"Christmas 2023" ... I think you typed a wrong date!

I have never had cheap or expensive cabinet hardware that had actual "peeling".

I did have cheaper knobs that had their oil rubbed bronze finish rub off and turn gold. These knobs were in an area used by kids and the 2 knobs on the drawer under their computer desks had the finish rub off from regular contact with their bodies while sitting at the desks.

I have door hardware that is bronze with a brown/black finish and the levers that are used daily are also showing some patina or rubbing of the brown/black finish to expose the gold colored bronze below. It is a subtle and gradual lightening in the areas that get touched.

Do you have any pulls that rarely/never get touched? How do they look?

Do you have a cleaning service that is using a cleaner they shouldn't use?

Anyone in your family use hand lotion or hand sanitizer?

Do you live by the ocean?

You’re right. It should have read December 2022.

So the ones on the blue cabinet are seldom used. They were not part of the original ones replaced and are also peeling now too but were slower to get there.

We use a cleaning service but we didn’t have them during the time period of the first set peeling. They have been here with the second one but don’t use cleaners on them - if sticky they have used soapy water (made soapy with Dawn dish soap).

No hand sanitizers and I will confess that our hands are generally thoroughly un-moisturized.

I live about a quarter of a mile from the ocean.

How is the humidity in your house?

Do you keep doors to the outside open a lot?

Do you have any pitting with other metals in the house?

We’ve never had any issues with any metals in our home. This is the first one. I should add, we’ve lived here almost seven years.

Oh and we don’t keep the doors open a lot. I have very small children so we avoid that at all costs.

We moved into our new house 18 months ago. About 1 mile from salt water, but rarely have our doors or windows open. At most might leave a slider open for a bit during the winter.

I have cabinet hardware from TopKnobs, also in a "gold" finish. I just took a photo of the most used pulls on DW and paneled fridge. No changes to the finish in 18 months.

DW

Fridge

Wow. What a difference to mine. Thank-you for the reference!

I wonder if it has something to do with living close to the ocean. It looks more like pitting/corrosion.

Definitely looks like pitting. Could also be poor manufacturing and quality control during covid. Richelieu seems to get decent reviews. I did find one review on Amazon from 2019 that complained about pitting after just one year of use.

I agree that some of them look like corrosion which is why they thought it might have something to do with pious literally being in the middle of the ocean for months.

This is EXACTLY what happened to ours. we have the same hardware. its so dissapointing. im changing mine to the brushed nickle because im hoping they wont peel. if the brushed nickle peels i dont know what to do because the hardware is drilled in and because of unique sizing, its not ao easy to simply get hardware from another brand. what are you doing now that your second set is defective?

I have the same problem and am trying to find replacement hardware for all 36 handles. As mentioned above, it's not easy because the holes are drilled in specific places to fit the existing hardware. Has anyone found a replacement brand that is sure to not pit/peel? Did the brushed nickel or other metal work better? I have polished nickel and its pitting horribly after only a few months of use.

This is clearly a manufacturing issue. I would fight to get my money back and redo the handles. @chispa’s photos are the whole story.

I would check out styles in the same color as you currently have so you don’t lose that design feature. Clearly Richelieu has a quality control problem. I’m sorry this happened to you. Sound aggravating as heck.

BTW - Knobs4Less is another good site. Just watch out for which manufacturer has the color, size and style you like.

I have some Jeffry Alexander pulls and knobs. They began peeling within a few months. Were replaced once by manufacturer and but not again. They did say it was chemicals. It was not. Just a damp cloth only was used to clean them. We do not live near the ocean. I replaced once on my dollar, so that is 3 times!!! I would never buy this brand again. They were not cheap. Now I need them replaced and am researching with no luck because this was the only review that talked about how the finish looked after any amount ot time for wear. I cannot order solid brass as it is not in my budget.

We have had the exact problem . We live in the ocean. Pulls replaced by Richelieu same dates. Second set put in September cottage close until May and now same problem. I know it’s not our cleaners as we use a mild cleaner and our 30 year old Home Depot kitchen is perfect! Still waiting for a response from Richelieu!

On the ocean ! Not in!😉