IRRIGATION

Solar Hills Ranch Subdivision receives its water from Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association (UVWUA) from the “AM Lateral” canal. This is the canal that flows along the eastern and northern boundary of the subdivision. Solar Hills Ranch is allocated 53.7 shares of water during a normal year. One share is enough water to irrigate 1 acre of land. In years of low water reserves, UVWUA may reduce customer’s usage to a certain percentage of the full allocation. Water empties into our lake from a valve on the northside of Oak Grove Rd. 

The irrigation system is comprised of sections of 4” 6” and 8” underground PVC pipe that delivers irrigation water to each lot in the subdivision. The pipe that was used has a very thin wall and can be easily broken. In the past, existing pipe has been uncovered to find that the pipe has become oval due to improper backfilling of soil over the pipe, settling of soil on top of the pipe, and vehicle traffic over the pipe.

Our irrigation system is charged using to main valves. A 10-inch valve is located at the end of the dock and the other 8-inch pipe is accessed from the bank on the southside of the lake. We have a closed irrigation system, with a number of isolation valves and air vacs. Each homeowner is entitled to one 2-inch tap to supply water to their property.