Copper Garden Fountains Add a Natural Look.

Copper water fountains, and their cousins, bronze fountains, are an interesting décor choice for any home or garden; they gained a spike of popularity from Home and Garden TV's assorted home remodeling programs, and most home remodeling stores now stock some variety of them.

The first and most important reason to do any kind of home improvement is to make your home a pleasanter place to live. Whether your copper fountain is there because it makes your garden more relaxing - watching water droplets splash through can be very soothing - or for noise mitigation, the primary reason to do this is that the fountain makes it pleasanter to live on your property. You spent a lot of money on your garden, you might as well enjoy spending time there.

The second reason most people go through the hassle of getting a copper fountain put in is to improve the resale value of the home. A copper or bronze water fountain will cost a few thousand dollars, and a week or so of contractors tromping through the yard to put in, but it can easily add five times its value for the home's resale price. While not quite in the same category as a kitchen or bathroom remodel in terms of dollars spent to price increase, it's in the same general principal, and can often be bundled into that sort of job, as long as you've got the plumber there already.

When laying out your yard in anticipation of a bronze fountain, think about the overall layout; it's going to need to be put near or on a wall with water access, or you'll have to run pipes out under your garden to feed it (this can be a good excuse to install an automatic misting system). Water access will limit where it can go in a lot of homes; there are fountains that don't draw water from your plumbing, but recirculate water from a basin. Look for fountains as a way to separate a garden space by an auditory wall, or to help define a space, much the same way a fireplace does for a Colonial living room.

Copper fountains have a few other benefits as well; they act as natural humidifiers in dry climates. The circulation of water droplets as they cycle through the fountain sparks evaporation, which raises the relative humidity when the pump is in operation. This boost in humidity happens with the nice, soothing sound of water tinkling in a fountain, not the hiss and whirr of a fan driven device. Copper or bronze fountains with open water running through them will also help your plants through the dry winter months, and will cut down on dust allergies and the 'runny noses' of winter.

Pets love running water to drink from (as anyone who's tried to keep the dog away from the garden hose knows), and fountains are good for this. Make sure you keep them clean of leaves and pet hair, and use filtered water without chemicals. There are pet-friendly enzymatic systems that will keep your water fountain clean.

Whatever your reasons for wanting one, putting a copper fountain or a bronze fountain in your garden can have a lot of benefits to you and your family.