Red Clay Stains
Georgia red clay is heavy in iron. Rain splashes this mud onto the base of the monuments. It soaks in fast.
Once it dries, that iron bonds to the stone. It becomes a permanent orange stain. Standard soap does not work. Bleach makes it worse. Bleach sets the rust stain deeper into the granite. Once that happens, you can't get it out. We avoid bleach. We use grave site cleaning services with specific surfactants. We lift the iron out of the stone pores to restore the color.
Black Algae Growth
It stays humid here. That moisture feeds black algae. It grows thick on the headstones.
It looks like dirt, but it creates a hard shell. It roots into the stone grain. It produces acid that dulls the polish. Pressure washers are dangerous here. They blast the face off the stone. We use memorial restoration services with biological cleaners. We kill the algae. It falls off without scrubbing.
Pine Sap Buildup
Pine trees drip sap on the markers. The stone gets hot in the sun and bakes the sap.
It turns into a hard, black lump. Dirt sticks to it. It does not wash off with water. Scraping it scratches the granite. We use a chemical poultice for cleaning marble tombstones. We soften the hardened sap and wipe it away.
Sandy Soil Erosion
Southern Georgia has sandy soil. It moves when it rains.
Storms create runoff that washes the sand out from under the concrete footer. The monument loses support on one side. It starts to lean. If you leave it, it tips over. Our headstone cleaning service includes checking the foundation. We pack the void with gravel to stop the movement.
Fire Ant Damage
Fire ants build mounds on the monuments to stay warm.
The mound dirt is acidic. It sits against the polish for months. It burns a rough ring into the stone base. We treat the ground during cemetery plot maintenance. We neutralize the acid to stop the damage.