drinking fountain

Drinking fountain from 1927 in Munich

Drinking fountains are set up in public spaces to offer residents and tourists the opportunity to refresh themselves with pure drinking water free of charge . Drinking fountains are usually set up by city or community administrations and water suppliers, sometimes with the help of sponsors . Most of these wells have an additional catch basin that acts as a drain. The drinking water coming from the public pipeline network must be regularly replenished in order to avoid quality impairment. Drinking water fountains differ from water dispensers in that they are usually set up outdoors, have no cooling equipment and are fed from the public drinking water network. The designation as drinking water well is common, but conceptually imprecise, since a well carrying drinking water does not necessarily have to be suitable as a drinking fountain.

In health resorts that specialize in well cures , there are usually various drinking fountains, also outside the typical health resort drinking halls , which donate medicinal spring water.

Different versions

While in some drinking fountains the water only runs when a lever or button is pressed, in other variants the drinking water flows continuously. In temperate latitudes, drinking fountains are usually only in operation in the warm season, since pipes and fittings can be destroyed by frost in the winter months.

In addition to permanently installed drinking fountains, there are also mobile drinking fountains that can be used at major events or seasonally. For the 2008 European Football Championship, Vienna developed its own type, the Euro fountain.

→ Main article : Viennese drinking fountains # Mobile drinking fountains in Vienna

Illustrations of drinking fountains

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  One of the Viennese drinking fountains designed by Hans Muhr , Vienna

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  Drinking fountain with controls to activate the water flow, Vienna

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  Berlin drinking fountain type 1 , cast iron, with constant water flow, Berlin-Spandau

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  Berlin drinking fountain type 2 , cast aluminum, with constant water flow, Berlin-Charlottenburg

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  Euro drinking fountain over a hydrant crane, Vienna

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  Street drinking fountain in Portland, Oregon , USA

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  Drinking fountain in Bjni, in the Armenian province of Kotajk

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  Drinking water fountain in Humboldt Park in Milwaukee , Wisconsin

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  Drinking fountain from the 1930s in Rome

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  Drinking fountain in Central Park，Manhattan

Regulations in Germany

There is a recommendation by the DGKH for the installation of drinking fountains , which lists materials and water filters, among other things. For commercial operators, it is mandatory to keep a log book (previously regulated according to the Beverage Dispensing System Ordinance), in which maintenance and cleaning, for example, are entered.

See also

• Viennese drinking fountain
• Wallace Fountain , a version widespread in Paris
• Berlin drinking fountain

Footnotes

1. ^ Siegfried Gendries: Munich residents receive public drinking fountains. ( Memento from June 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
2. ^ Vienna: New mobile drinking fountains on the Graben and on the Praterstern in: Der Standard from May 24, 2011.
3. ↑ DGKH: Drinking fountain recommendation, p. 161- p. 165 in: Disinfection. 3 (1997), Volume 4, edited by Walter Bodenschatz

Web links

Commons : Drinking Fountain  - Collection of images, videos, and audio files