All of Drummonds’ bespoke special finishes are unlacquered ‘live’ finishes that will tarnish and patinate after purchase. We strongly recommend that all customers read the details below before purchasing any of Drummonds special finishes because they will change appearance during storage, installation and use. The speed of this change depends on the environment (heat, moisture & limescale) and the amount of handling of the products i.e. a basin tap that is handled frequently will tarnish and patinate quicker than a brass basin stand that is rarely handled or in contact with water.

Drummonds fittings are manufactured from brass, which is a combination of 2 metals (copper and zinc) cast together to form the alloy known as brass. The surface of the brass is polished by hand over many hours to create a perfectly smooth shiny brass finish, which we do not lacquer to allow it to age and wear naturally. The ageing process for brass is completely natural and results in a thin layer of the metal oxidising and tarnishing, creating a beautiful patina colour on the surface of the brass. The result is an antique finish that is highly prized by customers who want their brass products to have the appearance of a vintage object.

Unlacquered Brass Finish

If a customer loves the shiny unlacquered appearance of their brass products and does not want the products to age, then they will need to undertake a regular maintenance programme to remove the surface patination using Brasso, which will restore the shiny finish. Customers should be aware that cleaning the surface of brass using Brasso has to be done by hand and is a time-consuming process.

Bespoke Special Finishes

For customers who want that vintage look from day one, Drummonds offers a number of bespoke special finishes including:

• Antique Brass
• Antique Brushed Brass
• Antique Bronze
• Brushed Brass
• Antique Nickel
• Brushed Nickel

These finishes are all done by hand and involve a number of processes to accelerate the oxidisation and patination of the surface of the brass. These processes include the use of an ageing solution, light abrasive pads and the application of a thin layer of wax. All of Drummonds special finishes will continue to age and patinate after purchase. The wax applied to the surface will not stop the ageing process and is purely there to enhance the beauty of the finish like a piece of fine furniture. As explained above, the environment and the amount of handling will affect the speed of the ageing process and it is perfectly normal to experience variable colour changes across a product including areas of green oxidation (where the brass reacts with the water).

Drummonds recommends that customers consider very carefully before choosing a bespoke special finish. As per our terms and conditions, all bespoke special finishes are classified as ‘custom’ products and as such, if the customer does not like how the products age and patinate after purchase, unfortunately these cannot be returned.

If a customer does not want to accept the variations that come with a bespoke special finish, please select one of our brass plated finishes including polished chrome or polished nickel.

Caring For Bespoke Special Finishes

Unlike unlacquered polished brass, it is very difficult to return a bespoke special finish back to showroom appearance even after a small amount of usage because products such as Brasso will remove both any new aging and patination plus the special finish that was applied in our factory. If customers choose to allow the ageing and patination process to continue, then there is very little maintenance required other than washing the surface of the product with soapy water and drying with a soft towel. Never use proprietary bathroom cleaners or limescale remover on the surface of a special finish product, as this will likely result in removal of the patination in a patchy and unsightly way. The occasional application of a suitable wax such as Briwax will enhance the aged surface but will not clean it.

If a customer wants to remove significant areas of patination or limescale that has developed on the surface of the product during storage, installation or usage, then they will need to follow the process below.

• To remove surface marks, hand polish using Brasso. Polishing the surface will remove patination marks and variations in colour but also if you have chosen a brushed finish such as antiqued brushed brass, brushed brass, antique nickel or brushed nickel then polishing will remove some of the brushed finish.
• To reapply the brushed finish, lightly brush the surface of the product with a light abrasive pad such as a household scourer. Be sure to move in the same direction as the existing brush marks to ensure an even finish. Never use any kind of sand or glass paper on the surface of brass.
• The extent to which the surface is polished will determine the amount of the original special finish and therefore aging that remains on the product. It is not possible to reapply the aging solution in site, however, the natural patination process will begin again.
• The application of a thin layer of wax (Briwax) can be done at this stage to bring out the beauty of the finish.
• As stated above limescale remover should never be applied to the surface of a special finish product therefore it is very important to take preventive action to stop the build up of limescale on the product by drying the product after use and in the case of shower heads pricking out the holes in the shower head on a regular basis.