PSA: that pretty green patina on old copper roofs is actually eating the metal, and I learned it the hard way on a job site

Felix Thomas · 2026-10-09T15:45:05.051458+00:00

So I do fence work and last month I was at this old warehouse outside of Reading, PA that has been sitting empty since 2004. The owner wanted a chain link run along the back and while I was measuring I noticed this huge copper gutter system up top, all bright green and gorgeous. I honestly thought it looked great and even snapped a few pics for this community. Then the property manager walked over and told me that green layer is copper sulfate and every time it rains it slowly eats through the copper, and he pointed out three spots where the gutter had just rotted through completely. He said they replaced a 40 foot section back in 2011 for around $6,000 and it is already pitted and thin again. That got me thinking about how we treat decay in abandoned buildings. One side says the rust and rot and patina are the beauty of the place, that is the whole reason we photograph it. The other side says that same decay is actively destroying the thing we love, and letting it run just means the building falls down sooner. I honestly do not know where I land. Do you shoot the decay for what it is, or do you think places like this deserve some kind of basic upkeep even if nobody will ever use them again?

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PSA: that pretty green patina on old copper roofs is actually eating the metal, and I learned it the hard way on a job site | Abandoned Places Photos - HW Forums