Grave Cleaning & Headstone Restoration in Toms River

Removing Pine Pitch and Leveling Sandy Plots in Toms River

Toms River is built on sand and pine roots. The ground is loose. In Ocean County Memorial Park and St. Joseph’s, the flat markers sink constantly. Rain washes the sand out from under the stone, and the heavy marker drops deeper into the hole. We see markers that are completely covered by grass because they settled three inches deep.

The other battle is the trees. The Pitch Pines drop sap all year round. It lands on the granite and hardens into black lumps. It is stubborn. Families searching for headstone cleaning services near me call us to melt off that hardened resin and to lift their family markers back up to the surface.

Pine Pitch (Tree Sap) Removal

Pine sap is a plague here. It drips onto the headstone and spreads out. The sun bakes it until it is hard as a rock. Dirt sticks to it, turning the clear sap into a black smear.

You cannot scrape this off. Scrapers ruin the polish. We use a chemical that melts the sap. It turns that hard rock of pitch into soft goo. We wipe it away and wash the area to remove the oily residue. The stone looks clean, and the sticky mess is gone.

Sinking Flat Markers in Sand

The soil here is like beach sand. It shifts under weight. Flat bronze or granite markers sink straight down. The turf grows over the edges until you can't find the name anymore.

We locate the corners and cut the sod back. We lift the marker out of the hole. We don't just put it back on the sand. We pack angular gravel underneath it. The rocks lock together to make a solid pad. The marker sits on this gravel base so it stays flush with the ground.

Salt Air Corrosion on Bronze

The bay is close. The air carries salt. That salt eats the protective coating on bronze plaques. It turns the metal chalky green. That isn't just dirt; the metal itself is rotting.

We strip the dead coating and the green corrosion. We polish the bronze down to the bright metal. Then we apply a clear lacquer sealant. This blocks the salt air. The bronze stays gold and shiny instead of turning green again.

Oak Tannin Stains

In the older cemeteries like Riverside, big oak trees drop leaves on the stones. Wet leaves sit there and rot. They drop brown dye onto the stone. The granite sucks it up. It looks like a coffee stain that won't wipe off.

This dye goes deep into the rock pores. We use a poultice powder mixed with a cleaning agent. We pack it on the stain. As it dries, it sucks the brown pigment back out of the stone. We wash it off, and the grey granite looks uniform again.

Lichen on Concrete Coping

Many plots have concrete borders. The humid air makes lichen grow fast on the rough cement. The moss holds water inside the concrete. In winter, that water freezes and pops the cement open.

We spray a cleaner that kills the plant down to the roots. It dries out and releases its grip. We brush it off. This keeps the concrete dry and stops it from crumbling during the freeze.

Service Costs in Toms River

Removing hardened pine sap is slow, detailed work. We have to clean it spot by spot. Resetting markers in loose sand involves hauling heavy gravel. We need to check the site to see how many markers need lifting before we give you a price.