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How clean are the splash pads your kids are playing in?

There are two kinds of splash pads: splash pads that recycle the water they use and pads that discard the water once it's made its way through the pad.

TEMPE, Ariz. — As temperatures reach, and stay, above 105, families flock to pools and splash pads across the Valley. But how do you know those splash pads are kept clean, both on the surface and in the water?

There are two kinds of splash pads: splash pads that recycle the water they use and pads that discard the water once it's made its way through the pad. 

The splash pads that use recycled water have similar rules to public pools. They have to be tested multiple times per day and that information is reported to Maricopa County. If a pool or splash pad fails, it's closed until it can pass. 

The other type of splash pad is relatively easier to maintain. 

Officials say those splash pads use the equivalent of tap water. 

"The water here is as good as he would get out of a drinking faucet," Kris Baxter-Ging with the City of Tempe said, standing by the Kiwanis Park splash pad. 

But water's only one part of the splash pad. There could always be "accidents," especially with younger kids. 

"All we ask is that people give us a call we'll come out we'll bring the bleach and clean it up and it'll be safe again for everybody," Baxter-Ging said. 

You can check Maricopa County's database of pools and splash pads yourself by going to https://envapp.maricopa.gov/WaterWaste/SwimmingPool.

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