[Taltarzac725]

Interesting approach to water shortages outlined in today's The Villages Daily Sun. They start on Friday, April 3, 2026.

Resident Alert: Phase III Water Shortage Order Now in Effect - The Villages Community Development Districts

[Bill14564]

Did I miss something? These are not much different than the Phase II restrictions we are currently under.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Bill14564

Did I miss something? These are not much different than the Phase II restrictions we are currently under.

The watering by the last digit of your address might be new? And the times of day to water.

[dewilson58]

seems like they are regulating when, not how much.

seems like during a shortage, they should regulate usage.

water "all you want" for four hours, doesn't matter how much water.

I used less water watering two or three times per week, with much shorter run times.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by dewilson58

seems like they are regulating when, not how much.

seems like during a shortage, they should regulate usage.

water "all you want" for four hours, doesn't matter how much water.

I used less water watering two or three times per week, with much shorter run times.

I'm sure the thought was to reduce usage by 50% by simply turning off one day on the controller.

Assigning watering days by house number may distribute the usage more evenly throughout the week to better control the amount of water pumped from the aquifer each day.

Limiting watering to the overnight hours will provide more time for the water to soak into the ground rather than evaporating in the sun.

Disallowing watering in the single minutes before and after midnight seems like a foolish detail to enforce.

And yes, there are ways to avoid the spirit and the purpose of the restrictions while still obeying the letter of the restrictions.

[dewilson58]

Originally Posted by Bill14564

I'm sure the thought was to reduce usage by 50% by simply turning off one day on the controller.

Assigning watering days by house number may distribute the usage more evenly throughout the week to better control the amount of water pumped from the aquifer each day.

Limiting watering to the overnight hours will provide more time for the water to soak into the ground rather than evaporating in the sun.

Disallowing watering in the single minutes before and after midnight seems like a foolish detail to enforce.

And yes, there are ways to avoid the spirit and the purpose of the restrictions while still obeying the letter of the restrictions.

IF they enforce, restricting to one "day" is the easiest.

With the sandy "soil", long runtimes waste water.

[Normal]

Run your sprinklers twice in the window. Once for 20 minutes per zone at the beginning of the time frame and then again for another 15-20 at the end of the time frame. It allows the water to really soak the grass well. Maybe then you have less of a chance of getting a fine if your grass dies and looks ugly.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Normal

Run your sprinklers twice in the window. Once for 20 minutes per zone at the beginning of the time frame and then again for another 15-20 at the end of the time frame. It allows the water to really soak the grass well. Maybe then you have less of a chance of getting a fine if your grass dies and looks ugly.

Seems the window is midnight to four if I am reading it right.

[BillyGrown]

We just had new sod laid. Do restrictions apply to new lawns?

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by BillyGrown

We just had new sod laid. Do restrictions apply to new lawns?

From the FAQ section of the Phase III water restrictions:

Q: Can I replace my lawn and landscape?
A: Replacement of lawns and landscape is allowed, however, it’s best to wait until the summer
rainy season in June. New plants and sod require a lot of water to establish and March, April
and May are the driest months of the year.
If you do decide to replace your lawn or landscape, new lawns and plants have a 60-day
establishment period. On days 1-30, new lawns and plants may be watered any day of the
week.
During days 31-60, new lawns and plants may be watered three days during the week. The user
must maintain a written schedule of establishment period watering. Even-numbered addresses
may water on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Odd-numbered addresses may be watered on
Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

Interesting approach to water shortages outlined in today's The Villages Daily Sun. They start on Friday, April 3, 2026.

Resident Alert: Phase III Water Shortage Order Now in Effect - The Villages Community Development Districts

To clarify, if you only have plants and no grass, and you only have micro-irrigation sprinklers for the plants, you can water any day of the week, but you cannot water between the hours of 8 am and 6 pm. You can also hand water the plants during the same time periods.

[Pballer]

Landscapers are going to make a mint replacing dead grass.

[Pugchief]

Originally Posted by Normal

Maybe then you have less of a chance of getting a fine if your grass dies and looks ugly.

Doesn't seem to matter. Watering schedule, fertilization, etc and the lawn always looks ugly and half-dead. Not just me, the entire neighborhood.

[Pugchief]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

Interesting approach to water shortages outlined in today's The Villages Daily Sun. They start on Friday, April 3, 2026.

Resident Alert: Phase III Water Shortage Order Now in Effect - The Villages Community Development Districts

I get the irrigation, but only wash your car on your assigned day? Ridiculous overreach. Washing a car uses less than 2 gallons of water.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Pugchief

I get the irrigation, but only wash your car on your assigned day? Ridiculous overreach. Washing a car uses less than 2 gallons of water.

How do you use less than two gallons?

I probably use two gallons just for the soap mix. Pre-rinse, post-rinse, and polish certainly takes more than that.