Grave Cleaning & Headstone Restoration in Omaha

Scrubbing Black Algae and Resetting Frost-Heaved Stones in Omaha

Omaha is hard on monuments. We go from baking heat to deep freezes. That cycle wrecks the cemeteries. In Forest Lawn and Westlawn, the stones stay wet and turn black from algae. Come winter, the ground freezes and heaves the markers right out of place.

We also fight the sprinklers. They run all summer. The water dries on the hot stone and leaves a hard white layer behind. Families searching for headstone cleaning services near me call us to strip off that mineral crust and to reset the markers that the winter frost knocked over.

Black Algae and Mildew

The river valley keeps the air heavy and wet. Headstones under the big trees never really dry out. They get covered in black slime. It looks like dirt, but it is actually algae growing into the rock.

Pressure washing destroys the stone face. We use a biological cleaner. We soak the stone and let the chemical kill the growth. The black stains turn brown and rinse away. Since we killed the roots, the stone stays clean for a long time.

Frost Heave and Leaning Monuments

The ground in Nebraska freezes deep. That frozen dirt expands and lifts with massive force. It acts like a jack under the foundation. We see headstones tipped sideways or pushed up three inches higher than they should be.

To fix this, we have to dig out the old foundation. We put in a deep pad of gravel. Gravel drains the water away. If the ground under the stone stays dry, the frost can't push it up. We set the monument back down, and it sits flat.

Hard Water Calcium Scale

Cemetery sprinklers soak the stones every day. Omaha water is full of lime. When the water dries, a white mineral crust stays stuck to the granite. It clouds the polish and ruins the look of the marker.

You can't scrub this off. It is stuck hard. We use a specialized acid cleaner. It melts the mineral bond without burning the granite. We rinse it fast, and the deep color of the stone returns.

Lichen on Historic Limestone

In historic places like Prospect Hill, the markers are soft limestone. Lichen covers the names. The roots dig into the stone. If you pull the lichen off, chunks of stone come with it.

We never scrape limestone. We spray a cleaner that kills the plant. It shrivels up and lets go of the rock. It washes off gently, so the old carving stays sharp and legible.

Sinking Flat Markers

The soil here is rich and soft. Heavy flat markers sink over time. The grass grows over the edges until the marker is gone. We spend a lot of time probing the dirt to find lost family stones.

We lift the marker and pack crushed stone underneath it. This gives it a solid base that won't compress like dirt. We set the marker flush with the ground so mowers can pass over it without hitting it.

Service Costs in Omaha

Fixing a frost-heaved monument is heavy work. We have to dig deep. Removing thick mineral scale takes expensive cleaners and multiple trips. We need to inspect the plot to see how much the ground has shifted or how thick the algae is before we give you a price.