How to clean headstones & monuments
If you wish to clean or maintain a natural stone headstone, monument or statue we have created this handy guide. Using Floorseal Stone Pro you will learn how to remove organic contaminations from sandstone, granite, marble & limestone headstones.
The information contained within this guide will provide a good start in understanding which method will work best for you. This will depend on the kind of headstone you are cleaning, maintaining or sealing.
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The information below will help you to understand how to remove organic issues; Such as algae, lichen, mould, leaf staining and bird droppings which affect natural stone gravestones.
Removing organic contaminations from gravestones
Older headstones or just plain matt finish headstones are often sandstone but could be limestone or another kind of local stone. Matt finished honed natural stones often display organic contaminations on their surface. The older the headstone the more likely it will have significantly discoloured.
If the problem you are facing is a dull dark contamination it will probably be organic. This could include lichens, moulds or various algae. Moulds and lichens will often be darker spots or speckles but can also just be a general darkening of the stone. Algae will usually be green but can be red – all are organic so it is possible to remove them.
How to remove marks & staining from headstones with Floorseal Stone Pro
Typically all the above will respond to Floorseal Stone Pro, this product is for the removal of organic contaminations. It is a cleaning solution for headstones, statues & monuments which is suitable for all natural stone, including marble, granite, sandstone, limestone, slate and more. The product comes in a 5 litre container and has a useful sprayer included. Dilute the product 1:1 with water – A mixture made up of 50% water and 50% cleaning solution.
How to apply Floorseal Stone Pro
Apply Stone Pro to the stone by spraying over the surface, followed by an immediate overspray. The solution will remove general green algae rapidly, lichens and moulds will slowly start to disappear. As with many cleaning solutions, further applications of the product will remove obdurate staining. As a general rule the longer the product is kept wet on the surface (by overspraying with more product) the better it works! You can rinse the surface with clean water, or for light applications simply leave the product to dry.
If there are inlaid metals, such as written scripts, made from metals like lead or gold, you can cover this with Vaseline or similar to protect it – Then wipe away after treatment.
General carved writing, inlaid with paints should be fine, other than requiring a quick rinse down with water.
Cleaning & sealing polished marble & granite headstones
The method for cleaning & maintaining highly polished headstones is basically the same. Often a quick overspray of Floorseal Stone Pro is enough to clean off organic issues like algae, lichen, bird droppings & dirt. Cover any metal script and rinse the product off after use. You may also wish to buff the stone dry with a microfibre cloth, if the stone has a natural noticeable sheen.
In conclusion
Floorseal Stone Pro is a deep cleaning product for natural stone which has organic growth on its surface. Typically this will be black mould, algae & lichen. Perfect for any natural stone such as sandstone, granite, marble or limestone – and more. This product arrives complete with a small container and spray maker.
Cover metal inlaid scripts (which may be made from lead or gold). Or temporarily apply a small amount of Vaseline and wipe away. Rinse the whole area with water after cleaning has taken place.
Buff polished reflective headstones, like granite & marble, with a microfibre cloth after cleaning.
Sealing Headstones
You can apply a stain-resistant sealer such as Premium Impregnating Sealer to honed matt stone. This sealer resists staining and inhibits organic growth.
Please click here to view our other handy ‘how to guides’. Or click the product titles above highlighted in blue for pricing & further information.
The information contained within this article is not exhaustive. If you need further information please contact Floorseal on (01484) 861461 or email us at info@floorseal.co.uk – our web address is www.floorseal.co.uk.