2025 Little Elm Water Restrictions

If you water a yard, wash a car, or keep a garden in Little Elm, TX, 2025 brings rules you need to know. This guide explains your assigned watering days, time-of-day limits, prohibited activities, and simple ways to keep your landscape healthy while using less water. You’ll also learn how tools like the My Water Advisor App can help you track usage and avoid surprises on your bill.

By the end, you’ll know exactly what’s allowed, what’s not, and how to set up a smart, water-wise routine at home.

Key Takeaways

Little Elm uses assigned watering days tied to your street address.
No outdoor watering is allowed from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Some activities, like hosing down driveways, are prohibited.
The My Water Advisor App helps you monitor usage and catch leaks early.
You can keep your yard healthy with smart irrigation habits, simple soil care, and drought-ready plants.

Why Water Conservation Matters in Little Elm

Little Elm draws its treated water from regional supplies through the North Texas Municipal Water District. Hot summers, population growth, and drought cycles can all push demand up. When we cut outdoor water waste, we protect the community’s supply, keep costs manageable, and help our landscapes survive summer heat without constant watering.

Small changes—watering on the right day, at the right time, with the right method—add up across thousands of homes. That’s why the town sets clear rules and offers tools to help you stay on track.

Your Assigned Watering Days

Little Elm follows an address-based schedule to spread out demand and reduce peak stress on the system. Follow these day-of-week rules for automatic sprinklers and general landscape irrigation:

Even-numbered addresses (ending in 0, 2, 4, 6, 8): Tuesday and Friday
Odd-numbered addresses (ending in 1, 3, 5, 7, 9): Wednesday and Saturday
HOA/common areas: Monday and Thursday

If you’re not sure which category you fall into, look at the last digit of your street number. Condo or townhome residents should check with their HOA on shared irrigation schedules.

Exceptions: Low-Waste Methods

Hand-held hose with a shutoff nozzle, drip irrigation, and soaker hoses are permitted any time outside the time-of-day blackout (details below). These methods deliver water right to the roots, which cuts waste and helps plants handle heat better.

Time-of-Day Restrictions

To reduce evaporation losses during the hottest part of the day, outdoor watering is not allowed from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

What to do instead:

Water early morning, ideally between 4:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. Your system has time to soak the soil before the heat builds, and wind speeds are usually lower.
If morning isn’t possible, late evening after 8:00 p.m. can work. Avoid soaking leaf surfaces overnight for disease-prone plants (roses, certain turf types). Drip to the root zone is best.

Prohibited Activities to Avoid Fines and Waste

To keep water use efficient and fair, the following are prohibited:

Recreational use that causes runoff or waste (e.g., running sprinklers for play that floods sidewalks or streets).
Vehicle washing with an open hose. If you wash at home, use:

- A hand-held bucket, or
- A hose with a positive shutoff nozzle. Consider visiting a commercial car wash that recycles water.

Hosing off paved surfaces (driveways, sidewalks, patios, building exteriors, windows). Normal window washing with a bucket or limited hose use is allowed, but routine “hose sweeping” of driveways is not.

Tip: Use a broom or blower for paved areas. If you must rinse a small spot (e.g., after a spill), keep it brief and targeted.

Smart Tools: My Water Advisor App

Staying within the rules is easier when you can see your usage. Little Elm’s My Water Advisor App connects to your meter data so you can:

Track daily and hourly consumption
Set custom alerts for unusual spikes (a telltale sign of leaks)
Compare usage month to month
Spot irrigation surges tied to schedule changes or broken heads

Set it up once, then create alerts for:

Continuous flow for 2–3 hours (possible leak)
Daily usage exceeding your normal baseline by 25–50%
Overnight spikes on non-watering days

Catching a silent leak—like a stuck toilet flapper or cracked irrigation line—can save thousands of gallons and a painful bill.

How to Keep a Healthy Landscape Under Restrictions

You can have curb appeal without constant watering. Use these strategies to get more from every gallon.

1.) Water Deeply and Infrequently

Run 2–3 shorter cycles with 30–60 minutes between them (cycle-and-soak). This lets water penetrate instead of running off.
Aim to wet the root zone: 6 inches for turf, 6–12 inches for shrubs, 12–18 inches for trees.
Test with a screwdriver: it should push into moist soil easily. If the top dries but the root zone is moist, you can skip a day.

2.) Adjust Your Sprinklers

Fix tilted heads and clogged nozzles.
Replace spray heads with high-efficiency rotary nozzles where possible. They apply water more slowly and evenly.
Separate zones by plant type and sun exposure. Turf in full sun needs more than shrubs in part shade.
Use a smart controller or soil-moisture sensor to pause watering after rain or when the soil is still wet.

3.) Mulch Like It Matters (Because It Does)

Apply 2–3 inches of organic mulch around shrubs, perennials, and trees—keeping it off the trunk or stem.
Mulch cuts evaporation, buffers soil temperatures, and reduces weeds that steal moisture.

4.) Prioritize Your Plants

First priority: Trees. A mature shade tree can boost property value and reduce AC bills but suffers badly from drought stress. Use a slow hose trickle or soaker coil at the drip line.
Second: Foundation shrubs and long-lived perennials.
Last: Turf. Grass recovers faster than woody plants.

5.) Choose Drought-Tolerant Plants

Favor adapted Texas natives and regionally suited varieties. They’re built for heat and variable rainfall.
Group plants by water needs. Don’t put thirsty annuals in the same zone as low-water shrubs.

Starter list to ask for at the nursery:

Trees: Live oak, cedar elm, bur oak, Monterrey oak
Shrubs: Texas sage (cenizo), dwarf yaupon holly, abelia, lantana varieties
Perennials/groundcovers: Salvia, blackfoot daisy, Mexican feather grass, trailing rosemary
Turf alternatives or upgrades: Consider drought-tolerant Bermuda or zoysia cultivars where appropriate

6.) Improve Soil Health

Aerate compacted turf in spring or early fall to help water penetrate.
Top-dress with a thin layer of compost (¼ inch) after aeration to boost water holding.
In beds, mix compost into planting holes and refresh mulch twice a year.

7.) Mow and Fertilize Wisely

Mow turf at the higher end of the recommended height (for Bermuda, 2–2.5 inches; for many zoysias, 2–3 inches). Taller blades shade the soil and reduce evaporation.
Avoid heavy nitrogen fertilizer during peak heat. It pushes leaf growth that demands more water. Use slow-release formulas and follow soil test results if possible.

Sample Weekly Watering Plan

Use this as a template and adjust to your assigned days:

Early morning on your assigned days:

- Turf zones: Three cycles of 6–8 minutes each with 30–45 minutes soak time between cycles (spray heads). For rotary nozzles, you may need 12–15 minutes per cycle.
- Drip zones for beds: 30–45 minutes, 1–2 times per week depending on plant maturity and mulch.
- Trees (every 2–3 weeks in heat): Soaker hose at the drip line for 60–90 minutes, moving it to cover the root area.

Non-watering days:

- Hand-water wilting new plantings with a hose and shutoff nozzle outside the 10 a.m.–6 p.m. window.
- Skip if soil is still moist 2–3 inches down.

After rain:

- Use your controller’s “rain skip” or “delay” feature for at least 48–72 hours, depending on rainfall amount.

Common Mistakes That Waste Water

Watering during wind or heat (late morning to afternoon). Most of it evaporates or drifts away.
Overlapping spray zones that flood sidewalks and streets.
Running the same schedule year-round. Cut back in spring/fall and scale up carefully in July/August heat.
Ignoring a small leak. A pinhole in an irrigation line can waste hundreds of gallons per day.
Watering every day “just in case.” Deep, less frequent watering grows stronger roots.

How to Stay Compliant (and Avoid Penalties)

Set your controller to the correct days and add a start time before 6 a.m.
Lock in the 10 a.m.–6 p.m. blackout. Most controllers let you adjust watering times easily—take a few minutes to review your settings each season.
Check for leaks, clogs, or broken sprinkler heads every month. A quick inspection can prevent wasted water and unexpected violations.
Take advantage of tools like the My Water Advisor App to track your usage, catch spikes early, and stay informed about town updates.

Following these guidelines helps ensure not only a healthy lawn, but a thriving Little Elm community for years to come. Water conservation isn’t just about following the rules—it’s about protecting our most valuable resource and setting an example for generations to follow. Stay informed, water wisely, and let’s work together to preserve Little Elm’s lakes and natural beauty.