OK, you want a fountain, not a hydrant.  First off, you are right about Richies.  They are  the biggest pile of junk made.

  I have 3 concrete Petersens.  The biggest problem I have is that the thermostats don't like to stay set.  The water tends to get warmer as the winter drags on.  I have to set them lower every once in a while, and then sometimes they do freeze over after a month and we start to go the other way.  I have a 44C Super Pete.  About the only things that can go wrong on them is the thermostat and the heating element.  Floats are copper and the valves are pretty good.