Refinishing Bathroom Faucets / Fixtures

A. Hi Keisha; hi Tabitha.

If the fixtures are solid brass (which many are) it would be possible to sand off the finish and get down to the substrate. With good polishing and buffing, this might leave an attractive dull brass color in place of the overly shiny bright brass or chrome look. Paint does not stick real well to brass even when you use a good Self-etching primer [on eBay or Amazon] (and not at all without it), and this is a very high wear application, so paint doesn't really sound very promising.

The ideal answer would be to send the faucets to a plating shop for real plating in the tone you prefer. But because of the issue of labor cost on onesy-twosy stuff, this is not cheap -- it probably costs as much or a little more than new mid-range faucets; sorry.

If you do decide on paint, please let us know how it goes since many people ask, and we aren't able to relate many actual successes yet, although in letter 21894 Kellie J from Spring Hill, TN reported using Rustoleum brown hammered paint on her bathroom faucets.

Regards,

A. There is probably nothing you can do at home that will be fully satisfactory, Trina, but this item can certainly be satin nickel electroplated. Look in our Jobshops Directory or your yellow pages for a consumer friendly shop. Be aware, however, that cleaning, stripping, polishing, scratch brushing, plating, and post treating this fixture will take at least a couple of hours and that a plater can't work cheaper than a plumber or mechanic.

A. Hi, Jacqui. You can try a self-etch primer, followed by a chrome toned paint like Bumper Chrome Paint [affil links]. Please advise if you enjoy any success.

Regards,

A. You mentioned that these are "high end". You may already know it, but replating can cost more than "low end" replacements because the labor involved in plating individual items is very different than the labor involved when 200 faucet sets at a time are plated by an OEM.

Yes, as an alternate to gold plating, it is theoretically possible to PVD (physical vapor deposition) some gold colored titanium nitride either onto nickel plating or onto real gold plating for wear resistance, but PVD is done with million-dollar machines and I don't think any shops in the titanium nitride business will do the process for a consumer because it is a high vacuum process where there is real concern about contaminating the chamber if something on the faucet outgasses..

A. Sorry, it's unlikely that the process will meet that price point, Jenna.

A. Hi. Rub 'n Buff is a wax based product per my understanding, so would be better used on metal than on top of paint or primer. Readers have not advised us of their success or lack of success in using it on bathroom fixtures. I'd be surprised if you found it satisfactory, but I really don't know.

Regards,

Your faucet can be refinished, but it may prove difficult to get someone to take on the job. The problem is buildup of material inside the spout that can contaminate a plating bath or PVD chamber. We know this from experience. We did one refinishing job three years ago that required us to strip and re-coat the spout four times. We were just fortunate that it did not discolor other parts in the chamber.

Hi Mary. I'm a bit confused when you say they are already chrome plated and you want them re-done in oil rubbed bronze but you think chrome will be too costly and toxic :-)

They can be plated with either finish and neither is toxic, although it's true that toxic chemicals must be used by plating shops. But 'toxic' is an awfully loose construct in this sense.

The biggest problem will be whether you find the replating cost acceptable because it's the old question of labor cost. When the parts were made, dozens were mounted on a single plating rack and processed through the system. For your replating needs, the labor cost all comes to you instead of being split among dozens. The result is that it will generally cost you as much or more for replating as for replacement. Re-plating is often economically limited to premium or irreplaceable parts.

Regards,

A. Hi Denise. It's unlikely. I believe most recent Moen faucets are "lifetime finish" -- it's not actual brass on the surface, but a PVD finish which is not going to react with the sulfide products used to make an oil rubbed finish. You could try the Rub 'n Buff finish mentioned above, but it's durability is very low, or you could try a paint in the proper color but it's a very difficult application (probably poor adhesion on a surface which must endure water).

Regards,

A. Hi Ann. We appended your inquiry to one of several similar threads. It doesn't sound promising, but if you or another reader enjoys success please let us know!

Regards,

A. There are black PVD coated faucets now on the market. They will be all high quality units, ones you won't find in Home Depot or Lowe's.

A. Hi Lori. If you sanded them and they look silvery rather than brass color it certainly sounds like either they are zinc rather than brass, or that you sanded away the brass plating or brass-toned lacquer and are now down to nickel plating. I suppose it is possible that they are solid brass, plated first with nickel, and then with brass again, but that doesn't sound probable.

Regards,

A. Hi. We'll e-mail her and hope that she responds, but as you probably already know, people are more likely to seek help than to be able to offer it :-)

Regards,