An Arizona childcare facility should check the licensing rules for its actual program alongside building and accessibility requirements. Title 9 Chapter 5 addresses child toilet and handwashing availability, connected drains and dedicated diaper-changing arrangements. Counts and sink uses depend on the enrolled children and setting. Confirm the plan with the licensing authority before replacing fixtures or changing the layout.
What does the facility rule distinguish?
Begin with the facility's licensing category and enrolled program, then design the plumbing around that use. A restaurant fixture table does not establish the childcare licensing requirements. Nor does a small toilet automatically satisfy every accessibility or operational rule.
Arizona Administrative Code Title 9 Chapter 5 covers child care facilities. The captured edition, Supplement 25-2, contains the physical-plant and diaper-changing provisions discussed here. Other childcare settings or program categories can have different applicable sections. Confirm which rules govern your facility with the licensing authority.
Section R9-5-601 excludes infants and children who use diapers from this fixture count. For the remaining enrolled children, it specifies at least:
- One flush toilet and one handwashing sink for 10 or fewer children.
- Two flush toilets and two handwashing sinks for 11 to 25 children.
- One flush toilet and one handwashing sink for each additional 20 children.
The specified handwashing sinks must provide running water and a drain connected to a sanitary sewer. Have the licensing authority apply the count to the approved program; it is separate from the building-code occupant-load calculation.
For applicable diaper-changing areas, R9-5-503 requires a handwashing sink next to the changing surface for staff use and washing a child during or after diapering. That sink must provide running water between 86°F and 110°F, dispenser soap and single-use paper hand towels from a dispenser. That is the specified sink delivery condition, not an instruction to change the building water-heater setting. The rule prohibits drawing water for human consumption from a diaper-changing-area sink and prohibits the listed food items and food preparation there.
These are separate uses. Do not remove a dedicated sink because another basin looks close enough on a floor plan.
What should the operator give the designer?
Prepare a program-to-fixture schedule:
| Information | What the review needs |
|---|---|
| Licensing category | Applicable rules and agency instructions |
| Enrolled groups | Ages, diaper use and approved numbers |
| Room purposes | Activity areas, infant rooms and diaper-changing locations |
| Existing fixtures | Toilets, handwashing and separately used sinks |
| Proposed change | Removed, moved or replacement fixture and its served activity |
| Water and drainage | Required delivery conditions and approved connections |
| Accessibility | Applicable adult and child-use layout requirements |
Have the authority and designer apply the actual count and exceptions. A general website worksheet should not certify the licensed capacity of a facility.
How does accessibility fit in?
The ADA Standards add their own scoping and technical requirements. Child-use provisions and adult staff use need to be identified rather than blended into one assumed fixture height. Commercial restroom accessibility gives the general context. Replacement-fixture accessibility checks apply when an installed element changes.
General commercial fixture counts and tenant-improvement plumbing address building design questions. Equipment specifications for review helps document selected models. Keep the childcare licensing review separate and retain its accepted conditions with the project records.