The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a series of federal laws designed to assist individuals with disabilities. The ADA has mandated specifications and guidelines for drinking fountains. Some of these are that the spout cannot be more than 36 inches off the floor, the spout must be near the front of the fountain and the underside of the fountain must have a open space. The bottom of the fountain cannot be any lower than 27 inches from the floor, so that a person in a wheelchair can slide in under the fountain. Also, all controls must be toward the front of the fountain.
Most drinking fountains are set with a spout height of anywhere from 36 inches to 43 inches off the floor. The Elkay Drinking Fountain Company recommends a spout height of 41 and 11/16 inches off the floor. The Oasis Drinking Fountain company specifies a height of 40 1/4 inches to the bottom of the spout. Usually, the architect relies on recommendations from several manufacturers and makes a final height determination accordingly.
The water supply pressure varies widely among various manufacturers. Usually a recommended supply is anywhere from 30 to 60 lbs. per square inch (PSI). This is a pretty wide leeway. The Haws fountain recommends a pressure of anywhere from 30 to 90 PSI. The reason for such a wide leeway is that fountains have internal "fine-tune" adjusters and internal regulators. The water rising out of the spout is adjusted by the plumber. He uses an internal adjustment knob to set the final pressure.
All drinking fountains must be lead free. In 2011, this is easy to comply with, since all solders and components are made out of lead free materials. This was not always the case, however. If you are restoring an ornate antique drinking fountain, replace the original internal components with modern components, reusing the outside shell only. In 2011 all fountains are made of rust free components, such as brass, stainless steel or chrome plated brass.