Copper (shaving) bowl - Verdigris?

[Attog]

Dear fellow Wet shavers,

I have 2 questions about copper bowl and copper material itself, I hope some metallurgist here could know better
Recently I've bought a copper bowl for lathering which is however not mentioned as a shaving bowl.
Reason is that in EU market I have not seen yet any reasonable priced copper bowls and Captain's Choice products are hard to get here.

After a 2-3 use (in total of one week) I already see these stains on surface of before perfectly polished bowl (see attached photo).

Question one:
Is this already a verdigris or stains leading to it?

Question two:
No matter if it is or it is not verdigris, is it ok to use such copper bowl as lathering bowl without any long-term issues regarding my skin etc?


I've heard that Captain's Choice bowls are protected from verdigris.

Thanks for a kind explanation, gents.

 

[Multum in parvo]

I have one of these Turkish Barber bowls in my travel kit. A couple of weeks ago it must have been slightly wet when packing away. The other day I saw a patch of verdigris but it was easily wiped away with a paper towel. My CC is in constant use I towel and air dry it. It has darkened but no verdigris.

 

[Attog]

The other day I saw a patch of verdigris but it was easily wiped away with a paper towel.

Ah, so it is a small patch of verdigris. I was not aware it's such a quick process.
I'll also try to clean it after every shave, thanks for input.

 

[ERS4]

My captain's choice bowl will also produce verdigris, but because the craftsman darkened the surface with flames in advance, so the verdigris is less obvious, and if you wipe it with a paper towel, you will find that verdigris exists.

Research by the Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Japan and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of the Japanese government have confirmed that verdigris is harmless to the human body.

If people want to be poisoned by verdigris, they may have to swallow the bowl, which may first experience difficult digestive problems.
Therefore, there is no need to worry about verdigris affecting the human body through the skin. Verdigris is even used as a traditional medicine in Asia.

In addition to humidity, the alkalinity of soap residue and added chlorine in tap water may promote verdigris production but are not related.

 

[Attog]

Research by the Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Japan and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of the Japanese government have confirmed that verdigris is harmless to the human body.

If people want to be poisoned by verdigris, they may have to swallow the bowl, which may first experience difficult digestive problems.
Therefore, there is no need to worry about verdigris affecting the human body through the skin. Verdigris is even used as a traditional medicine in Asia.

In addition to humidity, the alkalinity of soap residue and added chlorine in tap water may promote verdigris production but are not related.

Thank you very much ERS4, very helpful info regarding verdigris. I’m glad to know it’s basically harmless.

 

[huck1680]

I have a copper bowl and use it for lathering. After each shave I rinse and dry it...no problems.

 

[AlphaFrank75]

FYI, copper is antimicrobial and if it wasn't such a nuisance to keep shiny, hospitals would use it for high touch areas.

 

[Attog]

I have a copper bowl and use it for lathering. After each shave I rinse and dry it...no problems.

I will be doing the same I have to remember to keep it dry, always.

 

[Attog]

FYI, copper is antimicrobial and if it wasn't such a nuisance to keep shiny, hospitals would use it for high touch areas.

Yep, I was not sure about verdigris though.

 

[AlphaFrank75]

Yep, I was not sure about verdigris though.

Yeah, what little I read, it's toxic but you'd need to ingest more than what's on your bowl. Your pictures look more like the start of a patina than full on verdigris.

 

[huck1680]

I will be doing the same I have to remember to keep it dry, always.

Another thing is, I let the bowl sit in the sink filled with hot tap water for a few minutes then I get a warm lather to shave with.

 

[Attog]

Another thing is, I let the bowl sit in the sink filled with hot tap water for a few minutes then I get a warm lather to shave with.

I did the same just today Warm lather is very nice. Now I understand scuttle benefits

 

[JimmyCB]

I have a copper bowl and use it for lathering. After each shave I rinse and dry it...no problems.

After seeing copper bowls on B & B, I had to have one and bought one from Maggard's. Great looking bowl and the circular ridges on the bottom help to whip up lather. I rinse and dry it after using it daily and it still looks great.

 

[RBRB]

Dear fellow Wet shavers,

I have 2 questions about copper bowl and copper material itself, I hope some metallurgist here could know better
Recently I've bought a copper bowl for lathering which is however not mentioned as a shaving bowl.
Reason is that in EU market I have not seen yet any reasonable priced copper bowls and Captain's Choice products are hard to get here.

After a 2-3 use (in total of one week) I already see these stains on surface of before perfectly polished bowl (see attached photo).

Question one:
Is this already a verdigris or stains leading to it?

Question two:
No matter if it is or it is not verdigris, is it ok to use such copper bowl as lathering bowl without any long-term issues regarding my skin etc?


I've heard that Captain's Choice bowls are protected from verdigris.

Thanks for a kind explanation, gents.


View attachment 1661520

Looks like oxidation due to the lack of a protective coating. You can polish that out using metal polish. If oxidation bothers you, you can spray the copper with a clear coat lacquer to prevent future oxidation.

 

[Attog]

Looks like oxidation due to the lack of a protective coating. You can polish that out using metal polish. If oxidation bothers you, you can spray the copper with a clear coat lacquer to prevent future oxidation.

Thanks for info, I somewhat got used to it. I always wipe it dry after every use.