The problem is the worst in the handles so that is why I am wondering if it might be caused by our water somehow. I am starting to see the issue on the spout especially the lower part that likely also gets splashed with water when people wash their hands.

Anyone else had this happen?

Btw, I think the faucet was manufactured by Watermark.

There is a matching shower and tub filler in this bathroom so I can’t choose another finish without basically redoing the whole bathroom that we just completed. This is so frustrating...

The first thing you should have done is contact Rejuvenation.

Do you know if it is lacquered? (The handles look a lot like the lacquer has worn off which I wouldn't expect.) Or is it supposed to be a "living" finish? If it's a living finish, then it's acting like it should. It's not a bad look if you think of it as "natural" brass.

I'm sure Rejuvenation will take care of you but make sure you're getting the finish you think you are.

Living finish brass requires frequent polishing.

Normal living finish behavior. That’s what a living finish means. It changes with every Touch and every cleaning.

Curious question to all: does a living finish wear away? what is the benefit?

A living finish means just that....it has no protective finish applied to it. It is the actual brass or nickel or iron. It will change with time and exposure to elements. This is what happens to natural brass. Contact the company and ask how it should be cared for. They will probably say that Brasso will clean up some of the markings. However, you don’t want to scratch the finish. Good luck.

Rejuvenation sells Watermark plumbing. Their Aged Brass is a living finish. Other gold finishes are clear coated. But not Aged Brass.

https://watermark-designs.com/finishes

Once you get a little more "age" to it, it will look pretty nice. It's just at that awkward stage in developing its patina!

I'd use a gentler polish than Brasso and just rub out the sharp edges on the splotches. Let it age but even it out a little. And if you really want shiny, polish it all periodically.

This finish does not have a warranty.

The Watermark warranty specifically excludes Aged Brass.

"Uncoated polished brass (natural brass), Aged brass, and any other
living finishes are intended to change over time and are excluded from
the finish warranty."

Living finishes are supposed to react to the environment, whatever that environment is. This finish is doing nothing more than what it is supposed to do -- corrode, mar, blemish, fade, discolor, spot, and blemish - not necessarily in that order.

Clearly the OP did not understand what it meant to have a living finish on a faucet. A lot of folks don't.

That’s more a spray cleaner issue, IMHO. You can see pool marks.

Aged faucet is aged.

@ProSource Memphis

It's possible they are using an acid based cleaner. The damage is definitely most pronounced where they touch it and how much they touch it (the cold is much more pronounced than the hot). There's little to no damage on other flat surfaces (like the rings at the base of the faucet) where you would expect spray cleaner to pool. What's more the handles look much darker than the trim plates,

It almost appears as if the soft finish on the hot water side is being damaged by a ring as well. I'm not suggesting that it's just physical damage, because the entire faucet is damaged. But it also looks like scratch patterns on the top of the hot side.

Marble will etch if cleaned with acid - even vinegar. If the marble is etched around the faucets I'd say it's an issue with the cleaner.

Here's the thing though: Short of using grossly inappropriate cleaners, these $900 (!) faucets should be expected to look good for a long time and hold up to common bathroom cleaners and bumps with wedding bands - because the $150 ones from Big Box certainly will.

I've said it about kitchen faucets - if you can get a decent SS dishwasher for $500, with a water pump, computer controls, etc. that will ACTUALLY WASH THE DISHES then a nice faucet should max out at a few hundred bucks. At $900 this thing should greet you by name, hand you a towel and give you a back rub! It should not have the finish coming off!

But, you’re not buying more utility! Or durability. You’re buying more STYLE. And fashion has very little correlation to utility or durability. It’s actually the opposite. Buying expensive things that need more care, and that wear faster, has a cachet. Look at the popularity of marble!

You made me look. There are photos on the Watermark website that do indeed look like this (but I don't know about Rejuvenation). They require a bit of search though. The manufacturer/retailer should have been very clear about this.

Yeah, I'll agree that the patina on the handles was probably caused by a liquid of some sort, but it doesn't look like a messed-up topcoat to me. ALL of this looks like typical raw brass behavior to me. (I collect vintage brass musical instruments and am fairly familiar with failing nitrocellulose and modern lacquers, raw brass, and all the in-between states. This looks like raw brass.)

That is a wake up call. Living finishes are back! (or more affordable and available).

Chrome used to be the only durable finish while all others needed maintenance & care, some with lacquer coatings that we tolerated when it chipped or wore off. We used oil rubbed bronze a few times only to have marks from oil finger prints to clean off.

Plated finishes (PVD) expanded into many colors, imitating polished brass, antique brass and used on more of the common brands starting 20? years ago, reducing the headache of failing finishes for most. Many clients haven't experienced or don't remember finishes other than this.

Most of my clients have managed to use chrome or PVD finishes since that point but those living finishes are on upcoming spec sheets, and often clients no longer rely on advice from plumbing showrooms, so expectations are not reset.

PVD is Physical Vapor Deposition. It’s a far cry from “plating ”. It’s not a coating that will peel. It bonds at the molecular level. https://www.kloecknermetals.com/blog/4-things-know-pvd/

@Jeffrey R. Grenz

Actually, living finishes never went away and have always been fairly common on upscale faucet to achieve special finish effects. We advise clients to stay away from them unless old and grungy is their preferred aesthetic.

You are right about resetting expectations. We constantly get complaints at our faucet review site about living finishes that are doing what they do, fading, corroding, changing colors, etc. because homeowners were not forewarned these things would happen. Faucet companies need to do a much better job educating folks about living finishes.

Honestly, I don't know what the finish is on this faucet.

What I can see clearly with my own eyes is that there is a layer of finish (looks like at least two) on top of the underlying brass. I can see that there are ragged edges - not smooth changes that would result from touching. I can see that there is "pitting" where the underlying metal is showing through the finish in small places - esp on the spout - that is not the result of wear or contact. This is a failed finish - whatever finish it is.

As for @User comment that "I'm not buying utility or durability, I'm buying STYLE" - there's that attitude that I couldn't possibly be sophisticated enough to understand. That's absolute nonsense.

Faucets are first and foremost a mechanical device that needs to durable and reliable. There are pages after pages of people on Houzz who debate the quality of Big Box vs Plumber Supply House and who go on about not having plastic parts.

Second, at any price point above $75, they need to look good. This faucet, at $900, looks like crap in 6 months and has failed in both durability and looking good. I happen to take pleasure in recognizing quality design, materials engineering and workmanship- and yes, utility and economy. I have much more important things to do with my time and money than swapping out $900 faucets that didn't look that great to begin with and look like crap after 6 months. If that's your idea of "STYLE" you can keep it.

This all reminds me of the SNL Farrow and Ball Paint skit - "Don't touch the paint, the finish is too delicate and once it is touched it must be redone..."

@Lisa

Yes, we understand. It's been said. But that's not what's going on here.

Here is a "Living" un-coated brass in another Houzz post. Look at the photos later also. That's what I'd expect from natural brass.

@Lisa

I think we understand your viewpoint, but I don't think this finish is actual brass.

It is more likely a powder coating which is a form of paint that is applied in powder form then baked to harden. Unlike electroplated metals or metals applied using physical vapor deposition (PVD) which are largely "buy and forget" finishes, powder coats are at best "semi-durable" , similar to the finish on your car. They require attention and care.

If they are also living finishes, then they are supposed to change over time through exposure to the kitchen or bath environment, and no amount of attention is going to stop the changes. At most it will slow them down.

These changes could be any number of things. They could fade, darken, change colors, corrode, tarnish, flake, de-laminate, etc. By nominating a finish as a "living finish" a faucet company essentially says "this thing is going to degrade over time. So, no matter what awful thing is happening to your faucet, it's what is supposed to happen so don't bother us with a warranty claim. There is no warranty."

Apparently a living finish means you just have to live with it.

IMO the pattern of this change feels weird, and looks scratched, dinged and etched - not "patina'd"

@StarCraft Custom Builders

I agree this is some type of finish that isn't durable. They may have said, "this is a Living Finish" - which in my mind is marketing nonsense. That doesn't make it right.

In this case, it's deceptive - and I would say intentionally deceptive.

Look, they shouldn't put a uniform and shiny, non-durable, paint/coating/finish on a product only to have it molt into an ugly duckling in six months. No amount of disclaimer makes that right. It's a little like saying a 1970's domestic car had a living finish - on the showroom floor it had a nice paint job - six months later it was a rust bucket.

I totally get the look below - which in this case is how the faucet is being advertised. This is what I consider to be a "living finish". But that's not what we have here.

So, if I were the OP I'd have a pretty frank conversation with Rejuvenation Hardware. At that price point, they can afford to make it right.

@ just_janni

Actually, that's an apt description.

The scratches, dings, and etchings are part and parcel of the "patina". Again: any awful thing that happens to a living finish is exactly what is supposed to happen - no exceptions.

@ Jake The Wonderdog

Many companies do provide an explanation of living finishes somewhere on their website. The problem is, a lot of buyers don't read the information. \

So far there is no known way of making people not be idiots. The same guy who will spend three weeks researching the best 52" TV that cost $200, will buy an $800 faucet because he like the look without bothering to research the cartridge, warranty or finish.

In any case, I don't think we are going to solve many of the world's problems here.

@ StarCraft Custom Builders - in this case it sounds like you are blaming the victim.

I am. And, I also think the word "victim" is being misused. I blame the fool that runs a red light and causes an accident. Just because the warning is there does not assure it will be heeded.

Like synthetic slab that burns too close to ranges, I'm sure it's in the fine print somewhere, but not bold enough to kill the sale. Buy a house today and disclosures are now 100-200 pages. Most won't absorb the important stuff. Did I give away my kid with the last software update terms *click*?

@ Jeffrey Grenz

Yeah, but. There is a difference between doing basic product research and reading 100 pages of fine print to find out that the software provider is not liable if a garbage truck runs over your cat.

If I'm paying $600.00 for a faucet, I want to know the finish is indestructible, I don't just assume it is because my grandma had her Moen for 200 years.

Companies already know how to sell, now consumers need to learn how to buy. We used to know. Not certain what happened.

Rejuvenation is replacing the faucet. I am worried the same thing will happen again. I don’t see anything on their website indicating it is a living finish.

I purchased a faucet from Rejuvenation for my guest bath, it was installed a little ever one year ago, it has been rarely used, It is rusted and it looks terrible.

I emailed Rejuvenation ptwice, I haven't heard back. I would've never of purchased it and spent such a high price, if I had known it will rust. My kitchen sink brand, California faucet, I use my kitchen sink daily, it looks as good as new.

I hope that the consumers will know what they are getting into when they buy the brass faucets from Rejuvenation. Its misleading, if the brass suppose to look aged, then it should be displayed in their store and in the online photos oh how it will change and look like.
I am hoping the company will take it back and refund my money.

I bought the aged brass west slope pull down faucet and matching air gap and disposal button. Very disappointing for the price. Installed in December 11, 2021. Starting deteriorating in January..

Wish rejuvenation had a section for reviews. Would never purchase for the price only to have it corrode in a month

No way corrosion is ugly any way you look at it!