How to Clean Granite Grave Stones

Granite gravestones can acquire a dull, dirty appearance from being exposed to rain, mud and biological growth. Whether you want to pay tribute to a loved one by shining up the stone or you're trying to perform a gravestone rubbing for records purposes, you will need to clean the stone using a procedure that will produce the most effective results.

Things You'll Need

• Water
• Pump sprayer
• Nylon brush
• Plastic scraper
• Kodak Photo-flo
• D2 cleaner

Instructions

Cleaning a Granite Gravestone

1. Use a basic plastic pump sprayer (found at most hardware stores) to liberally spray water all over the gravestone. These sprayers work better than a bucket of water because you get a steady supply of clean water; with a bucket, the water gets dirty from a brush being redipped unto it.

2. Brush the stone gently with a soft, nylon-bristled brush to remove any obvious dirt or debris. Use a small, circular motion as you scrub, and rinse immediately to remove brushed up dirt.

3. Use a plastic scraper (the kind you use to scrape ice from a windshield) to slough away dirt that won't come off with the nylon brush. Rinse again.

4. Mix half of a bottle of Photo-flo (a Kodak product you can buy at http://www.amazon.com/Kodak-1464510-Photo-Flo-Chemistry/dp/B00009R7E0) with one gallon of water and saturate the stone with this solution. Brush the stone again and rinse.

5. Brush D2 onto the stone and allow it to set for about two minutes before rinsing it off. This biological cleaner will remove substances such as bacteria, fungi, algae, lichens and mosses from the gravestone. You can purchase this cleaner at http://jahnmortars.com/products/solution.aspx.

References

• Cleaning Gravestones, Monuments & Stone Sculptures
• The Association for Gravestone Studies