Soak the stone by spraying it down with a hose or dumping a bucket of clean water over the entire surface.
Cleaning white marble tombstone.
Fractures anywhere on the stone.
Take precautions before cleaning a headstone.
Steps to clean a marble headstone.
Headstones can be very porous and can soak up the cleaning solution before it has a chance to work.
You want to keep the marble wet throughout the cleaning process by continually wiping the marble headstone with a cloth and clean water.
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.
Any discussion about cleaning a headstone marker or memorial must begin with a few cautions about the various things you should not do.
Before you attempt to clean a headstone you must first check its condition.
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.
How to clean a marble headstone.
Clean a marble gravestone.
This is the opposite of an all to common assumption that extreme measures given the contaminants should be used on exterior marble cleaning.
For marble use the cleaning steps below.
Never use power washers to clean white marble gravestones as the force can destroy the patina.
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But it hasn t.
If there is growth remove using a wooden scraper.
How to clean marble headstones.
Any stability issues whatsoever.
Best way to clean a headstone.
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.
Marble needs to be treated even more gently than granite.
What not to do.
It is important that you know what type of stone you are dealing with.
Fortunately a few basic cleaning supplies and some elbow grease can dramatically improve the appearance of a cemetery tombstone headstone gravemarker or memorial.
The stone or lettering has any evidence of flaking or parts of the stone falling away.
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Due to the natural ageing and weathering process you probably won t return the marble or granite to its perfect original condition however.
For granite see our guide how to clean a granite headstone tombstone.
In knowing how to clean a marble headstone properly you adopt the gentlest least invasive practices to preserve the longevity of the stone.
If there is evidence of any of the following do not proceed with cleaning.
Ivory or orvus natural bristled brushes.