MAINTAINING YOUR WORKTOP
How to maintain your worktop and manage expectation.
How To Maintain Your Worktop
Over time both a zinc or a copper work surface begins to tell a story, the history of the surface and how it has been treated over the duration of its life in your kitchen, the coffee cup ring mark, the scratch from that party, the lemon juice from Millys first attempt baking, you get the idea. This really is a thing of beauty because not only does it tell the story of your kitchen but it makes your surface one of a kind, each and every copper or zinc worktop is an individual master piece painted by you and your family! This is the beauty of zinc and copper, it is a blank canvass which tells the story of your kitchen!
For many this characteristic is one of the attractive qualities of having a zinc or copper worktop however for some staining is not what they want from their surface and this can be avoided by making sure the surface is not left wet over a period of time and maintained with products which are designed to maintain metal work surfaces for bars, restaurants and the like, these can be provided upon request.
Copper and Its Effects on Covid-19
Both Zinc and copper are natural materials that are subject to a natural protective coating known as a patina, the science behind the patina is simple, when exposed to natural elements like oxygen ( O ) and water ( H2o ) the process begins to take place, this is sometimes called oxidisation, when the metal gets wet and the water sits on top of the metal it starts a chemical reaction that is progressed by the oxygen that then dries the water and a protective layer begins to form this is why these metals are ideal for external use such as roofing and cladding. However, what was unknown until recently is that copper and zinc have a self-sanitising property which kills microbes that contain bacteria’s, these bacteria are what causes viruses such as MRSA, SARS and even COVID 19.
Covid 19 can live for up to 4 hours on Copper, that may seem a long time but when you take into consideration Covid 19 can live on its nearest rival for up to 48 hours you start to see the tremendous benifits of owning a copper work surface especially in a kitchen where hygiene is paramount.
studies have been conducted in the past ten years regarding copper’s efficacy to destroy E. coli O157:H7, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Staphylococcus, Clostridium difficile, influenza A virus, adenovirus, and fungi.[25] Stainless steel was also investigated because it is an important surface material in today’s healthcare environments. The studies cited here, plus others directed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, resulted in the 2008 registration of 274 different copper alloys as certified antimicrobial materials that have public health benefits.
Recent studies have shown that copper alloy surfaces kill E. coli O157:H7.[26][27] More than 99.9% of E. coli microbes are killed after just 1–2 hours on copper. On stainless steel surfaces, the microbes can survive for weeks.
https://www.pesmedia.com/coronavirus-sylatech-copper-alloy-30072020/
Zinc and Hygiene
It’s not only Copper which gets all the glory here though, Zinc is also an excellent eradicator of infectious bacteria, the science behind this is that both zinc and copper have electrically charged ions on there surface which attack any microbes they come in contact with they are both a natural sanitiser and one that we can all benefit from having in our Kitchen at home. Although not as widely publicised, the below link depicts the scientific research proving zinc to be just as good a destroyer of Microbes as copper.
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For more information about our products, contact The Kitchen Zink today.