Color anodizing is a popular process because it allows for the creation of products in a wide range of colors. Such an enhancement of appearance can make a product more appealing to a potential customer. Buyers of color anodized metals should keep in mind the limitations of the color anodizing process, though. Read More…
Located in Woonsocket, RI, Sanford Process serves customers globally with aluminum coating and finishing services. We license our technology throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. Sanford Process is a subsidiary of Katahdin Industries, Inc., which specializes in surface coatings and metal finishing application technologies and related services. Visit our website for more information!

Aluminum finishing specialist with over 50 years of personalized service in the anodizing industry & the largest commercial anodizing tanks in the country! A variety of capabilities for even your difficult jobs to meet & exceed all standards for clear & colored, protective & decorative, sulfuric, duranodic & chromic anodizing of parts large & small. Same-day estimates & 1 week or less turnaround.

At Tompkins Metal Finishing, we offer mid to high volume aluminum anodizing. We do pre-cleaning, etching, deoxidizng, dyeing and sealing. We can achieve a wide range of surface finishes from bright to dull matte in clear, black, gold, blue and red. Other methods are also available with consideration of alloy, coating thickness, masking requirements and racking instructions.

Since 1945, Light Metals Coloring has been one of the largest independent aluminum anodizing job shops. Light Metals Coloring provides hard coat anodizing, bulk anodizing, rack anodizing, clear anodizing, sulfuric acid anodizing, chromate conversion anodizing and color anodizing.

Dajcor Aluminum is the leading Canadian supplier of extruded, fabricated/machined and anodized components and assemblies to the automotive, renewable energy, transportation, building trades, military, recreation, and consumer-product industries.

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For example, some colors fade more easily than others. Black and gold dyes are made by inorganic means; namely they are the result of combining a chemical mixture called ferric ammonium oxalate to an anodized product. This inorganic dye tends to be more lightfast than other colors. Organic colors, which are much more varied, have the downside of being prone to fade. Metallic colors are limited to metallic hues, but remain bright longer then either of the first two processes.
Customers should consult professionals before making decisions about the color of their anodized products. What type of product is being produced will also play a part in what color a customer chooses. For example, the architecture industry tends to use mostly metallic color processes, while organic dyes, used in the electronic and construction fields work best with aluminum.
The actual dying techniques vary depending on the dye being used as well as the metal. Some metals do not require the additional step of dying to create a variety of colors. Anodized titanium naturally produces color, what hue depending on the amount of electrical current used to anodize the piece. Many metal accessories such as body piercing studs, wedding rings and costume jewelry are made from titanium.
However, the most commonly employed color anodization comes from organic and chemical dyes applied directly after the anodizing treatment. Because anodizing increases the pore size of the chemical body at the surface of a metal, it soaks up and retains color well. Once a metal has been dyed, hot water or steam, often mixed with nickel acetate, is used to seal the surface and to convert the oxide into its hydrated form.
This process decreases bleed out and can improve corrosion resistance. Whether the color is a result of the process of anodizing or added, it is just one more reason anodized products are in such high demand.