Save water, and earn money for doing so, by making changes to your irrigation system or landscape to conserve water.
Denver Water will pay homeowners associations, commercial or irrigation-only customers $21.50 for each thousand gallons of water saved annually over a five-year contract period.
Who is Eligible?
All homeowners associations, commercial or irrigation-only customers served by Denver Water are eligible to apply for the program.
Getting Started
- Choose a project that will improve water-use efficiency by installing irrigation upgrades and/or landscape improvements.
- Call Denver Water at 303-628-6343 to have a conservation specialist contact you.
- Or fill out our application and we will contact you.
- Denver Water will issue a contract detailing the terms of the project.
- A Conservation staff member will conduct a post-installation inspection to verify operation.
- Denver Water will track your water use annually.
- Payments will be prorated over a five-year period and paid annually.
Project Requirements
- Equipment or improved technology must remain in use for 20 years.
- Upgrades and improvements must be approved by a Denver Water conservation specialist.
- Estimated potential water savings, as determined by a Denver Water conservation specialist, must be 3 acre feet or greater annually.
Examples of Eligible Equipment Changes
- Replacing an irrigation system
- Installing pump systems to improve pressure and efficiency
- Upgrading weather-based controllers
- Replacing grass with native grass or low-water-use plants
Rebates Available Through Incentive Contracts
- 50 percent of the material cost for rain cans (tipping buckets)
- 50 percent of the material cost for gear-driven rotor heads
- $5 per nozzle, $20 minimum for irrigation rotary nozzles
- 25 percent material cost for weather-based smart controllers
- $1,000 material installation labor cost per contract
Design Cost Assistance
Customers may request assistance to help pay for design costs for conservation measures. Design assistance is limited to 10% of the projected savings up to $10,000. Savings is determined by comparing the historical consumption for the site to a projected goal of 18 gallons per square foot (gpsf) of irrigated area. The difference is the Projected Savings for the site. Submitted water budgets of less than 18 gpsf will require approval of submitted landscape and/or irrigation drawings.
Proposals requesting assistance require the use of contracted landscape and/or an irrigation design company to create plans for the proposed water saving changes. Proposals may include phased-in plans as long as it occurs within the five-year constraint of the contract. Milestones will be required of additional phases along with verification of installation. Submitted drawings should show the completed proposal at build-out.
Successful proposals should include irrigation system improvements that require re-design of the system coupled with equipment upgrades. Successful landscape projects should include significant (25% or more) bluegrass turf replacement coupled with proper soil amendment and the use of Xeric plant material (trees, shrubs and native grasses). Landscape proposals generally require re-working the irrigation system so efficient watering can occur.
Items to consider for irrigation upgrades are:
- ET Controllers (weather-based smart controllers)
- Central Control
- Cycle and Soak Controllers
- Rain Sensors
- Zoned by plant water requirements
- Seasonal run-time schedules provide
- Low angle nozzles
- Driplines
- MP Rotator retrofits for pop-up spray heads in turf areas
- Converting to irrigation-only tap (if applicable)
Items to consider for landscape upgrades are:
- Removing bluegrass areas and changing to native grass or shrub beds
- Till in compost to 6" depth at 4 cubic yards / 1000 square feet
- Use Xeric plant material
- Provide seasonal maintenance schedules