Did My Copper Sink Patina? | How to Clean a Copper Sink

After I completed the powder room makeover for the One Room Challenge last fall, I got a lot of question about my new copper sink, but the number one question: did my copper sink patina?

I didn’t think it would, because the description says “Lifetime Finish That Will Not Patina”. 

It’s why I chose it; I assumed it was coated with something that would keep it shiny forever, but I didn’t think to ask or confirm.  So I was surprised to discover that my copper sink did, in fact, tarnish and start to develop a patina!  Oops.

Water spots also showed up on it – but I blame our well water for that.

Even though the tarnished copper sink didn’t look bad, I preferred the super shiny look to copper patina.  The sink was provided to me by Thompson Traders, so I emailed them for help and they were so helpful!  They suggested that I use Wright’s Copper Cleaner, which I ordered on Amazon. 

Last night I cleaned the copper sink and I wanted to share the process for everyone who was curious about the copper sink patina.  The instructions say to wear a rubber glove, and wet the item with warm water.  Then, using the sponge provided (see above), gently rub the copper cleaner into the surface before rinsing it off. 

It worked really quickly and you can see that, after a few swipes, the patina was already removed:

Ta da!  After rinsing it looked shiny and gleaming again.  No more copper patina!

The last step was buffing the copper sink dry with a soft cloth. 

I followed the instructions to the letter, but actually scrubbed it twice with the copper cleaner before buffing.  It had months of tarnish build up, so two applications were required (I rinsed it in between).  It only two a minute or two, and now the copper sink looks brands new!  I took these photos at night with my cellphone, and even with crummy photo quality, the sink looks phenomenal. 

Luckily this is a guest powder room, otherwise having to shiny up the sink all the time would drive me nuts, haha!  But cleaning it was super easy so I can make it sparkle again from time to time.  And this copper cleaner was AMAZING!  You can use it on other copper items, so I’m hoping maybe I can snap up some thrifted copper and experiment a little.  It worked so quickly and seemed really, really gentle.  Apparently I need to now apply a carnuba wax to my sink too – but jeesh, that’s expensive!  I put this tub in my Amazon cart and hopefully that helps deter the copper sink patina from building up so quickly again.  At the very least, it should help with the water spots.  I’ll give you an update after a few months!

So now you know how I cleaned my copper sink patina.  If you’re looking for info on how to clean a copper sink, definitely check with the manufacturer first and test on an inconspicuous area if you’re instructed to use any cleaners.  Thompson Traders has some great tips for cleaning copper, with specific product recommendations, on their website.  They also make some beautiful sinks and, for a guest powder room like this, totally worth a little extra cleaning because it’s just so gorgeous!  I’m so happy my copper sink is sparkling again!  It is definitely one of my favorite features of the powder room.

P.S. Check out the rest of the turquoise powder room makeover right here!  I’m currently planning my Spring One Room Challenge makeover and this time I’m not going to start off weeks behind, lol!  I’m already getting things arriving in the mail, and although I have some decisions to make, I’ll be able to share my plans week one!  Follow me on Instagram for a sneak peek – I’ll be sharing lots of behind the scene sneak peeks in my Instagram stories soon.