Green Basins

Green basins buying guide

A green basin brings colour to a vanity without a full colour scheme. This page holds green basins from Caroma, Fienza, Bao and Timberline: matte green fine fire clay, sage concrete, a dark green and textured ceramic basin, and a mint round. They come above counter, inset, under or over counter and wall hung, in round, pill, oval, arch and rectangular shapes. The guide below covers the shades, how the colour is made, how to care for it, the sizes, and the tap hole and waste lines to read. Every fact below names its source: a listing or a stockist guide.

The shades

The shades on the page are matte green on the Caroma Liano II, sage on the Fienza concrete basins and mint on the Timberline Allure. The Bao Round has a textured, speckled matte white exterior and a smooth dark green interior, which the listing calls British racing green. Stockist pages name a wider spread, from sage and olive to forest, emerald, mint and teal, so a search for a sage green basin or an olive green basin lands in the same group. Whichever shade you choose, a sample or a close look at the listing's photos is worth the time, because the finish varies.

How the colour is made

The Caroma Liano II basins are hand cast and finished with the application of colour, so each basin is unique and the colour appearance varies from the images. The Fienza concrete listings say the colour may vary from their images because of the high colour variation in concrete. A stockist guide to concrete basins says the colour is part of the material and recommends ordering a sample pack, and another stockist notes that the pigment runs through the whole basin and that minor batch differences are possible. Both the hand finished ceramic and the concrete vary from the photos, so treat the listing photos as a guide to the shade, not an exact match. See concrete basins and ceramic basins.

Materials in green

The Liano II is fine fire clay, which its listings describe as much more resistant to impact, with a thin rim and a smooth, stain-resistant, non-porous surface. The Fienza Jada, Alba, Blanca and Valentina are concrete with a food-grade nano sealant. The Bao Round is ceramic with a concrete-like exterior and a smooth interior, and the Timberline Allure is a ceramic round with a thin rim. For stone looks, see stone basins.

Caring for a green basin

A stockist guide says the matte finish is easy to maintain and that mild soap and water keeps it looking its best. Manufacturer care text says to wipe ceramic with a soft cloth and a weak non-abrasive detergent and to dry spills. For a green concrete basin, a maker's page says to keep hot objects off the surface and to avoid prolonged direct sun, which helps the earthy tones stay vivid. The care rules on the concrete page also apply: a pH-neutral cleaner and no acids, bleach or abrasives.

What green pairs with

Stockist guides suggest gunmetal or matte black tapware for a balanced palette, and say green pairs with white, black, natural wood tones and metallic accents. A guide to choosing basins advises keeping the basin finish consistent with the tapware and accessories, so decide the metal finish with the basin colour. For black fittings, see black taps and black basins, and for neighbouring colours see grey, pink and matte white basins. For a green vanity, see bathroom vanities.

Mounting types in green

The Caroma Liano II comes in green as a 400mm round above counter basin, a 530mm pill above counter and inset basin, a 400mm round inset basin, 440mm round and 580mm pill under or over counter basins, and a hand wall basin. The Fienza Jada and Alba concrete basins are above counter, and the Fienza Blanca and Valentina are wall hung. See above counter, inset, under counter and wall hung basins. The makers' installation sheets say wall hung basins need fixing to a support beam fitted between the studs, with noggins added before the wall is sheeted.

Sizes on the listings

The Liano II 400mm round holds 7.5 litres as an inset basin, the 440mm round holds 4.9 litres and the 530mm by 350mm pill holds 11.9 litres as an above counter basin. The Liano II hand wall basin is 530mm by 280mm and holds 2.7 litres. The Fienza Jada round is 390mm across and 120mm high with a 10 litre bowl, the Jada pill is 600mm by 280mm, and the Alba is 362mm across and 145mm high with a 7.2 litre bowl. The Fienza Blanca wall hung basin is 650mm by 300mm and 200mm high with an 8 litre bowl, and the Valentina fluted arch is 465mm by 360mm. The Bao Round is 370mm by 370mm and 135mm high with an 11 litre bowl, and the Timberline Allure is 360mm. See round basins, pill shape basins and fluted basins.

Matching the tapware to the green

The design guides agree that the tapware should follow the undertone of the green, and they disagree about how closely. One guide says warm emerald and khaki greens pair with brass or gold, and that cooler, muted greens suit chrome or brushed nickel. Another calls sage the most popular green for bathrooms and recommends brushed brass, brushed copper or matte black with it, and describes olive as a warmer cousin of sage that goes with timber vanities and brushed brass. Emerald is described as strong and polished, especially beside brass tapware, stone, fluted glass or warm timber. A matte black mixer sharpens the edges of a green scheme, while brushed nickel or brass warms it. All of this is retailer and design-site advice and not testing.

One guide gives a rule worth repeating: do not try to colour-match the taps to the basin, because it rarely works, and choose a tone that complements or frames the basin colour instead. That fits the sage, mint and dark green basins on this page, which sit best with a neutral or metallic tap. Keep the metal finish consistent across the basin mixer, the shower and the accessories, as the tapware guides advise. See black taps and basin mixers.

Tiles, light and the room around a green basin

Deeper green basins read best against white tiles, limestone, concrete or pale timber, according to the same guides, and soft greens, sage tones and earthy tones are the tile pairings a design guide names for green. Green shifts under warm, cool and natural light, so check the product photo in light like the room's. A gloss finish reflects light and can make a colour look brighter, while a matte green looks softer but may show soap marks more readily, especially in hard water areas. That is general advice for coloured basins and not a test of any green on this page. The Liano II listings say each basin is hand finished, so the same shade can look different from one basin to the next and from the photo.

A green basin works best with a simple scheme around it. The guides advise letting the basin be the colour and keeping the tiles, vanity and fittings quiet. A coloured concrete basin can be a focal point, and one retailer names emerald green among the dozens of colours offered by a growing number of concrete makers. That is a trade article with no shade or pairing advice, so the practical step is a sample or a close look at the finish. Note that one Fienza listing says the maker does not offer a sample service, so for the sage concrete basins the photo and the maker's colour-variation note are what you have.

When a basin looks green and should not

The opposite problem is a basin that is not meant to be green. Sources on green tinges in sinks list three common causes: mould, hard water, and copper or leaching pipes. For mould, the advice is a mould-removing cleaner and drying the basin, the tap and the surround thoroughly after every use. This matters for a green basin too, because a mould mark on a green surface is easy to miss. On a glazed green ceramic, the usual routine is tepid water and a non-abrasive detergent, and the glaze is described as smooth enough that limescale and dirt find it hard to stick. That is a supplier's description and not a test, and no independent source tests how a green glaze holds its colour over time.

Bowl volumes and weights in green

The listings give most of the volumes. The Caroma Liano II matte green basins list 9.7 litres for the 400mm round above counter basin and 7.5 litres for the inset version. The 530mm pill lists 11.9 litres above counter and 10.3 litres as an inset basin. The 580mm pill under or over counter basin lists 6.7 litres, the 440mm round 4.9 litres and the hand wall basin 2.7 litres. The Fienza sage concrete basins list 10 litres for the Jada round, 12.3 litres for the Jada pill, 7.2 litres for the Alba, 8 litres for the Blanca wall basin with its integrated shelf and 10.5 litres for the Valentina. The Bao Round lists 11 litres. Capacities can be measured to the rim or to the overflow, so compare like with like.

The listings disagree in two places. The Bao Round is titled 370mm and described as a 375mm diameter, and the Timberline Allure mint is described as a 360mm radius, which cannot be a radius, since a 360mm radius would make a 720mm basin. Read it as the overall width. Use the maker's specification sheet for the cut-out, and measure the basin you receive. The Fienza concrete listings give no weight, and concrete is heavy, so the wall hung Blanca and Valentina need the support described in the mounting section. Ask the supplier for the weight before the fixing is designed.

Fitting a green concrete or ceramic basin

The ceramic greens follow the ceramic fitting rules. The maker sheets say to tighten a ceramic basin's waste by hand only, with a foam washer under the waste neck sealed with neutral cure silicone, and to use a licensed plumber for the water connections. The Bao Round needs a plug and waste sold separately and has no tap hole, so it suits wall mounted or tower basin mixers. The Timberline Allure mint has a matching mint waste, added from the product page. The Fienza concrete basins need a 32mm non-overflow waste that is not included.

For the bench, the above counter greens need a flat, fully supported surface, and a tall mixer or wall mixer with the spout clear of the rim. Two tall mixers on the store list a spout height of 216mm with a reach of 170mm, and 244mm with a reach of 180mm. A vanity guide gives floor-mounted vanities at 850mm to 900mm and wall-hung vanities at 800mm to 900mm, with a depth of 460mm to 550mm, and a UK guide offers 800mm to 850mm to the rim. Add the basin height from the listing to the bench height and compare the total with the rim height you want.

What the green sources do not say

No independent source tests green glazes or green sealers, the colour guides are retailer and design-site advice, and the Liano II, Fienza and Bao listings all say the colour varies from the photo. One archive page for green basins was blocked, and no independent review of the green basins turned up. Check the finish description on the product page for the basin you choose.

Looking after sage concrete

The sage greens from Fienza are concrete with a food-grade nano sealant, and concrete is porous unless it is sealed. The care sources give one routine. Rinse with warm water after use, clean with a pH neutral cleaner such as mild washing-up liquid on a soft microfibre cloth, and dry the surface to avoid water spots. Avoid bleach, ammonia, abrasive scrubs, steel wool and acids such as vinegar, lemon juice and wine, which can etch the surface and corrode the sealer. Keep very hot items and boiling water away, because concrete expands when heated and thermal cracking is possible, and avoid prolonged direct sun, which can slowly discolour concrete. That last point matters for a sage or olive tone beside a window. Scratches usually affect only the sealer, one maker says, and can be polished out. The sources disagree on how often to reseal, from a wax polish every 6 months to a seal every year or two, and the Fienza listings give no interval, so ask the supplier.

Looking after the green ceramic

The Liano II, Bao and Allure greens are ceramic. Maker care text says to wipe ceramic with a soft cloth and a weak non-abrasive detergent, dry any spills, and avoid scourers, because a scratch in glazed ceramic cannot be repaired. The vitreous china care sheet from an Australian supplier adds that water and a damp cloth are enough day to day and that household vinegar removes limescale. It also warns that harsh chemicals of the bleach type damage the chrome on overflow caps and the rubber seals in wastes. The vinegar advice is for glazed ceramic only, and it would harm the sealer on a concrete green, so check the material line first. The Liano II listings say the colour is hand applied, so test any stronger product on a hidden area before using it on the visible surface.

Fixing the Liano II greens

The Caroma guidance for its own basin ranges says to use the template supplied with the basin for the cut-out, an acetic cured silicone sealant to secure it and no epoxy type glues. For the hand wall basin, the Caroma wall basin sheets show a D.200 fixing kit that bolts to the finished wall, with fixing centres in a stated range, and a 40mm trap. Wall hung basins need a support beam between the studs, with noggins added before the wall is sheeted, so decide the basin before the wall is closed in. The listings for the Liano II say the basin is supplied with a matching ceramic pop-up plug and waste.

Tap holes, overflow and waste

Nearly every green basin here has no tap hole, so the mixer mounts on the bench or the wall, and the Liano II hand wall basin has one. See basin mixers. All the green basins are listed as non-overflow only. The Liano II basins include a matching ceramic pop-up plug and waste. The Fienza basins need a 32mm non-overflow waste, which is not included. The Bao lists the plug and waste as sold separately, and the Timberline Allure pairs with a matching Allure basin waste in mint. Manufacturer installation guides add that a ceramic basin's waste is tightened by hand only, with a foam washer sealed with neutral cure silicone. See basin wastes.

Brands on this page

Browse Caroma basins, Fienza basins, Bao basins and Timberline basins for the full ranges.

How to choose

1. Decide between a ceramic green and a concrete green, and allow for colour variation in both.
2. Choose the mounting type from the bench or the wall.
3. Read the tap hole line and plan a bench or wall mixer, then choose the tapware finish with the basin.
4. Read the overflow and plug and waste lines, because they differ between makers.
5. Check the length, width and height against the bench.

The bathroom basins page sets green basins beside the other colours and types.