Refinery Fallout
The air holds oily soot from the plants.
This soot sticks to the polish. Rain beads up on it. Standard soap fails here. If the oil stays, it eats the finish.
We use an industrial degreaser for cleaning stone gravestones. We strip the chemical film. Once the grease is gone, the stone washes clean.
Sinking in the Marsh
The ground is soft clay. The water table is high.
Heavy monuments sink. Flat markers get buried in the mud. Digging them up is useless. The ground is too soft. It swallows them again.
For tombstone repair and restoration, we install a stabilizer grid. We lift the stone. We slide the grid underneath. It spreads the weight. The stone floats on the mud.
Black Algae
Humidity keeps the stone wet. Black algae thrives here.
It roots into the stone face. Pressure washing is a mistake. It drives the roots deeper. The mold comes back fast.
We use a biocide soak. It kills the roots inside the rock. The dead algae rinses off.
Salt Spray Pitting
Wind brings salt from the bay.
Salt eats granite. It pits the surface. It turns bronze markers green. Wiping it dry grinds the finish. We flush the stone with fresh water. We remove the salt before it burns the polish.
Mower Scuffs
Grass grows fast. Crews cut close.
Trimmer string hits hot stone. It melts. It leaves black plastic streaks. You can't scrub this off. We use a solvent. It melts the plastic residue. We wipe it clean.