How to polish, finish, & protect a copper table

A. Hi Doug. Arhaus builds very expensive, very beautiful, copper tables, so if I were you I'd try to find and hire a professional who has actually done this before. It's hard to guess whether filling the gouges with clear epoxy vs. repeated application of brass lacquer will turn out better, especially because I don't know what Arhaus uses for their clear coatings. And, of course, it's possible that neither will work well at all and instead you'll need to strip the existing lacquer first. But if you do use brass lacquer ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] it must be very highly thinned and in multiple coats to avoid visible runs. Chandelier manufacturers often use 7 coats of thinned lacquer, so I doubt that Arhaus uses only a single coat.

Luck & Regards,

A. Apologies that it's hard to advise on matters of taste such as whether you will be happier retaining the shine or allowing the tabletop to age.

If I had the item I think I'd just periodically clean it with Brasso ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] or other copper polish, but that's me. To retain the shine instead, apply brass lacquer or a clear coat such as Protectaclear from Everbrite [a finishing.com supporting advertiser].

Good luck.

A. Hi, Kelly.

Sorry, but I doubt that anyone can tell you that your dregs are still good after years of very hot and cold temperatures (they're probably not). And unlacquered copper does lose its shine in a week or less, so copper/brass lacquer of this sort is probably a good way to protect shiny copper, so buy some more :-)

It's neither right nor wrong to steel wool the table -- although someone who has done it will hopefully come along and comment on technique. But a full bright look doesn't come from the tiny scratches that steel wool implies, it comes from power buffing with soft buffs and very fine polishing abrasives. Many people just use Mothers polish ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] for that. The alternative is to go for a more "natural" oxidized look because it's less work than keeping it shiny We have dozens of threads on line covering that idea; please search the site for "oil rubbed bronze". Copper can also be patinated with vinegar and salt water, ammonia, liver of sulfur, proprietary copper patina solutions, etc., so you can search with those terms. It's not so much that people are unwilling to answer you; it's probably that there are so many possibilities and most have already been covered pretty expansively. You may need to find a thread that is intriguing, and follow up on the approaches that you find most interesting. Good luck!

Regards,

Brass Lacquers

on eBay or

Amazon

(affil links)

A. Hi, again Kelly. I have no expertise on this, and now that I look carefully I see that you are talking about '0000', which is superfine steel wool, not anything scratchy, whereas steel wool ranges from superfine through coarse in at least 7 grades

G.J. Nikolas [a finishing.com supporting advertiser] is a major supplier of lacquer if you want to talk to someone, need a lot of it, or need something special, but you can also get brass lacquer by the single can from Amazon or eBay.

Good luck and Regards,

A. Well I was not going to say anything as you sounded kind of do-it-your-self but if you are willing to spend a bit of money take it down to a automobile body shop and get them to take it to the required shine and then give it a couple coats of good clear coat epoxy paint. The paint will last as long as the paint job on your car providing you treat your table the same way you treat your car. Most likely it will never have to be done again in your lifetime and you will have a lifetime of nice copper shine with no elbow grease ever again!

Hi, Ron. I think you offered good advice and that an automotive clearcoat will last a long time indoors. Thanks. But if Kelly were actually to treat it like a car, the finish would not last long at all outdoors in the alternating freezing and blistering environment, full of salt. Just because cars have a clearcoat as the top layer of their finish does not mean that the underlying layers of galvanneal, phosphatization, electrocoated primer, and paint are not all essential to the performance and corrosion resistance :-) "It's not paint, it's a coating system". Regards, Ted Mooney, P.E. Striving to live Aloha finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

A. The problem with spray on coatings is when the coatings start to go bad or are chipped or scratched. I recommend Carnauba wax ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] which lasts for quite a long time and can easily be touched up or removed.

A. To all above ... 0000 steel wool will work like a polishing cloth on copper. Further, lemon juice, salt and vinegar work wonders on cleaning old tarnished copper (I have never tried to clean any other metals) BUT you MUST neutralize the acidity ... you have to rinse off the juice, salt and vinegar with water and immediately apply 8 parts to one part water and baking soda [in bulk on eBay or Amazon [affil links] . Rub it in for a couple of minutes and wash it off with water. Then use your steel wool to brighten the copper.

Further, a product called Incralac ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] was recommended by www.copper.org as an exterior protectant for copper/copper alloy metals to keep the copper looking just as you want it. It has a sunscreen inhibitor, which no in-store lacquer has. I have purchased it from a company in California and will give it a try.

(sign after 10 years outside)

(copper sign after lemon, salt and vinegar)

(after 10 hours but NOT neutralized with baking soda/water mixture)

(finished sign using liver of sulfur ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] for premature oxidation on all aspects of sign EXCEPT name, and polished with 0000 steel wool ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] on "Sumdat Farm" name and around ivy design)

Beautiful work, Sarah. And thanks so much for the detailed instructions!

Regards,

Mothers Polish

on eBay or

Amazon

(affil links)

Mothers Polishing Tool

on eBay or

Amazon

(affil links)

Hi Adam. When metal loses its shine there may be two factors involved: a tarnish layer, which is a metal oxide that doesn't have the brightness of the bare metal, and roughness of the surface so that it doesn't offer specularity (it's no longer mirror-like).

The best way to attack both problems at the same time is with a fine buffing compound on a powered buffing wheel. Powerful buffing wheels are dangerous for the untrained if something gets away from you, but you can probably hold on to a 12 or 14.4 volt battery operated drill. Probably the easiest to use and most available combo would be Mother's Aluminum & Magnesium Polish (it works well on copper) and their buffing attachment.

After you have it the way you want it, brass lacquer can keep it that way for a reasonable period, especially indoors. Best of luck.

Regards,