Bronze Care

• Windex or soap and water is all that is necessary for daily cleaning.
• Promptly wipe up liquids to prevent spotting or glass rings.
• Chopping directly on the surface is not recommended; please use cutting boards to minimize marks and scratches.
• Hot pots and pans should not be put directly on the surface; we recommend the use of trivets to avoid marks.
• Do not allow acidic foods such as lemons to contact patinated bronze countertops; these foods will dramatically affect or remove the patina.

Bronze Maintenance

Our metal products are made of raw, uncoated metals; care for these products varies based on the polish style:

• Matte Finish:
  • Normal – Minor scratches and mineral streaking can be brushed out using a household 3M Scotch-Brite pad.
  • Extreme Cases – Deep scratches may be sanded out using sandpaper grades up to 220, then buffed. Brush the countertop in a circular pattern to recreate its original finish. This will leave a matte, unpatinated finish. The normal patina will return over time.
• Mirror-Polish Finish:
  • Normal – General cleaning may be done using any metal polish, or even a solution using lemon juice and salt.
    • Take the juice of one lemon, and add salt to form a saturated liquid.
    • Rub the liquid over the copper with a paper towel.
    • Rinse off with warm water.
  • Extreme cases – Bronze may also be serviced using an automotive compound and a machine-polishing pad.
• Patinated Finish
  • Windex is great for day-to-day cleaning. Patinated finishes have NO protective coatings. Sanding or buffing will remove scratches, but will also remove the patina. The top will again darken over time, but may not exactly match the rest of the countertop. Acidic items such as lemon juice and metal polish may remove the patina while some food items will add to it.
  • As bronze has a living finish, which is expected to change with wear, tear and time. Your countertop may darken over time and will develop its own, unique pattern of use. The patination process is unique to each countertop, and no two will end up looking exactly alike.
  • The finish itself is not under warranty after installation. Brooks Custom does not guarantee its patinated bronze to match any other manufacturers’ patinated bronze.

If you need service advice, please follow this procedure to help us understand the nature of your problem:

• Please provide photos to illustrate the nature and size of your problem.
• First, place a quarter next to each problem area as a scale reference.
• Next, take a wide-angle photo that shows the entire countertop.
• Then, take a close-up photo of each problem area (showing the quarter in each close-up). This is standard in most of the home improvement industry.
• Email photos to service@brookscustom.com. After the photos are received, our Service Department will reply back with resolution options.