How to Patina Copper

[@TXrapidracer]

Another way that I have seen work within a few minutes is to lightly scrub them down with Comet, rinse, lightly coat them with salt, then pour peroxide on them. It works within minutes. Great job!

[@AprilWilkerson]

Oh that's neat, I didn't read that technique. What I find so interesting about patina is all the different ways and methods produce different colors.

[@deew_knird_reeb_ekomS]

@@AprilWilkersonMy neighbor and I have been using salt and different vinegars to patina sheets of copper flashing and they are absolutely mesmerizing to look at.

[@robertlyle6277]

This works great - thank you! One tip - varnish has an amber cast to it - that’s why your project turned green. Next time, try spray lacquer or spray clear enamel. Thanks again!

[@oceanmartin670]

just venturing into copper/leather jewelry, your's was the BEST instructions I have seen yet! thanks.

[@LivefreeanddiyTv]

I've done some patinas in the past, but never with ammonia. I love the look, thanks for sharing this tip!

[@Grimjau]

i work a lot with acid. so i can give you an important tip. use every time mask and safety glasses. your lungs and eyes will thank you. Sorry for my english, is not my mother language.

[@GregNielsen]

When I darken or patina my copper I use Atlas rubber/clothe gloves, that way it keeps the oil from your hands off the copper and the chemicals away from your hands. They also keep the copper from tarnishing from the oils from your hands. With the humidity in Texas, it could tarnish copper over night. I enjoy watching you expand your talent to new things. Keep up the great work! Greg Nielsen Copper Tech Construction, Inc.

[@mjremy2605]

Very lovely effect, thank you, April! Looks gorgeous. Spar Varnish is more UV resistant than Spar Urethane. Wax coating on the roof after the seal coat dries, makes water roll off, and bird droppings not stick. For those who need a simpler technique, there are copper reactive paints made by Craig and Rose in UK, and Modern Masters series in the US. Modern Masters is the special effect paint used by film studios in Los Angeles. They carry every silver, gold, pewter, copper, and pearly shade. These are acrylic paints like Latex house paints, a plastic emulsion, suitable for wood, plaster, drywall, metal, etc. If you have a plaster relief piece, and use their aging bronze or copper patina paint, it looks very realistic, like an old bronze piece.

[@MeltinMetalAnthony]

Nice work! Your helping me with a upcoming ornamental gate project!

[@AprilWilkerson]

Awesome! I bet it'll look great.

[@danieldelapena8369]

this also works nicely on brass. I did this to a zippo lighter i have and i love it

[@johnsmithy9304]

Just a cliff note on holding patina you can do it with a multitude of products bird feeder I would use bees wax . Vehicle or home boiled linseed oil in spay bottle (RAGS CAN COMBUST WITH NO IGNITION) linseed oil must be applied every year like Thompson water seal but for metal. You don't need a chamber you can apply amonia or vinegar vinager takes 48 hours outside in sun spray every two hours.

[@Makebuildmodify]

Great video April, I didn't know it was that easy to create a patina on copper.

[@AprilWilkerson]

I was shocked at how easy it was. : ) There are so many cool things I want to do with this now.

[@Makebuildmodify]

+April Wilkerson Yes, It's now on my list of things to try. Thanks for the inspiration!

[@bransonhauntedhills]

I am new to patina but have been rusting things for years for our haunted house. I am ready to play with some patina now! I am going back to watch your birdhouse video.

[@jpdenat1]

hello > A friend of mine mixed salt with amonia and then spayed > ended up with a very uniform green > pretty cool . Your technique is very nice too!!! Lovely

[@laurakampf]

the patina is super outstanding! well done april!

[@WayneBrownWoodworking]

Wow April, they look amazing! 10 years of weathering in 1 day. Way cool!

[@AprilWilkerson]

Thanks Wayne. : ) I want to do this to so many things now, I think it's really cool as well.

[@gb8269]

i really love the aesthetic of the patina, i just never knew it was this easy!

[@Cmxx1v]

Very neat! You can buy copper at any roofing suppliers.

[@AprilWilkerson]

I called about 9 different local stores and everybody said there was only one supplier of sheet metal in the metroplex and that was in Dallas. : ) So I made the hike to go grab some.

[@BradleyMakesThings]

Really love that patina! Especially the bluer color ahead of time. Super gorgeous! Going to have to play with the copper sheet I've got in the shop. Go you!

[@severinhedge3893]

I'm making an apocalyptic character for my games course this video has been really helpfu. I can now make my characters armour look more old and scrap looking.

[@mark1952able]

Great info! Tried it and was amazed how good it came out! Thanks!

[@firedesignguy]

Looks like fun. Brass screws or maybe copper nails might not stand out as much but they still look good. You can get copper sheets on Amazon.

[@AprilWilkerson]

I think I'll try copper nails! I didn't know they existed or I would have picked them up at the same time I bought the sheets. : )

[@photojnt]

This video will help me in making my copper pipe lamp for the lady. Thank you!

[@AprilWilkerson]

Glad I could help! Thanks for watching.

[@photojnt]

@@AprilWilkerson which works better, iodized salt or reg sea salt?

[@johnesposito4197]

April, very nice. If you would brass screws for the roof, you could patina them too.

[@neonpike]

thats great thanks , ive been preparing to experiment with different substances to get the verdgris but your method works fine

[@keeperofthegood]

You get good protection from the patina, the green/blue nature of many copper salts is a function of water hydration. There is another reason for using either brass or copper screws or nails (the copper nails should be in the plumbing section). Easy route is to say look up "galvanic corrosion", but the skinny is, dissimilar metals will rot each other.

[@AprilWilkerson]

: ) Thanks for explaining. I'm on the hunt for copper nails!

[@jodinha4225]

I'd say it's se vinegar instead of ammonia because vinegar is not toxic but does take longer for the same effect.

[@Federico-cc7hc]

Hi! How much longer? What kind of vinegar? Thank you!

[@davidwinick8021]

Pro tip...Absolutely no need to put a top coat on. the patina will not come off. I patinated half the front of a home with copper sheet. About 200 sq ft. After creating the green patina it never received anything else. It's not changed in 20 years.

[@AprilWilkerson]

Interesting! Thanks for the info. I bet it looks amazing.

[@LordLightheart]

incredible 3 minute video thank you

[@AprilWilkerson]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for watching.

[@ChrisMarvinTV]

Woah, I was literally googling how to patina when I got the notification saying you uploaded this video. Thanks for the video!

[@AprilWilkerson]

; ) Good timing!

[@stevebrain65]

Nice video! I don't think the video said what you did with the spray bottle of ammonia, except for spraying the 4th piece that didn't turn out like the others. Looks like you washed the sheets, sprinkled salt, and then what? Assuming maybe you sprayed the sheets with the ammonia after salting? And also added ammonia to the bottom of the tub?

[@Glassed_in_Nature]

So glad you made this video I been wondering how to do this for years

[@Namtov]

+joels outdoor vlog He He, when you started wondering, you should have placed some copper sheets outside, and the regular peed on them. Does the job too. :-)

[@AprilWilkerson]

It's pretty simple!

[@scottybarnett3957]

Love that thank you for teaching me a skill. To continue The rustic look use bronze finished screws instead of nickel plated

[@ahmedabdulAziem]

I'm really hate this colour every day facing patina in the refinery and try to protect the copper from rusted and so easy you love it :D

[@DonDegidio]

Hi April, Nice colors for the patina. I'm beginning to believe there's nothing you can't do. :-)

[@AprilWilkerson]

; ) Not when I want to.

[@WildmanTech]

I heard you talking about this on the podcast. Do some research and you'll be surprised at some of the compounds people use to get patina. Great work!

[@onjofilms]

Love that color, it's like a turquoise.

[@mkrbrkr]

Ammonia fumes are also a good way to darken brass!

[@AprilWilkerson]

Awesome, good to know!

[@nyacoustics8373]

Have you ever just tried spraying the ammonia direct on sheet without the fume chamber step? Also which seal would NOT change the color of the blue patina? ty

[@L96Hero]

I don't know if this seal is available in your country, but i have one called zapon spray from the brand dupli color. this one should not interfere with the color of the patina.

[@tiffanyjohnson3110]

Turned out pretty cool April. 👍👍

[@cezmiaslan7960]

Gercekten eline emeğine sağlık cok güzel olmuş tam olarak nasil ve neler kullanmam gerektigini yazarsaniz sevinirim

[@palabraraberep5509]

Mashallah the blue copper is beautiful

[@CatNolara]

You can also put the copper into a container with some vinegar, maybe even put some of it on the surface. Result should look the same.

[@preetpalsk]

Those are some fancy birds you have

[@stardustblue3625]

Nice! Will adding a lot of salt give a more textured effect? Like a lot of granular texture???

[@stevesurfaro]

Wonderful - I am going to try this with a copper pen!

[@dianedebaun]

Cool, and lovely! I wonder if sprayed with clear acrylic if the blue would stay, like the green also.

[@TheRoamingHazard]

Pissing on copper works too. May sound gross but it's free and less toxic then the straight ammonia.

[@fatterchris]

Everyone I know will not be surprised when I say you should wear you safety glasses when handling chemicals. As a rule of thumb the gloves go on after the glasses. You don't want to see how far chemicals travel when you accidentally drop the bottle in the sink.

[@Side-Quest-Workshop]

That. Is. GORGEOUS. I need to try this!

[@AprilWilkerson]

Yes! There are so many things you can do with it. : )

[@thoperSought]

that looks really great! I wonder what would happen if you rough the initial surface up more, and then sand back the patina lightly and repeat the process. I should really try this

[@AprilWilkerson]

I think this patina thing is a rabbit hole! You can easily spend weeks playing around with different combination of things. : ) It's quite fun so I agree you should try it.

[@thoperSought]

April Wilkerson yeah, I bet there are pretty much an infinite number of possibilities

[@JohnBare747]

Very nice April, love those colors. Fake copper, that sounds about right for a box store.

[@AprilWilkerson]

Right? I was so mad, I wasted three days scratching my head trying to figure out what I was doing wrong! Then I learned it wasn't real copper....psh. Haha.

[@1702strine]

Patinate is the word to use. Patina is a noun. Nice, will use on my letter box.

[@annlyon144]

Maybe you will have an answer for me. How to you get a lacker (sp) thats on top of copper. I have an old ice bucket and dont know how to remove it. Then i can do what your showing. ???? Thanks !

[@arkansas1313]

Excellent results! I always liked building eyebrow dormers and bay windows with copper roofs for an exterior accent, especially with wood shake roof homes. Add some copper to your home or shop as an outdoor project. ....13

[@raullcalzadilla3541]

Is there a way to preservice or seal the patina? Clear coating maybe? Thanks for the great video!

[@satansamael666]

The patina can be scraped to make green powder for green paint!

[@sftreeltalk6050]

you could try the patina trick on those shiney screws.

[@AprilWilkerson]

Yep but different metals take different chemicals and I didn't have time to do more experimenting. : )

[@sftreeltalk6050]

True. Just an idea.

[@terilooney]

Beautiful effect. Thanks for sharing.

[@ruthgunneson-poling1571]

Copper nails would look much better than the aluminum screws. You could also spray the screws or nails if you can't find bigger copper nails with hammered copper paint. Or, don't use any nails or screws and epoxy roofs onto the birdhouse. Letting the epoxy fumes air out would be best. After all your hard work the screws used ruins the effect. Other than that I learned a lot!

[@jennyl5246]

Do you know how to get a more goldish result from the copper?

[@growgrowing]

Thanks they look fantastic

[@paulineallaway4093]

I bought a clock oxidized unfortunately it dropped from the wall revealing a plastic coating that seems to be taking the patina off could that happen?

[@z-magnificent]

To try to better preserve the verdigris it may be interesting to experiment making a few different mixtures of sealant from linseed / stand oil, other types of varnish and maybe some turpentine or another solvent. Maybe even an intermediate layer of clear acrylic spray.

[@vetterfellow]

I have to admit, you know what your doing April. looks good.

[@sirohin1]

thank you for sharing April. I really like all your videos and the one thing I like most is that you come up with everyday use projects that we cAn/use to accommodate our needs. One question I have for you is how do you sell your custom products ? I find I so hard to din clients who can appreciate my hard work and time I spend on my projects :(

[@AprilWilkerson]

Thank you. Well I don't sell anything so I actually don't have any great advice. I don't make my living by making and selling, I make my living by building what I need and showing people how to do it.

[@scrimon]

Can you use salt/ammonia solution? , ie, dissolve the salt in the ammonia?

[@Oplix]

Fantastic video

[@dufusrunescape]

is this the same way frank lyold wright did the Price Tower at Bartlesville, Oklahoma?

[@richardvarty7349]

Uhhh....what happened to that one that got the second vapor bath? ☠️

[@jeremytwardowski4452]

Great video! I'm about to doe this for my bar back splash. I wanted to know if you have to have the vapor chamber? The piece I'm using is 2'x32" not to many tubs that large.

[@facestabber51]

May be a bit late but David Marks former show "Woodworks" shows a process how he soaks cheesecloth with chemicals and wrapped the copper bench legs he made.

[@leisuresuitlarry1777]

Cool, I have seen a few folks that have videos similar but i like this one best. The sanding is the best part. :O)

[@maxbatman5172]

So was the sheet of copper you left in for 24 hours longer is it more petina than the others

[@jodiecrawford258]

Will this work on electroformed copper? If so is it ok to put the entire item (including the items which are not fully coated) in the tank?

[@danyelPitmon]

I also found another process that you could use for doing that with copper sheets and that’s using heavy amount of salt water like salt from the ocean or just taking a tank filling it with water and adding half of that with salt and then put the copper sheets inside and let it sit for 24 hours and you’ll have a nice patina to the copper and it’s safer

[@derooverdries5228]

Put the heads of the screws all in the same direction it looks better Nice vid

[@teristeinborn4872]

April, your patina turned out beautifully! I am curious though, did both sides color for you? I did the exact same thing and a couple pieces did yet, others didn't. I thought that was rather odd~~~

[@RandyColby]

Sparric Urethane? Gorgeous work by the way!

[@jojopat1]

Hi...........I just did this to some copper leaves. The patina is obvious after a couple of hours, but it is bright blue. Will it eventually turn greenish blue? Thanks, Joan

[@AprilWilkerson]

Yes, mine was blue also but turned a beautiful patina green! Thanks for watching.

[@kemalk.7041]

Hi I was try to make blue patina with only salt and vinager it was removed easily when ı want to polished with metal polish. İs it permanent like a sulfur patina?

[@sclogse1]

I hear you can soak copper in hot vinegar. Which will cool off, for about a day. But, same results, except this is just to get the straight verdigris without the salt effects.

[@WoodenCreationz]

Love that color! Cool vid!

[@RonWaller]

April, great bird house project. Another project mom and dad can see and say "my daughter made that for me". Did you know how to do that patina process or did you look up how to do it?

[@OperationNorthwoods]

Will white vinegar work as well as ammonia?

[@loweboy4]

you can get copper screws at elkins

[@Je-ne-suis-pas-sociable]

can you use masking tape or painters tape to mask of areas you don't want to patina? or would the ammonia eat through the tape?

[@akkad7514]

Hey! is it possible to patina an electroplated copper plate? its not the thickest but im not sure if it will work

[@ajtmodelmaking]

Are you supposed to pour the ammonia onto the copper?

[@anyarossa-quade5609]

Such a great tutorial. Thank you!

[@balkangetaway]

Could you use a bag for chamber

[@2testtest2]

This turned out great! I would recommend you wear you protective glasses about 4 inches lower on your head next time ;). A lot of chemicals are very harmfull to your eyes, yet you may not even feel it if you get it on you. And if you think you got some in your eyes, rinse with water for as long as you can stand it, and then some.

[@AprilWilkerson]

; ) haha thanks, I actually meant to have my glasses on...just wasn't thinking.

[@konorrockhill6191]

How do make it so there is only a little blue coming through?

[@MDFRESCUER]

When I first saw the thumbnail of that previous video I was asking myself, why do you put there such an old copper sheet... As a wanted efect it seems to be good idea and very convincing efect for garnishing.

[@imchris5000]

if you want to go to another level solder angle pieces of copper to make brackets so you dont have screws coming from the top

[@hansdegroot8549]

Very nice patina.

[@64maxpower]

You can do anything April

[@TheDormonid]

is it the same process that happened to the statue of liberty? and make her turn from that copper color to green?

[@helmut.schmid2874]

What is proposed here is not waterproof, for outside it's a bad idea.

[@ksingleton101]

does it matter if you use nails or screws or would copper nails hold a patina? I'd love to see the outcome if you have any of the material left? and a few copper nails of course?

[@digitallyhandmade3824]

So long as it's copper, it will hold. I would use rivets, personally.

[@u81252]

Hello, is it the same for bronze? I have a candle holder of this material that I want to make this patina. Thank you

[@ooohlaa13]

yes i have used on bronze, it comes out more light bluish and takes longer

[@jckclt]

I love the teal look. Has anyone found a finish to keep the teal?

[@MajorDapper]

Jason Chalanick just use a clear coat spray

[@careyholman]

I'm finding that spraying a clear coat fairly soon after you patina it keeps the color nice and brilliant. If you wait a few days, it will begin to fade and develop white swirly bits. Both are a nice look, depending on what you want. I'm using Krylon Clear Coat Acrylic to spray with, with excellent results. It's been about a month since I sprayed both pieces, and they still look just like they did the day I sprayed them. Don't know how they'll look in a few years' time, though.

[@cl.7373]

I bet you could also use a resin epoxy to preserve the color, but I don't know if you'd encounter any strange chemical interactions with any remaining ammonia...

[@WoodFlipWorkshop]

Really sure i will use you technique in a future project. Thanks for the good explained video ! Would usual kitchen salt work as well ?