diff --git a/R/padVariable.r b/R/padVariable.r
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+#' Pad string with leading zeros
+#'
+#' Function to pad a string with leading zeros. Useful for parameter codes and USGS site IDs.
+#'
+#' @param x string 
+#' @param padTo number Final desired length of the string
+#' @keywords data import USGS web service
+#' @return x string returned with leading zeros
+#' @export
+#' @examples
+#' pCode <- '10'
+#' correctPCode <- padVariable(pCode,5)
+padVariable <- function(x,padTo){
+  numDigits <- nchar(x)
+  if (padTo != numDigits){
+    leadingZeros <- paste(rep("0",(padTo-numDigits)),collapse="",sep="")
+    x <- paste(leadingZeros,x,sep="")
+  }
+  return(x)
+}
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