Just letting you know that a metal pressed splash back is only suitable if powder coated or left galvanized. It does not meet regulations when painted as the paint is not fire rated. Powder coating is. If you do it yourself, no one will know, but it is likely to dis-colour, blister or even singe! Powder coating does not make it easier to clean. But if you were really concerned about cleaning it you would avoid it all together. The recommendations above solve that easily. At the end of the day, a gloss finish will make spraying and wiping the grease, steam and fat away easily than a satin or Matt surface. Glossier the better, powder coat can control that.

Hi johnstoneanne , using Copper as a splashback gives you a couple of things to consider where what material you choose may also depend on the actual look you are after and considerations such as its maintenance, it being fit for your purpose plus that of your budget and to meet the regulations for this if you have a gas cooktop. There are a few ways you can go to achieve a copper splashback; starting with use of actual sheet copper laid onto a support substrate. This is a soft material that can scratch easily and will also oxidize and so you may like to consider applying a clear two-pack coating over this metal during fabrication. Another option would be to use a Laminate material that has an actual thin Copper face layer which also comes with a clear protective coating. You have already mentioned using a Copper tile as an option; where this will also have grout lines. Another option you may consider could be to use an easy to clean glass splashback and use a metallic copper finish backing or if you want an aged copper look, then you could alternatively use a copper photographic image that is printed onto the back of the glass splashback. A glass splashback would be easy to clean, scratch, heat and water resistant. There is also the possible option of using large sheet Porcelain splashback in a rusty copper colour if you are after a more matte finish; using something like perhaps Neolith’s Iron Copper or perhaps their Coreten, where these are heat & flame proof, water and scratch resistant and easy to clean & again eliminates Grout lines being a large format sheet. I hope this is of some help, regards Malcolm.

Hi Leah, I had a pressed metal splash back in my kitchen. It was powder coated and never scratched. I lived with it for 6 years before moving and it was fine. Its a bit tricky cleaning (all the little nooks and crannies) but not overly hard,, not harder than dealing with grout. I didn't have a very big kitchen though and didn't require any joins. There would be metal trims that are used in floor applications (for example where carpet meets vinyl or timber) that might work on the join, you might just need to do the investigating on behalf of your cabinet maker. They are often referred to as C-channels and you could get them powder coated in the same colour so they don't stand out. If you contact Schotts they can put you onto a specialist pressed metal installer who might recommend a solution. Don't give up on the pressed metal yet, its just so beautiful!

If the question is just the practicality of glass vs tiles. - Glass is generally put up as a single sheet without lots of grout lines to clean, but you will see every spec of grease and finger marks. So must be cleaned each and every time. - Tiles show less daily grime however once the grout is dirty its hard to clean, there are grout pens for the occasional whiten up. As for fitting power sockets. - Glass is harder to cut into, a glazier will have the tricks of the trade to do this. - Tiles are much easier to drill and cut without cracking them. If you do however crack a tile then its easier to replace that broken tile rather than a whole sheet of glass. So in my view, glass looks cool, but isn't that practical for generally everyday family use or for the DIY installer.