Once you’ve invested in copper sinks for your home, you’ll want to be sure you take the right steps for maintenance so it stay beautiful and lustrous for years to come. Surprisingly, it’s not very difficult at all, but copper finishes never stop changing; it’s a constant and gradual color change which many consider to be more beautiful with age. To reduce these changes, you’ll need to use wax.
For basic cleaning, mild soap and water is all that’s required. By nature, copper will turn into a warm, medium patina, so unless you want a shiny finish, copper cleaners aren’t necessary, and you should never use abrasive, acidic or other harsh cleaners as they can permanently damage copper’s surface. As mentioned, periodically applying a wax will help keep luster and encourage water drainage.
There are different finishes to copper pieces and care varies slightly for each:
Shiny and matte finishes need the most care and are the only sinks that copper cleaners should be applied to. Again, wax will reduce the frequencies of cleaning.
Nickel will patina over time, unlike stainless steel, and can be cleaned with typical metal cleaner to spruce up the brightness.
Smoke and Rio Grande finishes won’t change much as their color is the result of process to quicken the patina already. Soapy water is best and if something like ketchup takes the patina off, it will come back with time.
Cafe Natural will gradually darken and patina. Waxing is best to reduce any change, and yes, automobile wax is fine.
A soft cloth or very soft nylon brush may be used with the soapy water. If you’ve got a really difficult stain, a small amount of baking soda paste (baking soda and water) may help, just rinse well and dry after cleaning.
If you have hard water in your home, you may want to be extra diligent in drying your sink after use. Minerals in hard water that frequently sit on the finish may result in buildups and staining.
A few other interesting facts about copper sinks are 1) it’s one of the best sink materials available since it helps kill bacteria. Unlike stainless steel, bacteria die within a few hours on copper as compared to several days, improving the sanitary conditions in your bath or kitchen.