Cleaning White Marble Tombstone

With a careful gentle hand and a bit of elbow grease you can refresh a headstone or grave marker making it easier to read and restoring some of the stone s beautiful finish as first created by the crafting stonemason.

Cleaning white marble tombstone. Spraying down the headstone first will help maximize the effectiveness of the cleaning solution. Marble needs to be treated even more gently than granite. Best way to clean a headstone. The stone or lettering has any evidence of flaking or parts of the stone falling away.

This is the opposite of an all to common assumption that extreme measures given the contaminants should be used on exterior marble cleaning. Steps to clean a marble headstone. You want to keep the marble wet throughout the cleaning process by continually wiping the marble headstone with a cloth and clean water. A more widely available product wet forget moss mold mildew and algae stain remover 29 98 a gallon at home depot is advertised as being suitable for cleaning headstones.

If there is evidence of any of the following do not proceed with cleaning. Due to the natural ageing and weathering process you probably won t return the marble or granite to its perfect original condition however. But it hasn t. In knowing how to clean a marble headstone properly you adopt the gentlest least invasive practices to preserve the longevity of the stone.

Soak the stone by spraying it down with a hose or dumping a bucket of clean water over the entire surface. For marble use the cleaning steps below. Fortunately a few basic cleaning supplies and some elbow grease can dramatically improve the appearance of a cemetery tombstone headstone gravemarker or memorial. Headstones can be very porous and can soak up the cleaning solution before it has a chance to work.

It is important that you know what type of stone you are dealing with. How to clean a marble headstone. For granite see our guide how to clean a granite headstone tombstone. Fractures anywhere on the stone.

Before you attempt to clean a headstone you must first check its condition. What not to do. Pre wet the stone with clean water. How to clean marble headstones.

Different types will require different cleaning methods. Any discussion about cleaning a headstone marker or memorial must begin with a few cautions about the various things you should not do. If there is growth remove using a wooden scraper. Clean a marble gravestone.

Rinse and wipe the marble headstone once all of the debris has been removed by the soapy water mixture rinse the entire surface of the marble headstone thoroughly with clean water and a clean cloth. Only marble that is in good condition should be cleaned. Any stability issues whatsoever. Never use power washers to clean white marble gravestones as the force can destroy the patina.

Kaye wagner has been working in the fields of journalism and public relations since 2006 and is a recipient of a national hearst award.