Man has known of bronze and been using it for over 5,000 years now. During the bronze age it was used by many for the creation of weapons and also valuable and loved items such as jewellery. A selection of the items which have already been found by architects from the Bronze Age include spear and arrow heads and also a range of jewellery. Because of the value associated with Bronze, it is usually awards for someone coming third in a competition, only after Gold and Silver.
It wasn’t until around 200 years ago that man began using bronze in such large quantities and for architectural purposes, including bronze doors, bronze sculptures and bronze windows, despite the fact we have known about it and been using in small quantities for over 5,000 years!
Traditional Bronze isn’t used for these architectural purposes, a new metal alloy is used in place of this which is referred to as Architectural Bronze. The architectural bronze is a mixture of zinc, copper and a few other metals in various quanitities which creates a perfect metal, ideal for metal windows and doors. Adding manganese into the metal increases the tensile strength of the metal and mixing in a large percentage of copper to the alloy gives teh metal a strong resistance to corrosion and makes it very durable.
As the oxidation occurs on the surface of the metal, the colour is altered and it becomes almost black, however it is a very dark bronze colour. To give the metal the desired colour before oxidation occurs (which can be relatively quick, or a few years), the metal is toned as it is used in the factory so that it appears the desired colour without waiting. The oxidisation of the metal also helps with the corrosion resistance, which can then be added to further by adding a layer of was regularly.
Architectural Bronze has a wide number of uses and also a wide range of reasons why it should be used including the stability, stength and sustainability of the metal. Add to this that it is a very attractive metal that will add a hint of luxury to your property and only look better with time and its an obvious choise.
Despite all the positive points of Architectural Bronze, as it is quite a niche metal which hasnt had a wide coverage yet, it is usually ignored by those looking for replacement windows, despite the fact it could prove to be a far superior alternative to aluminium windows or steel windows.
