it to follow. Check the city's page before September 30.

Brighton

Official Brighton watering restrictions →

Brighton is under Stage 1 with two days per week and no watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Fines scale by meter size, so commercial and larger-meter accounts face higher penalties than a typical single-family home.

Brighton's seasonal restriction window runs May 1 through September 30. No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check.

Parker Water & Sanitation District

Official Parker Water watering restrictions →

Parker is in a better position than most thanks to Rueter-Hess Reservoir, with no mandatory restrictions on our last check. Assigned watering days are still part of Parker's standard rules. Even addresses water Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, odd addresses Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Parker also offers turf removal discounts and free sprinkler consultations.

Boulder

Official Boulder drought watch program →

Boulder holds senior water rights on both sides of the Continental Divide and has been in a stronger storage position than most of its neighbors. The city remains on voluntary drought watch with no mandatory restrictions on our last check.

Boulder's permanent landscaping code prohibits irrigation between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. from May 1 through September 30, independent of drought status. Boulder also uses a water budget system allocating each account a set amount of irrigation water per year.

Erie

Town of Erie outdoor irrigation and drought →

Erie had the most dramatic year on the Front Range. The town declared a Level 4 Water Supply Emergency on March 20 after residents turned sprinklers on early during an unusually warm March and demand ran about 30% above normal, coming close to overwhelming the town's treatment capacity. Every residential sprinkler system was ordered off.

Erie has since stepped back down to Stage 2 under its Drought and Water Supply Shortage Plan, and Stage 2 here is voluntary. The town is asking customers to water no more than two days per week, and only between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., which is a wider overnight window than most metro providers use.

Assigned days are different from everyone else's too. Even-numbered addresses water Mondays and Thursdays. Odd-numbered addresses water Tuesdays and Fridays.

Erie is also the only provider on this list that may add a day. During stretches of extraordinarily hot and dry weather, the town can designate a third watering day for that week, with even addresses adding Saturday and odd addresses adding Sunday. Erie announces these by text alert, so it's worth signing up on the town's site if you're an Erie customer.

No end-of-season cutoff on record as of our last check, and the town has said it may move into enhanced drought stages later in the year, so this one can change in either direction.

One more thing showing up on bills

Several providers have added drought surcharges on top of the watering rules, and they're separate from any violation. Denver Water customers are seeing an added charge per 1,000 gallons on outdoor use. Northglenn adds $2 per 1,000 gallons above 18,000 gallons a month. South Adams applies a percentage surcharge above its first tier. Aurora, Centennial Water and Boulder all run water budget or tiered systems where going over your allocation costs more per gallon.

None of these are fines. They're rate structures, and they apply whether or not you followed the schedule. If your bill jumped this summer without a violation notice, this is usually why.

What to do now

Here's the practical sequence, roughly in the order it matters.

Reprogram your controller before your provider's cutoff. If you're in an affected district, your system is almost certainly still set to a schedule you won't be allowed to run. For most providers that means turf zones come off and your drip and bed zones stay on so your trees and plantings keep getting water. Golden is the exception, since drip counts against Golden's two-event weekly limit, so check that section if Golden is your provider.

Check how your beds are watered. Covered above, and it's the single most commonly missed item this fall. Misters and spray stakes are spray irrigation. Converting to drip brings the zone back permanently.

Handle repairs now, not later. Repairs are far easier to schedule in September than in October or November. Once winterizations begin, irrigation availability shifts to blowouts and repair slots get scarce. A system that goes into winter broken comes out of winter broken.

Take care of your trees. After a summer this dry, followed by no fall irrigation and a typically dry Colorado winter, mature trees are the real risk. Grass goes dormant and comes back. A stressed mature tree may not, and you usually don't find out until spring. Hand watering and drip both remain allowed under most providers' rules, though in Golden drip counts against your weekly limit. Once the system is blown out, winter watering and root watering become the only mechanism keeping trees going through January and February.

Schedule your winterization on your own timeline. Again, this is not an October 1 deadline. Book a date you can actually be home for. Our scheduler shows real availability.

If a freeze shows up before your appointment, there's a gravity drain you can do yourself in about ten minutes that clears the standing water out of your backflow. It reduces the risk of freeze damage during a short cold snap. It is not a winterization and it won't survive a sustained freeze, so keep the appointment.

Use the winter to get ahead of 2027. Denver Water has said its restriction holds until the board decides watering can resume, and next summer depends on snowpack. Planning for restrictions in 2027 is the safe assumption. Winter is the right window for a smart irrigation controller, which handles assigned days and seasonal adjustment so you don't have to remember them, and for planning turf removal and xeriscape conversion so it's installed before spring. Several providers and state programs offer rebates for both. Confirm current terms before you budget around a number.

If you manage commercial or HOA property, make sure your landscape contractor knows exactly which provider serves each address. Commercial penalties run higher than residential in most jurisdictions. Properties with high-traffic, active-use turf like sports fields or heavily used common areas may qualify for a Denver Water approved water budget or variance, and that conversation needs to start early rather than in October.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to winterize my sprinkler system before October 1?
No. October 1 is a watering deadline, not a freeze deadline. Winterization protects your pipes from ice, and that timing is driven by the weather. We schedule blowouts around the first hard freeze and are booking into November.

Can I water anything at all after October 1?
Yes. Trees, shrubs, and perennials can be watered any day of the week by hand with a shutoff nozzle, or by drip and other low-volume, non-spray irrigation. Annuals and vegetables can be watered the same way until the first frost. What stops is lawn watering and all spray irrigation.

Can I hand water my lawn?
No. Lawn watering stops entirely after September 30, whether it's a sprinkler system, a hose-end sprinkler, or a hand-held hose. The exceptions for hand watering apply to trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals and vegetables, not to turf.

My beds are watered by pop-up spray heads. Can I still run them?
No. Two separate rules apply after the cutoff. Lawn watering stops by any method, and spray irrigation stops on everything, including plants you're otherwise allowed to water. Your beds are fine as a category. It's the spray heads that aren't. Converting that zone to drip line makes it usable again.

Will my lawn die?
Cool-season grasses go dormant, which looks bad and usually isn't fatal. Established lawns across the Front Range have gone through dormant fall and winter periods before and come back. Your trees are the bigger concern.

Does this apply to me? I'm not in Denver.
Check the provider name at the top of your water bill, not your city name. Denver Water serves well past Denver's boundaries, and Consolidated Mutual is checkerboarded with it across Lakewood and Wheat Ridge. Arvada and Consolidated Mutual both end October 1. Golden runs its own rules through October 31. Aurora and South Adams County have not adopted a cutoff, and South Adams runs its own season through October 15. A number of providers have no cutoff at all.

How long does the ban last?
Denver Water's resolution stays in effect until the board determines how and when lawn watering can resume. That's expected to carry through spring 2027, and next summer's rules will depend heavily on snowpack.

What happens if I water anyway?
Denver Water starts with a warning. For single-family residential customers, repeat violations carry charges of $250, then $500, then $1,000, and continued noncompliance can result in restricted or suspended service. Non-residential accounts can face higher penalties. These are utility rules enforced through your water account. Charges can be appealed under Denver Water's Operating Rules.

I just put in new sod. Is there an exception?
Grass establishment is not allowed after September 30 unless Denver Water has approved a variance for it. Denver Water does grant these in some situations and has an establishment permit process, but the criteria are theirs and they differ by provider. Contact your provider directly rather than relying on a general answer, and do it before the cutoff rather than after.

Can a contractor still run my system to do repairs or an audit?
Yes. Running a system for installation, repair or reasonable maintenance is permitted, provided someone stays with it and no water is wasted. That's what allows us to audit, diagnose and repair after the cutoff.

Can you winterize just my lawn zones and leave the drip running?
No, and it's a physical limitation rather than a policy one. Lawn and drip zones share the same mainline and backflow, so there's no way to clear one without clearing the other. The better answer is to reprogram the controller so only the drip zones run, keep the system going as long as the weather allows, then winterize the whole system before the first hard freeze.

Why does winterization cost the same if I barely watered this year?
Because the water already sitting in your lines doesn't leave on its own. If it freezes it expands, and a cracked mainline or backflow is a spring repair bill several times the cost of a blowout.

Should I just tear out my lawn?
For turf nobody actually uses, this is a reasonable year to consider it. Drought-adapted landscaping can be irrigated by drip and stays fully permitted under restrictions like these. Plan it over the winter and install ahead of spring.

We're here to help

At A Cut Above Landscape, we manage irrigation systems across the Denver Metro every day. We know which provider serves which address, we can audit and reprogram your system for compliance, and we can help you protect the plants that matter through a winter without irrigation.

If you're not sure who supplies your water or what your rules are, reach out. We'd rather answer it than have you guess.

Book your sprinkler winterization →
Request a sprinkler audit or drip conversion quote →