Grave Cleaning & Headstone Restoration in Johnson City

Removing Mountain Lichen and Red Clay in Johnson City

Johnson City sits in the shadow of the mountains. Cemeteries like Monte Vista and Oak Hill have massive old trees. That shade keeps the ground damp. In this climate, moss and lichen take over. We see granite headstones covered in crusty green and grey scabs. This stuff doesn't just sit on the rock. It roots into the surface and eats the polish.

The soil here is classic East Tennessee red clay. The dirt is heavy with iron. Rain throws that red mud onto the granite, and it sticks. It dries into a hard orange band that looks like rust. A scrub brush won't touch it. Families searching for headstone cleaning services near me call us to kill that stubborn mountain lichen and to pull the red clay stains out of their family markers.

Killing Lichen on Granite

Lichen is the biggest problem in Johnson City. It loves the rough, rock-pitched edges of the headstones. You cannot scrape it off when it is dry. If you try, you will pull chunks of the granite off with it.

We kill it first. We soak the growth in a biological cleaner. It penetrates the crust and burns out the roots. The lichen turns to mush. We gently scrub it away with soft brushes. We rinse the stone clean, leaving the rock surface intact.

Extracting Red Clay Stains

The red clay here dyes everything. The stone drinks the mud right up from the ground. Scrubbing is a waste of time. It just drives the red color deeper into the rock.

We extract it. We mix a chemical poultice that targets iron. We smear it over the orange banding at the bottom of the stone. It sits there and sucks the pigment out of the granite. We wash the dried paste away, and the stone looks grey again.

Restoring Military Bronze at Mountain Home

Johnson City has a huge veteran population. The bronze markers at Mountain Home and local plots oxidize in the mountain air. The protective coating fails, and the metal turns a chalky green.

We refinish them. We strip the old clear coat and the corrosion down to bare metal. We sand the raised letters so they shine. We heat the bronze to get it bone dry, then spray a new industrial sealer. It keeps the moisture out and stops the metal from turning green again.

Leveling Stones After Frost Heave

The winters here get cold enough to freeze the ground deep. When the ground freezes, it pushes stones up. When it thaws, they settle unevenly. We see monuments leaning dangerously or sinking on one side.

We fix the foundation. We dig out the sunken side. We pack the hole with crushed angular gravel. Water runs right through the rocks instead of freezing and pushing the monument up. We reset the monument on this stable pad so it stands straight.

Cleaning Marble "Sugaring"

The older markers in Oak Hill are made of soft white marble. Acid rain and age make the binder dissolve. The stone feels sandy. We call this "sugaring."

We apply a consolidator. This fluid soaks into the rotting stone and hardens. This stops the stone from shedding sand every time it rains. It saves the carving.

Repairing Mower Scuffs

Cemetery mowers run fast. They hit the corners of the stones. We see black rubber marks and chipped edges everywhere.

We wipe the rubber marks off with a solvent. For chips, we use diamond files. We grind the sharp, broken edge into a smooth bevel. It looks finished and prevents the mower from catching that same jagged spot again.

Service Costs in Johnson City

We have flat-rate pricing for Johnson City, Jonesborough, and Elizabethton. We don't need to visit the cemetery to give you a price. Check our subscription builder to see the exact cost for your plot.