My Allowed Watering Days and Hours

What is My Watering Schedule?

The following schedule applies to properties inside Tampa city limits whose lawns and landscapes are watered with either city water or well water. 

Additional Water Use Restrictions 

Effective April 3, 2026, watering is not permitted between 4am and 8pm on any day. Watering is permitted between midnight and 4am OR between 8pm and midnight, only once on your designated day.

Irrigation must be curtailed when sufficient rain has occurred in the last 24 hours. Florida law requires all automatic irrigation systems to have a working rain-sensing device. Tampa Water Department customers can request a free rain sensor to connect to their irrigation controller.

Regular Maintenance & Power Outages

Residents are asked to check their irrigation systems to ensure they are working properly. This means testing and repairing broken pipes and leaks and fixing damaged or tilted sprinkler heads. 

You are allowed to run your sprinkler system to check for leaks no more than 10 minutes per zone, once a week. However, you must be visible from the street while you are running the system to avoid a citation.

Residents should also check their irrigation controller to ensure the settings are correct and the rain sensor is working properly, especially after a power outage. Failure to check your system settings after a power outage may cause you to receive a water use citation for watering on the wrong day and time.

Hand watering and Microirrigation 

• Effective April 3, 2026, hand watering and microirrigation of landscapes, such as flowering plants, vines, shrubs, palms, trees, ornamental grasses and groundcover (other than lawns/turfgrass) is allowed any day, but is now prohibited between 8am and 6pm.
• Hand watering of lawns is restricted to the designated day and time.
• All hoses must be fitted with an automatic shut-off garden hose nozzle. Tampa Water Department customers can request a free outdoor water conservation kit which includes this nozzle.

Watering a new lawn? 

Follow this easy, research-based 30-day establishment schedule recommended by the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS). 

• The prohibited hours of 8am - 6pm remain in place while watering-in new sod. Once the establishment schedule is completed, you will need to follow the City's current watering restrictions and only water during your designated day and hours to avoid a citation. 

Chemical treatments

Irrigation for the purpose of watering-in of fertilizers, insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides, must also comply:

• If applied by a licensed professional, you may follow the manufacturer's recommendations. Note: If you received a citation and you believe you met this exemption, please provide receipts of application along with your citation ID number to WaterPatrol@TechstaffTB.com.
• If applied by someone other than a licensed professional, then watering-in of chemical treatments shall be restricted to the allowed days and hours.
• The prohibited hours of 8am - 6pm remain in place even when watering-in chemical treatments.
• The City of Tampa Fertilizer Ordinance establishes a restricted period from June 1 - September 30, when the application of lawn and landscape fertilizer containing nitrogen and/or phosphorus is not allowed.

Car washing

Effective April 3, 2026, car washing at home (non-commercial) is only allowed on your designated watering day. It is recommended this be done above a lawn if possible so it can benefit by soaking up the water and avoid off-site discharge.

• All hoses must be fitted with an automatic shut-off garden hose nozzle. Tampa Water Department customers can request a free outdoor water conservation kit which includes this nozzle.
• Car washing of fire trucks and other emergency vehicles is allowed.
• Car wash fundraisers held on behalf of non-profit organizations are prohibited, except for one-day events that were scheduled prior to March 24, 2026, when the Modified Phase III Water Shortage Order was passed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD).
• Rinsing of boats and flushing of boat engines is allowed after each use when needed to remove salt water or to prevent the transportation of exotic plant or animal material.
• Cleaning of agricultural vehicles is allowed as necessary.

Pressure Washing

Effective April 3, 2026, annual pressure washing for aesthetic purposes is prohibited at this time. 

• Pressure washing is allowed in preparation for painting and sealing. 
• Pressure washing of driveways, sidewalks and other impervious surfaces is allowed for necessary maintenance, such as to either maintain a warranty or remove mold, mildew and other potentially hazardous material that cannot be removed by mechanical means (such as a broom or leaf blower), and as a construction practice (such as cleaning a concrete surface prior to painting or sealing). 
• Compliance with homeowner association or other aesthetic standards does not constitute necessary maintenance.

Wasteful and unnecessary uses of water

The following wasteful uses of water are prohibited:

• Allowing water to flow from an unattended hose, unless that water is discharged from a functional water-to-air air conditioning unit, residential reverse osmosis treatment system, or similar device.
• Hand watering a lawn on an otherwise restricted day or more than once a day, except when used for spot treatment.
• Hosing-down a driveway or other impervious surface to remove grass clippings or other debris that can be removed with a broom or other dry methods.
• Hosing-down a building or other structure to remove cobwebs or other material that can be removed with a broom or other dry methods.
• Allowing water to flow from a broken sprinkler head, outdoor faucet, or other malfunctioning plumbing or irrigation system component, after receiving verbal or written notice of the malfunction from the District, water utility, or local government.

Reclaimed water

Reclaimed water used for irrigation is generally not subject to our water use restrictions; however, customers must not use it in a wasteful and unnecessary manner.

Fountains and Other Water Features

Effective April 3, 2026, use of aesthetic water features, such as fountains, are limited to four hours a day. The owner should select and post the operating hours. 

Exemptions from this restriction include:

• If an aesthetic use also provides a necessary water quality benefit, such as aeration of a stormwater pond, it may be operated as necessary.
• If an aesthetic use involves a pond or other catchment area with a volume of 100 gallons or less, or meets one of the following criteria, it may be operated as necessary:
  • The feature provides necessary aeration for pet fish, such as in a koi pond.
  • The feature is an integral part of the circulation system for a swimming pool.
  • The feature is in a pond or other catchment area augmented exclusively by reclaimed water, seawater, brackish bay or intracoastal water, air conditioning condensate or other byproducts of an allowable activity.

Golf Courses

Effective April 3, 2026:

• Fairways and driving ranges may be irrigated no more than once per week.
• Tees, golf course greens, and practice greens may be irrigated no more than three times per week.
• Roughs shall not be irrigated.

Enforcement

Citations are issued on first observance by a water use enforcement patroller. Violating water use restrictions in Tampa may result in fines up to $500 and a mandatory court appearance.