Conservation - Fort Collins - Loveland Water District
As of January 1, 2025, water tap fees and monthly rates will be increasing. For more details, click here .
(970) 226-3104 Blog Careers Contact Us Pay My Bill
Pay My Bill

Protecting a valuable and limited resource

At Fort Collins-Loveland Water District, our utmost commitment has always been to provide customers with high-quality water, and to provide a secure and reliable supply of water to deliver to our customers. Water is a precious and limited resource here in Colorado. As part of our District’s long-term planning, conservation plays a pivotal role in safeguarding our existing supplies and reducing the volume of our water supply acquisitions for the future. We actively encourage customers to familiarize themselves with effective water conservation practices, enabling them to not only conserve water for the future but also to reduce their water bills month-to-month. For helpful tips on water conservation and money-saving tips, please see below.

It’s important to note that while conservation is highly encouraged, it remains voluntary and not mandatory.  Water use is an individual customer choice, and we respect that. Together, we can ensure a sustainable water future for our community. To learn more, please read our 2023 Water Efficiency Plan, Additionally, the District is constantly looking for ways to improve its use of resources overall. This includes everything from maintaining 95% efficiency in the water system by actively repairing leaks to installing a hydro turbine at Soldier Canyon Filter Plant, enabling the plant to now run nearly carbon neutral.

Water Conservation

If you do wish to help with conservation efforts, we encourage you to use the Water Calculator to help you determine gaps and find areas where you can reduce your water usage. From there, the District offers programs and resources to help you use your water more efficiently.

Leak Detection

The District is proud to offer a leak detection program to help identify leaks in the system. The service works by monitoring residential usage and alerting us to any exceptionally high or low months over our thresholds. Excessive use is a key indication that water is constantly flowing—such as through holes in burst pipes or faltering faucets. While this tool is highly effective in catching unseen leaks, it cannot catch every leak. It also cannot identify the source of the leak.

If a leak is coming from a FCLWD-owned distribution line (before the customer meter), we’ll repair it immediately. If it’s your own plumbing (after the meter) that’s the culprit, we’ll report it to you as soon as we learn about the issue so you can fix it as quickly as possible. Check out this visual guide to understand what is your responsibility to fix and maintain and what is the District’s responsibility.

Please remember, the District will not repair service lines on your property nor are we responsible for identifying where water went after passing the meter. This service is purely designed to report leaks to you when we can detect them. Leaks that occur after the meter are your responsibility to find and repair. In addition, customers are billed for and responsible for payment for all water that runs through their meter, regardless of whether it was due to a leak or not.

It’s important to monitor your home regularly to check for leaks. Here are a few tips to identify possible leaks:

    • Monitor your home for water leaks in your faucets and toilets.
    • Watch your bill for unexpected jumps which can indicate water inefficiency.
    • Replace old, inefficient toilets with a new WaterSense toilet.
    • Test your toilets quarterly with food dye for leaks. Simply grab a bottle of food coloring and put a few drops in the tank of every toilet in the house. If a toilet tank is leaking, color will appear in the bowl within five minutes.
    • Watch for squishy spots in your yard – this could mean a pipe is leaking.
    • Check your walls for water drips, bubbling paint or wallpaper or discoloration, which could indicate a leak.
    • Notice a musty smell? Over time, a persistent leak provides the perfect humid environment for mold to grow so a musty smell is often a red flag.

The District does not offer leak detection for commercial accounts. We have found that commercial accounts do not have consistent usage pattern that can set a threshold for to identify leaks – every commercial account is different in how they use water.

Slow the Flow Sprinkler Evaluation

 Just like a car, your sprinklers need an occasional tune-up. Residential and non-residential FCLWD customers to have their system checked with a FREE Slow the Flow sprinkler evaluation by Resource Central. A 75-minute evaluation could help you save thousands of gallons of water each year, and it’s easy to sign up and schedule!

Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller

FCLWD customers are eligible to receive a discount on their Rachio Smart Sprinkler Controller to help make outdoor water usage more efficient. The smart controller provides self-adjusting schedules that use customized yard details and water technology to help you determine how much to water and when. It also uses predictive technology to skip watering before it starts raining. District customers can save up to $60 on the controller.

Garden In a Box

FCLWD customers are eligible to receive a $25 bill credit when they purchase a Garden In A Box. The Garden In A Box program offered through Resource Central makes it easy to transform your yard into a beautiful, drought-tolerant oasis helping you to use less water on your landscaping year after year. Each spring and summer Resource Central offers a selection of professionally designed, low-water garden kits tailor-made for Colorado yards. These do-it-yourself kits include quart-sized perennial plants, plant-by-number maps, seasonal maintenance suggestions, and watering schedule recommendations. Ditch some water-loving grass and plant a new perspective with Garden In A Box.

Cost-of-Service Pricing

To further its long-term conservation planning, the District uses a cost-of-service model to encourage efficient water use by its residential, commercial and irrigation customers. Customers who place a higher than usual demand on the water system are charged more, incenting everyone to consume less. The financial rate model stems from a rate study, completed in 2018 and updated in 2023, that revealed that some customer classes are placing a higher demand on the water system now than in the past, particularly homeowners and irrigation users. A customer class is a rate group that is based on the cost of service for that particular group. With the completion of the 2023 rate study, the consultants have recommend increases in rates and reduction in the tier rate structure.  The Board and staff continually monitor costs increases, capital construction costs and needs, and reserves to ensure the District is in sound financial position.   The Board will continue to monitor and communicate to customers about any rate increases.

Additional Resources & Education

If you want additional support with water conservation, there are a variety of resources and educational opportunities within our community.

  • Colorado WaterWise offers classes and events during the year.  Also, check out their comprehensive list of water conservation efforts from landscaping to indoor conservation.
  • Town of Windsor Conservation Kits: The Town of Windsor offers free home water conservation kits to Windsor residents. The kits are available for pick up at Town Hall during normal business hours. Visit windsorgov.com for additional information.
  • Fort Collins Utility Xeriscape: Looking to change your landscaping? Xeriscape is the creation of a healthy, beautiful landscape that also conserves water. Fort Collins Utilities offers inspiration and resources to help you plan your Xeriscape project. Visit fcgov.org for additional information.
  • Northern Colorado Water Conservation Campus and Garden: Northern Water has an expansive conservation garden on its campus designed for public education on water-efficient landscaping techniques. Featured in the garden are more than  700 Colorado-friendly plants, grasses and shrubs as well as learn more several demonstration areas for native and alternative grasses, irrigation technologies, soil preparation and a xeriscape plaza. The garden is open to the public daily from sunrise to sunset. Visit northernwater.org/ConservationGardens for additional information.
  • Resource Central: Resource Central offers free, online waterwise yard seminars taught by local landscape and horticultural professionals. The seminars are offered in the spring/summer on a variety of topics including turf removal, design and plant selection, Colorado landscaping, fall planting and more. Visit resourcecentral.org/seminars to see upcoming seminars and watch previous recorded seminars. Resource Central also hosts regular conservation events that are open to the public, including seminars, lectures, workshops, conservation tours and more. Visit resourcecentral.org/events to see their events calendar for upcoming opportunities.