Cleaning Tombstones
A walk through an older cemetery and it is easy to pick out the tombstones that have been long forgotten. Those tombstones are usually the ones that are covered in dark pollution, algae, green lichen, rust and completely unreadable.
While it is tempting to try to clean those tombstones and restore them to their glory, it can also be considered a crime. Yes, it can and has been considered desecration of a grave. The reason is because if you do not know what you are doing and use the wrong materials to clean a tombstone, you can seriously and permanently damage it.
Harmful Methods and Products
Do No Harm Steps and Methods
Removal of Biological Staining
Sometimes the soft brush and water will not work on very old stones, those severely neglected or those covered in pollution. There is only one product that most Cemeterists can agree on to use: D2. D2 is a non toxic spray that kills and helps to deter biological growth. I actually use it on my lawn furniture and house shingles!
Do a web or Amazon search for “d/2 biological solution cleaner” to find the product.
While it is tempting to try to clean those tombstones and restore them to their glory, it can also be considered a crime. Yes, it can and has been considered desecration of a grave. The reason is because if you do not know what you are doing and use the wrong materials to clean a tombstone, you can seriously and permanently damage it.
Harmful Methods and Products
- NO Power Tools
- NO Concrete mix
- NO Goof Off type of product or anything “gooey”
- NO Chemicals, including Bleach
- NO Flour or Chalk for dusting and tracing the names
Do No Harm Steps and Methods
- Gently use a toothbrush or soft bristle brush to dust off dirt particles. You are NOT trying to get everything off the stone but instead doing a light dusting.
- Use a Spray Bottle with Water (and only water) to wet down the stone. Let it get saturated for several minutes.
- After saturation, use a plastic scraper or wooden spatula (I’ve found a rubber spatula doesn’t work well) to loosen the lichen and moss (the green things that likes to grow all over stones).
- Clean the stone with a WET soft brush (the toothbrush or soft bristle brush used earlier) in a circular motion. The circular motion helps to prevent you from “scrubbing” back and forth and that can damage the stone. Make sure to keep the brush and stone very wet. You will have to rinse thoroughly several times.
Removal of Biological Staining
Sometimes the soft brush and water will not work on very old stones, those severely neglected or those covered in pollution. There is only one product that most Cemeterists can agree on to use: D2. D2 is a non toxic spray that kills and helps to deter biological growth. I actually use it on my lawn furniture and house shingles!
- Follow the steps above before using D2, especially the first step of lightly dusting off dirt particles.
- Once the stone is soaked with plain water and cleaned per above, spray it with D2.
- D2 takes several minutes to do it’s magic. I usually give it at least 15 minutes before I go back to the stone with my soft brushes and circular brush the stone.
- Rinse Thoroughly.
- Here’s where the magic begins… D2 might not get everything off the stone even with scrubbing but it gets into the pores of the stone and continues to work even after you are gone. Sometimes D2 changes the color of the stone but never fear because it just means it is working on the dirt and pollution. Visit the stone a month later and see the magic of D2.
Do a web or Amazon search for “d/2 biological solution cleaner” to find the product.