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brushed nickel vs chrome faucet

13 years ago

I am replacing my kitchen faucet and would like some input, as I am having trouble deciding on a finish.

We have a 1928 bungalow with a small kitchen. It's primarily white, and has crystal knobs on the doors, with bin pulls on the drawers. (The bin pulls are brushed nickel.) Eventually we will install hard rock maple countertops as I'm a sucker for authenticity. (I fear I might qualify as an "obsessive restorer", as Jane Powell calls them.)

I would like to get the brushed nickel faucet, both because it would match the pulls and because of the lower maintenance, however, I am pretty sure that chrome would actually be more "authentic" for the time period, and I am worried about the fact that brushed nickel appears to be falling out of fashion. Chrome finishes also tend to cost less.

Anybody have any opinions?

(and I do realize that if deciding b/w chrome and brushed nickel is my biggest problem today, I'm doing pretty well. lol)

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Comments (3)

Fori
13 years ago
Polished nickel! At least that's what I had on the original faucets in my '29 Tudor revival. (And come to think of it, I did the kitchen faucet in chrome and the knobs in brushed nickel.)

Chrome looks good with brushed nickel. It's almost the same color (nobody's gonna notice it's not). I'd do chrome, but then it's sort of a default for me. I like it.
adel97
13 years ago
Interesting...In my experience chrome is more low maintenance. I have brushed nickel faucets in my bathrooms and chrome in the kitchen. All Grohe faucets. The brushed nickel shows water spots and fingerprints much more. Maybe it varies by manufacturer.

I see no problem with mixing finishes. I also have brushed nickel pulls in my kitchen combined with the chrome faucet. Granted, it's not a period kitchen but I think it looks great. And the price difference was substantial. Chrome is classic, less expensive, and "blingy" at the same time. Go for it.
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Yes, get what you want, and, what goes with your house. I am in the process of updating the upstairs bathroom which my son will use. He wanted something modern looking, shiney chrome, which was a good choice to compliment the color scheme that he chose. My Master bathroom has polished nickel which was a good choice because it's a bit more subtle then chrome, and warm. The warmth of the polished nickel goes very well with the creama marfil and cream cabinets that I chose. So...the decision comes down to personal preference, plus what finishes are appropriate for your house and room. Every finish goes out of style and comes back...even brass is making a resurgence! Have fun with your project!
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I find it hard to tell the diff between the chrome and nickel finishes but others have said that the nickel has a warmer tone to it. Rumours in the kitchen forum have nickel on the way out fashion wise but those guys are usually decades ahead of their time.
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I think polished nickel is warmer than polished chrome. Nickel has a bit more red spectrum than chrome (blue spectrum). Polished anything will tend to show prints more than brushed. In a master bath it's generally not problem though, it's more in a kids' bath. "Upgrade" is a choice. Remember "upgrade" doesn't always mean it's better quality or it fits better into your design scheme. If you want to upgrade for personal reasons or if you need a certain look to carry off a certain style/design element, that's one thing. You want the warmth of nickel, you want no polished surfaces, or you need the darkness of ORB, etc. However, I've seen designers try to strong arm customers into "upgraded" finishes by preying on their "keeping up with the jones'" insecurities. I realize I'm not really answering your question. I guess in some obscure way I'm encouraging you to design your master bath for yourself and not for your next door neighbors. Best, Mongo
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Why not? But if you want the chrome to look like brushed nickel just take a wool pad like scotch brand or brillo and rub it in one direction to give it the look of brushed nickel. I did this with 4 pendants that were on clearance but only came in chrome. You can Google the process to see the outcome.
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marcolo
13 years ago
I can't remember who sold me polished nickel fixtures for my bath but if it ever comes back to me, they better leave the country fast. A more nightmarish material I can't imagine, except for polished marble, which someone else is going to pay for, too.

Staining, fingerprints, watermarks--on chrome, those are just from dirt on the surface, if you even get them. They come off with pretty much anything you feel like cleaning with--water, soap and water, Windex, 409, whatever. Nickel is a "living" (i.e., decaying) finish. Those watermarks are a kind of tarnish. Especially with polished, you have to wipe up each and every time you touch or use it. Then do a thorough polish once a week. Shoot me.

I don't think brushed anything is very authentic to the age of your house, though.

As far as mixing metals, it depends where they are used. I have a chrome sorta vintage light fixture in the nickel bath, and you really can't tell--it's way up on the ceiling. However, the sink drain pipe is chrome, and it looks fairly ridiculous next to the nickel console legs, which is why I always keep a towel in front of it.

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