Front door furniture

[DiyNutJob]

I am looking for no/low maintenance furniture for the front door. I currently have brass at various states of tarnish. Is there anything better than brass? How good are chrome furniture? I have chrome bolt sockets that never corrode or change colour. This could be because they are sheltered in the garage. Is chrome out in the open less performant?

 

[RandomGrinch]

Personally, I'm a fan of satin stainless steel.

 

[DiyNutJob]

Personally, I'm a fan of satin stainless steel.

Yes, I have been looking at those. I am now keep looking at my SS pots and pans trying to imagine what the furniture would look like.

What kind of SS do you have experience of, polished or brushed? Do they go dull or need maintenance?

 

[RandomGrinch]

What kind of SS do you have experience of, polished or brushed? Do they go dull or need maintenance?

I haven't got SS external door furniture, but a couple of years ago I started changing my taps (and internal door handles) to brushed SS.
I was fed up with cleaning up the corrosion that I was getting on my (admittedly cheap!) chrome taps.

Apart from the need for cleaning and occasional descaling, the SS taps look as good as the day they were bought.

Afterall, chrome is only a coating. The longevity of the finish will be down to many factors, such as the thickness of the chrome layer, the quality of the copper layer, and how good the substrate is.

Some examples of SS door furniture here:

Stainless Steel Door Furniture from Door Handle Company

Product category: Stainless Steel Range - Stainless Steel Door Furniture

www.doorhandlecompany.co.uk

 

[DiyNutJob]

I have bought SS nuts, and bolts from time to time and they did resemble chrome. So polished SS is the closest to what I need. It's going to be pricey, but the no/low maintenance of it will be worth it for me. I will try polishing the brass first to see how hard it is. Changing to SS also means I needs a new lock in silver.

 

[RandomGrinch]

I will try polishing the brass first to see how hard it is.

Spending some time polishing up the brass will definitely be cheaper and a rewarding experience.
Using something like a rotary tool may help reduce the effort.
...and a spray lacquer may help keep the brass shiny for longer

 

[JohnD]

If you like the brass effect, look for PVD brass on stainless.

I have some, hinges on a shed door, and they are remarkably free of tarnish and corrosion after ten years.

 

[JohnD]

And if you want to buy new door furniture, look at IronmongeryDirect.

 

[DiyNutJob]

If you like the brass effect, look for PVD brass on stainless.

Good suggestion. Because it's a thin coating, it might not be able to withstand mechanical abrasion well on the knocker or letter plate. For something that doesn't wear such as the door number, it could work. I have some internal PVD door and window furniture, they are generally OK , but with scratches and chips. Even if scratchable, SS would be a lot more hardy.

I like the no maintenance effect best. Because of it being used on bolt sockets, I reckon chrome coating would be tougher than PVD.

 

[DiyNutJob]

Never mind the polishing now. I was unable to resist an ebay bargain and got a Greenteq Coastline polished SS letterplate for £15. I'll live with multi-coloured door furniture while I wait for bargains on other bits. I will need a door knob, door number, knocker, key hole plate and cover, and lock with silver face.

What got me finally convinced about polished SS are my ikea spoons. Those were knocked around for 20+ years and still in brilliant condition - no noticeable scratches.