Cleaning Marble Grave Monuments

Once you have completely wiped the surface s with your sponge rinse the marker or monument thoroughly with clean water.

Cleaning marble grave monuments.

The hardest of the natural stone type of monuments that you will see in a cemetery is granite which is still widely used today granite has a hardness of between 7 and 9 and can withstand a little more cleaning than the other types of natural stone. To remove lichen saturate the surface with wet forget. How to clean marble headstones soak. Spraying down the headstone first will help maximize the effectiveness of the cleaning solution.

Wooden or plastic scrapers can be utilised to remove larger build up such as bird poo or moss and lichen. Use the wooden scraper to remove any algae or moss growth from the surface. After the rinse water drains examine the surface for any areas that need additional attention due to moss lichen algae or other organic growths or particularly dirty soiled spots. This second spray will work the product into the second layer of the lichen.

Cleaning weak marble can result in further irreparable damage. Wash the granite headstone several times with another clean rag or cloth. Do not re use the cloth that you used with the soapy water. An undiluted cleaning agent may leave a residue in the marble s pores.

Lichen is one of the more challenging growths to clean from memorial stones. The most gentle way to clean is to spray it on and allow mother nature to do the rest since the more you agitate the stone the more wear you cause on the stone and fine edges of the engraving. Soak the stone with water to saturate any growth that may be present. Wait 15 minutes and spray the surface again.

Mix 1 tablespoon of the non ionic soap with 1 gallon of water. Use soft bristle brushes and a mild stone cleaning solution mild ionic soap or detergent ph neutral working in a circular motion to gently remove dirt and dust. Soak the stone by spraying it down with a hose or dumping a bucket of clean water over the entire surface. A note about removing lichen.

As with interior marble cleaning soak the cemetery headstone with water before adding a cleaner. Wetting the marble first will provide better cleaner spread on the surface and make rinsing easier. Headstones can be very porous and can soak up the cleaning solution before it has a chance to work. Currently a product called d 2 is recommended and is the cleaning agent used on the white house and various statues and monuments.

However it still must be a very gentle cleaning.