Water Plated Stainless Steel

Water Plating Stainless Steel Sheet

Water plating colors stainless steel in a heated chemical bath. The black grows from the steel surface itself instead of being laid on as a separate metal film, at a lower cost than PVD. Sanmei Metal uses it mainly for black stainless steel sheet, and for antique sheet where the style calls for it.

Process

Wet chemical coloring, not electroplating

Used for

Black sheet; antique sheet by style

Base finish

Hairline, satin, vibration, cross hairline, sandblasted

Grades

201, 304, 304L, 316, 316L, 430

Black tone

Set by grade: 201 or 304

Batch

About 1.5 hours for 16 sheets

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How it works Black finishes Water plating or PVD Antique Sizess & Grades FAQ Why Get a quote

Timed in the bath, sheet by sheet.

The color depends on time and temperature. Left too long at heat, the sheet turns red, so every batch is timed. 16 sheets take about 1.5 hours, depending on grade, finish and thickness.

Hanging the sheets

Coloring at 80–90 °C

Cleaning and drying

Hang

Holes are punched so each sheet can hang in the bath.

Electrolytic cleaning

About 10 minutes, so the color bonds evenly and does not fade.

Coloring

80–90 °C for about 1 hour. Time control is critical.

Curing

About 10 minutes of cooling and rinsing to fix the color.

Cleaning

Surface residue is washed off.

Drying

The sheet is dried before inspection and filming.

Water-plated black, five base finishes.

Pick the base finish. Tap Get a quote on any one and we reply with price and lead time.

Water-plated black titanium hairline stainless steel sheet S26HL-13

Water plating or PVD?

Same black name, different black.

We supply both. Water plating is a wet chemical process; PVD is a dry vacuum process. On the same grade they give a different black.

Choose water plating for a deeper black at a lower cost.

Choose PVD for the hardest film and the longest color life.

See PVD coated sheet Ask which suits your project

Water plating

PVD coating

Process

Wet, heated chemical bath

Dry, in vacuum

How color forms

Grows from the steel surface

Thin film deposited on top

Black on 201

Truer black

Greyish black

Black on 304

Black with a hint of blue

Grey-black

Wear resistance

Lower

Higher

Cost

Lower

Higher

Also from water plating

Antique sheet, when the style calls for it.

Some antique sheets are water plated, others electroplated. We choose by your requirements and the style you pick, then hand-age the surface. Send a photo or sample of the look you want.

See antique finishes Ask about an antique texture

By color:

Aged brass Aged bronze Antique copper Green copper

Sizes and grades.

Standard sheet sizes. Other sizes cut to order.

Grades

201, 304, 304L, 316, 316L, 430

Base finish

Hairline, satin No.4, vibration, cross hairline, sandblasted, ect.

Thickness

0.3–3.0 mm (approx. 30–11 gauge)

Metric sizes

1000 × 2000, 1219 × 2438, 1219 × 3048, 1500 × 3000 mm

Imperial sizes

3.28 × 6.56, 4.00 × 8.00, 4.00 × 10.00, 4.92 × 9.84 ft

Processing

Cut to size, slitting

For decorative panels, 0.5–2.0 mm is usually enough: thinner sheets dent easily in handling, thicker ones are hard to form.

Tell us about your project Send a drawing or cut list

Water plating FAQ.

Questions buyers ask before choosing water plating.

What is water plating?

A wet chemical coloring process. The sheet is colored in a heated bath and the color grows from the steel surface. It is not electroplating, and it is different from PVD vacuum coating.

Water plating or PVD: which should I choose?

Water plating gives a deep black at a lower cost. PVD gives a harder film and longer color life. We supply both and can send samples side by side.

Know more details

PVD coated sheet

Why does the black look different on 201 and 304?

Because the color comes from the steel itself, the alloy changes the tone: 201 gives a truer black, 304 a black with a hint of blue. Each grade also needs its own bath.

Will every sheet match?

Color is controlled by time and temperature, so sheets colored in the same batch match best. Order the full quantity at once and approve a sample first.

Are your antique sheets water plated?

Some are. Depending on your requirements and the style, antique sheets are water plated or electroplated. We confirm the route when you choose a style.

Know more details

Antique finishes

Why project buyers work with Sanmei Metal

Material-driven, engineering-supported, execution-ready. One supplier from the mill to your site.

Source from leading partner mills

Base coil from Lisco, Tisco, Jisco, Posco PZSS, Yongjin and Hongwang, each batch with its Mill Test Report.

Our mill partners

Finish in-house

PVD, water plating and surface finishing under one roof at our Foshan facility.

Decorative finishes

Engineer and fabricate

Our engineers review drawings so profiles and panels can be made and installed.

Architectural metal works

Protect and ship

Film matched to laser cutting or stamping, and crates or steel frames packed for sea freight.

Packing and filming

Technical questions about grades, finishes or tolerances?

Technical guide

Our Leading Coating Technology.

Thicker coating, consistent color and easy-clean surfaces. Each one measured in our own production and compared with typical market product.

PVD coating

Thicker PVD coating

0.30µm

Typical coating thickness, up to 28% thicker than a typical market coil, so the color lasts longer.

See the coating test

Color control

Consistent color

ΔE ≤ 2

Every coil is held below the color difference the eye can see, so panels from different batches match.

See the color data

Anti-fingerprint

Fingerprint-resistant

215solvent rubs

Our anti-fingerprint coating withstood 215 rubs with a strong solvent. The standard requires 100. Typical market AF failed at 70.

See the AF test

Tested to GB/T and ISO standards, with MTR and SGS reports on request.

See all our quality control.

Documents you can check.

Every order ships with a Mill Test Report traced to its heat number, and SGS testing is available on request. These are real documents from our mill partners and our project work.