Dublin, CA Landscaping Rules: Water Restrictions (2026)
Water restrictions in Dublin, CA, also called the watering schedule, outdoor irrigation rules, or drought ordinance, set which days and hours you can run sprinklers or irrigation.
Key Facts
- Watering window
- 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m.
- Controller type required
- automatic, ET or soil-sensor based
- Stricter-rule test
- City or Water District, whichever stricter
- Maintenance exception
- allowed outside window for audits
Summary
Dublin, California restricts overhead sprinkler irrigation on landscapes covered by its Water-Efficient Landscape Ordinance to the hours of 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m. Municipal Code Section 8.88.110.A.2 applies the stricter of the city's or the Dublin San Ramon Services District's watering-hours rule.
2. Overhead irrigation shall be scheduled between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. unless weather conditions prevent it. If allowable hours of irrigation differ from the Water District, the stricter of the two shall apply. Operation of the irrigation system outside the normal watering window is allowed for auditing and system maintenance.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2-26, passed March 3, 2026).
Full Breakdown
Section 8.88.110 of the Dublin Municipal Code, Irrigation Scheduling, governs how landscapes subject to Chapter 8.88's Water-Efficient Landscape Ordinance may be watered. Section 8.88.110.A.2 sets the core restriction: overhead irrigation must run between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. unless weather conditions prevent it, and if the Dublin San Ramon Services District, defined in Section 8.88.030.CCCC as the Water District, sets different allowable hours, the stricter of the two schedules controls. The section carves out one exception: operating the system outside the normal watering window is allowed for auditing and system maintenance.
Section 8.88.110.A.1 requires that scheduling run through automatic irrigation controllers rather than manual timing, and Section 8.88.110.A.3 requires those controllers to use current reference evapotranspiration data, such as CIMIS, or soil-moisture-sensor data so that total annual applied water stays at or below the site's calculated Maximum Applied Water Allowance. Section 8.88.110.A.5 further requires each irrigation station's schedule to account for interval, run time, cycle starts to avoid runoff, monthly application volume, application rate, root depth, plant type, soil type, slope, shade, and distribution uniformity. These scheduling rules apply to the landscapes that fall under Chapter 8.88, principally new construction and rehabilitated landscape projects that submit a Landscape Documentation Package, rather than to every private yard in Dublin.
Violations & Fines
A landscape found operating overhead sprinklers outside the 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 a.m. window, without a weather or maintenance exception, is out of compliance with Chapter 8.88, which sits within Title 8. Section 8.144.060 makes a Title 8 violation an infraction, and Section 8.144.070.B sets fines of up to $100 for a first infraction, $200 for a second within a year, and $500 for a third, with a possible misdemeanor charge after that; the Dublin San Ramon Services District can separately enforce its own water-use rules on the same property.
Frequently Asked Questions
What hours can I run overhead sprinklers in Dublin?
Can I test my sprinklers outside the watering window?
Does the watering-hours rule apply to my existing lawn?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dublin
California rules heatmap·Compare Dublin to another location·View the California landscaping rules overview
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Water Restrictions in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Alameda County handle water restrictions.