My sink does change as it's used and cleaned, but as long as you don't scrub it, the finish doesn't completely come off. It does darken back up over time if you do happen to rub some of it off. I do not find these spots to be ugly, though. And this is mainly on the sink bottom. My camera is dead, but I can take a picture later for you. There are some "shiney copper" spots and some green spots where things put in the sink have reacted. But again, I don't find them to be ugly at all, just beautiful features of a copper sink. And I don't think the dark patina looks dirty.

I'm getting emerald pearl granite (soon!) which is similar to ubatuba and I think it'll look great. When I take the picture, I'll place my chunk of granite by the sink so you can see them together.

Mandylee - I've lived with two sinks in our kitchen (main and prep) for over 2 years. They were both in the Dark Smoke finish. They are incredibly easy to care for and no, the finish does not look "dirty" (to me). We also use the wax they provided every month or so and that helps with the finish - i.e. protecting it from the acidic foods and liquids that find their way into the sink. It's an easy few minutes and beats the maintenance I went through with our old SS sink.

Occassionally we have seen the finish lighten a bit on the bottom of the sink like the post above, but it quickly darkens again and within a few weeks you don't notice it. I've never seen any green in our sink. ...the changing nature of these sinks is simply the character that you don't get with other manufactured products and is a positive in our opinion. We would make the same decision again.

I have put a link to the CSO photo gallery. There was one sink on a darker granite countertop and it looks good. I think Uba Tuba would mesh well with copper whether you go with the "Cafe Natural" or Dark Smoke". We debated on both of these and went with the darker finish because we wanted the oil rubbed bronze finish on our faucets.

Theres something about a sink created by an artisan rather than something punched out in a factory (the engineered quartz countertops/sinks) that keeps bringing me back to the hand hammered copper. Almost everyone that enters our kitchen for the first time is drawn to them.

Hope this helps!

Here is a link that might be useful: Copper Sink Photo Gallery

Thanks so much for your advice. I am really stressing over my kitchen design -- ever since my dh vetoed white cabinets and now we're getting light-stained maple! I am having a really hard time figuring out how to pull it all together and what colors to use...

I have the dark smoke finish on my sink from CSO. It has worn off in places (only on the bottom, though) and the shiny copper is revealed. Those spots do darken again over time--as armom stated. Any green that's appeared has easily wiped clean. Like both previous responders, I welcome the changes I see in the sink, it's a huge part of the charm for me. Just fyi...I have not waxed the sink at all and our kitchen has been up and running for about eight months.

janefan - in our experience living with these sinks for a few years, the wax is good as a bit more protection against acidic things. ...but also, just like waxing your car, we find it easier to clean when it's waxed. Either way - just my $0.02.

I have had my copper sinks for about 3 years now. I have one in my weekend house and one in my condo. I have never had any problems with the finish, but I do have my cleaning lady wax them every so often. I agree that there is something about a handmade copper sink. I purchased one in Mexico while there on business and one off of Ebay. I too think the hand hammered finish is the way to go.

Do you have your sinks set in dark or light countertops? Which do you think looks best? BTW, are there two "flyinghigh"s or are they the same person?

We bought our kitchen sink from Copper Sinks Online and really liked both the company and their product. IÂm not sure why a competitor would say something like "their patina wears off"? Âsure your sink will change a bit but that would be any copper sink. As posted above, that is the nature or "character" but any light spot will quickly darken. Their sinks are also built like a tank! Way heavier than others we saw.

I also agree that cleaning is a breeze and we occasionally wax with the stuff they sent (just a minute or so to apply). Go for copper  you wonÂt be disappointed IMHO. We love ours!

mandylee - I'm "flyinghigh" and have been for years... Not sure who "flyinghigh3" is but they just signed up today.

Check the photo gallery link I provided way up towards the top and you will see examples of copper sinks in various countertops.

Personally, my countertop is "Juparana Gaviota" - kind of a lighter brown color with tan striations. However I have seen copper sinks in many different countertops.

Thanks, again for your comments everyone. I appreciate the perspective of your real world experience.

flyinghigh, thanks for the link; I did look at it and noticed that many of the photos are of lighter countertops which offset the copper very nicely, which makes me wonder if the uba tuba would work...unfortunately I think we are locked into that color granite choice now.

They are giving us a "free" stainless sink, but I don't think I'll take it. I thought about copper to add a little more interest. If I'm not brave enough to try the copper, my default is Silgranit.

Hi mandylee,

I went and checked - the link below is the one that I was referring to. Not the greatest photo in terms of showing the countertop, but it does show it a bit. I had Uba Tuba in a house many moons ago and remember it being primarily black with some gold and copper flecks in it. In my mind that would mesh quite well since the dark smoke has some black in it as well.

Good luck whatever you decide!

Here is a link that might be useful: dark countertop and copper sink

Yes, that one does look good. They did a nice job pulling the colors together in the backsplash. Thanks again for taking the time to share your experience!

We are doing a kitchen remodel and have chosen Magma Gold Granite for our countertops and are thinking of a hammered copper sink... my question is should I apply the epoxy coating on the sink or use the wax every so often?