Mitigeur lavabo sur colonne complet

Bluish chromium is the most common finish for faucets. It requires first an electrolytic bath, ensuring the prior deposition of a layer of nickel, followed by rinsing to avoid “pollution” of the chrome plating bath that follows. Chrome can also be brushed, matt velvet, mirror…

Surface treatment with electrolytic baths is carried out in three phases:  first a preparation phase (stripping or degreasing), followed by the surface treatment itself and, finally, rinsing. For each operation there are one or more baths, chemical in the case of stripping, electrolytic in the case of finishing: the deposit is obtained in a bath containing the metal, which is electro-deposited under direct electrical current.

Semi-precious or even precious finishes, such as silver and gold, fashionable in the 1980s, are also applied after nickel plating. They are lacquered or matt, aged or brushed.

Electrolytic black nickel, tin/black nickel or black chrome deposits, which range from bright intense black to metal gun, have been around for a long time. The former are fragile, imposing a protective transparent polish deposit.

Nickel plating can offer different aspects, satin, brushed, matt, velvet, mirror… The nickel finish, more “yellow” than the chrome finish, has the particularity of presenting an attractive silver effect.

While black and white have been used a lot in shiny or enamelled bathrooms, the trend is moving towards the velvety-silky look achieved by new epoxy paints for fittings.