With basic care as outlined here your copper sink or bathtub will last for generations! And most importantly, will look better in the years to come that it does the day it was installed. Not many products can make that statement!

Our copper kitchen sinks, bar sinks, bathroom sinks, vessel sinks and bath tubs strictly conform to the highest standards and are built to last! They even come with a lifetime guarantee!

Other items to consider..
There are a few more things to keep in mind when looking for your new copper product.

Attention to detail…
Take note of the hammering and tooling detail. The skilled craftsmen have a systematic and repetitive way that shows in quality and consistent tool marks.

Flat, straight welds and surfaces…
Although each product is a unique work of art, the product welds and surfaces should be straight, consistent and well finished. Skilled craftsmen take a great deal of pride in the quality of the work, even if the edges will never be seen, the true craftsmen deliver a product that has smooth, well finished, consistent and most of all, with a quality that sets them apart from the rest.

Support for the apron and drains…
Make sure that the apron front is supported on the sides, and on the bottom. And the support must be substantial. If you use a garbage disposal, and most people do, you must have the support and the heavy gauge copper to handle the vibration and stress that is placed on the sink every time the disposal is turned on.

And the finish…
Remember the more beautiful the copper finish is to begin with, the more beautiful the sink is as it ages! Its as simple as that.

Make sure you ask and insist on a pure copper TIG welded joint or seam. A properly welded copper kitchen sink, bathroom sink or bath tub will not experience any weakening at joints or seams, nor will joints or seams break apart even after years of constant daily use.

A joint or seam which is soldered is not only obvious to the eye because of the difference in color and texture of the metal used to join the copper but the soldered joint will eventually leak and split and require extensive maintenance, repair or replacement.

While copper is very durable, it is also soft and malleable which makes it perfect to craft your sink or bathtub from. So you want the heaviest and thickest metal that can also be tooled and worked beautifully and effectively. The best thickness for most Copper sinks is 15 or 16 gauge material. This material thickness has the strength to resist the rigors of everyday use, yet is easy to tool by hand.

All of our Deluxe Copper products use at least 16 gauge material and in some cases we use a heavier 15 gauge. This is your assurance of a lifetime of quality in every product we make.

How do you know what the gauge is? Make sure to ask. Also, it is impossible to hide a thin gauge copper product because the weights do not lie! Ask for the empty weight and insist that this be accurate. Check our item weights for comparison. And most important make sure the weight you are given is for the copper item only. (NO PACKAGING OR BOX WEIGHT ADDED)

Yes, there are grades of Copper!

Here are some facts. Earth’s inhabitants have been using copper for nearly 10,000 years. Copper is easy to recycle and one of the first construction metals to be recycled profitably and regularly. Most copper readily available today is in recycled form. When copper is recycled it is combined with other metals but still contains enough copper to perform the function for which it is intended, ie copper wiring, copper pipe, plumbing fixtures, etc. While great for some items, recycled copper is not good for the antibacterial and aesthetic appeal of your kitchen sink or bathtub,

For your copper sink or bathtub the only choice should be 99.9% pure copper. Not recycled copper or some substitute.

When copper is discarded, combined with other copper and recycled it is not always in it’s purest form and when used for a sink or bathtub the product may not have the properties that you bargained for. some common complaints from customers with sinks or bathtubs made from recycled copper are:

1. Interferes with the natural “Living Finish” of the copper
2. “pitting” and surface irregularities
3. accelerated and uneven aging and coloring
4. over time does not stand up to everyday use
5. requires extra care

In it’s pure, natural state, copper has an entire menu of incredibly beneficial features… many of which are discussed here. These features are exactly what makes pure copper the ideal choice for your kitchen and bath!

When ‘unknown’ alloys enter the picture however, they, in essence, contaminate the copper. The alloy mix compromises the integrity of copper’s pure natural state and dilutes or inhibits copper’s very unique characteristics that make it such a beautiful and ideal metal in the first place.

Absolutely! This is a well known fact. While stainless steel has the distinction of being the best metal for cleaning and maintaining (at a reasonable cost) a sanitary surface, the metal content of copper actually acts to kill bacteria!

In fact, studies have shown that bacteria only lives for hours on copper, as compared to living for days on stainless steel and longer still on all other types of kitchen and bath surfaces!

For more info, you may want to read these online articles about copper’s antibacterial properties. (To read the articles, click on the links then use your browser’s back button to return to this page).

‘Copper Answer to Food Poisoning‘ – BBC Online ~ Health Article, 20 August 2001

“Copper Alloys May Be Allies in Fight Against Germs” – Copper Development Association, 15 November 2004.

This is where our natural copper products are truly amazing! Copper does not scratch any easier than other metals in your kitchen and the best part about the “living finish” that you get from a copper product is that scratches literally fix themselves. You don’t have to do anything!

Remember, when you see a scratch you are seeing bright new exposed metal, the unique properties of copper will immediately begin to cover this newly exposed metal area with the same protective patina that makes the rest of the product so beautiful.

You continue to use your sink or bathtub just like you always do and in no time the scratch is gone.