The aura of bronze hardware intensifies as the years pass. The patina of use gives rise to a very special aesthetic appeal. Polished bronze darkens due to atmospheric and environmental effects.
Patina is not to be understood as damage suffered by the material. Rather, it is testimony to credible ageing and to something gained through change. Bronze is a material that is used but never used up. We make use of a copper-tin alloy containing 92 % copper and 8 % tin for our bronze fittings that bears the formula CuSn8 and is registered as Material No. 2.1030. This composition is characterised by its excellent resistance to corrosion, great tensile strength and extreme hardness. The resistance to wear of this bronze makes it a prime candidate for products of daily use that come in for a lot of rough treatment.
Bronze fittings with a 7615 finish are first polished and then pre-treated adopting a special procedure developed in-house by FSB. An immersion bath for cupriferous metals mimics the material’s natural ageing process. By effecting premature ageing in this way we achieve a typical bronze patina that is every bit as impressive as that attained by natural means. The concluding waxing at the works protects the surface against external impacts that have a discolouring effect on untreated surfaces. Premature ageing with a darker patination than version 7615 is available on request.
Corrosion control
FSB will, if expressly requested to do so, supply anyone hell bent on keeping patina at bay with bronze door levers sporting a lacquer finish. We would, however, emphatically advise against such a choice, since the treatment involved negates the material’s natural qualities. Lacquered bronze fittings lose their sheen as soon as the lacquer is damaged, moreover, and intercrystalline corrosion sets in.
Surface hygiene
With antibiotic-resistant germs cropping up with ever increasing frequency in nursing institutions, the disinfectant properties of FSB bronze are taking on a special importance: clinical studies conducted in the USA and Great Britain reveal that 99.9 % of bacteria on copper-alloy surfaces are destroyed immediately or within two hours. These include Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), one of the most virulent and dangerous of all bugs. It was also confirmed that, if the hygiene measures prescribed are adopted, recontamination is more than 99 % prevented. This material property has been officially entered in US building regulations by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) as a result.
FSB 7615 Bronze Bright Patinated Waxed