Grave Cleaning & Headstone Restoration in Quincy

Cleaning Salt and Lichen in the Granite City

Quincy is famous for its granite. You see it everywhere, especially in Mount Wollaston and Pine Hill Cemeteries. That local dark granite is tough, but it has a rough texture. That roughness catches dirt, pollen, and seeds. It allows lichen to grow thick and deep, eventually covering the names on the stone.

We also have the ocean. Quincy has miles of coastline. The wind blows salt spray right onto the headstones. That salt eats away the polish on the granite and makes bronze plaques turn green. Families searching for headstone cleaning services near me call us to scrub off that tough biological growth or to restore the shine to a stone dulled by the sea air.

Lichen on Rough Granite

Quincy granite is often cut rough, not polished smooth. That texture gives lichen a perfect place to grab on. It starts as small grey circles and spreads until the whole stone is covered. The roots dig deep into the little pits in the rock.

If you try to scrape this off, you will damage the stone surface. We have to kill the plant first. We spray it with a solution that soaks into the growth. It kills the lichen down to the root. It dries up and falls off, leaving the granite clean.

Salt Air Corrosion

If you are near the water, salt is a problem. It settles on the headstones. When it gets wet, it forms a brine that attacks the stone. It turns polished black granite cloudy and grey. It makes the surface rough so dirt sticks to it even more.

You can't just wipe salt off. We use a wash that neutralizes it. It pulls the salt out of the stone pores and flushes it away. It stops the damage before the polish is ruined forever.

Sinking Flat Markers

The soil near the coast is sandy and soft. Flat markers settle deeper every season. Turf creeps over the granite until you can't see the stone anymore. Families visit the plot and think the marker is missing, but it is just buried under a few inches of sod.

We locate these stones and dig them up. We pack the hole with crushed stone to create a solid base. It stops the marker from sinking back down into the sand.

Bronze Oxidation

Many military markers in Quincy are made of bronze. The salt air turns them a chalky green color. This isn't a nice patina; it is corrosion. It eats the metal until you can't read the service details.

We clean bronze with a specialized detergent that removes the green corrosion but leaves the metal safe. Once it is clean, we seal it. The sealer protects the metal from the salt air so it stays brown and shiny.

Service Costs in Quincy

Cleaning rough granite takes more material than smooth stone. digging a sunken marker out of sandy soil is heavy work. I can't guess the price over the phone. We have an online tool for that. You choose the cemetery, tell us the problem, and you get a clear price instantly.