Most of us don't think of installing a fountain in our yards because it must be expensive and pricy to install something so lovely and refreshing.
Part of the fountain of misinformation about these gentle appliances is the notion that you have to dig a trench, lay a special waterline and then plumb all the insides so the water mysteriously gurgles out the top.Yes, the pricy, larger fountains have to be professionally installed. But you can buy yard fountains that you just have to set up, fill with water and plug into an electrical outlet.
Myrna Slason, owner of a business that specializes in smaller fountains people can install themselves, said many customers wander in to look at lawn ornaments and end up admiring the fountains instead.
When Slason asks them whether they'd like to buy a fountain, "the first sentence I hear is, `No, I don't want to run a waterline.' "
But after she explains how simple most of them are to install, "nine times out of 10 they go out with one, when they had no plan to buy one when they came in."
Fountains need electricity to run a pump that usually is concealed in the lower water-collection bowl. It pumps water up through a concealed tube to the top of the fountain, where it cascades or bubbles out. The water just keeps recirculating.
Some of the water will evaporate, especially on blazing summer days, so just periodically add water with a bucket or hose.
And don't worry about using lots of electricity. Just run the pump when you want to enjoy the fountain. In fact, Slason advises against running the pump round the clock because it's hard on the pump. And if too much water evaporates and leaves the pump above water, it could burn out.
So now that you've run out of practical excuses for not buying a fountain, move on to the hardest part - selecting one that looks and sounds right.
Fountains come in an array of personalities and materials. You can select Victorian, with cherubs, birds and flowers; Southwestern, with Indian women holding pots on their heads, miners panning for gold or Indian-style pots; or more-artistic free forms.
Fountains usually are made of cast concrete, dyed concrete, fiberglass mixtures, cast aluminum or hand-cut Canterra stone.
In selecting a fountain, judge it not only by how it looks, but by its gurgle, splash or babble.
"Every fountain has a different sound because of the way the water runs," Slason said. "Water makes a sound when it hits the fountain, and it makes a different sound when it runs into other water."
The sound of a fountain may be soft and subtle, noisier like a bubbling brook, or louder and more like a waterfall.
Slason and her husband, Armand, encourage customers to pick fountains not just by appearance but by the melodies that appeal to them. That sound, after all, is the real attraction of fountains and why they remain popular after thousands of years and continue to be the centerpoint of many a park, plaza, public square, office building and mall.
The gurgling sound not only softens city noises but probably fulfills some primal urge.
Fountains especially make sense in desert cities because they can offer cooling relief that is both psychological and real.