Have you ever wondered how the water that comes out of your faucet gets cleaned? If you have, you should enjoy solving this word search puzzle. All you need to do is read "How My Drinking Water Gets Cleaned." As you read, look for the words in bold type. Then see if you can find these words in the puzzle.

How My Drinking Water Gets Cleaned

Much of our drinking water comes from a place called the Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta. To get to our area, this water flows through a pipeline called the South Bay Aqueduct. Water from the Delta is dirty, so it must be cleaned at a treatment plant before we can drink it. Here's what happens at a treatment plant.

First, air is bubbled up through the water to remove gases that make it smell and taste bad. This is called aeration.

Next, a chemical called alum is mixed into the water. The alum forms into tiny, sticky particles that attract dirt. This step is called coagulation.

Then the alum and dirt collect in little bunches called floc. This is called flocculation.

The water then flows through large tanks where the bunches of floc sink to the bottom. This is called sedimentation.

Next, the water flows through filters made of coal, sand, and gravel. These filters trap tiny bits of dirt still in the water. This is called filtration.

A chemical is then mixed with the water to kill any germs in it. This is called disinfection.

Finally, fluoride is added to the water to help prevent tooth decay.

After the water is cleaned, it goes into pipelines so that it can reach our homes and many other places.