How Can You Protect Memorial Marker In Winter

Headstones and memorial markers are made out of tough materials like stone, bronze, and even concrete for a reason. They have to stay outside and face every change in weather, may it be rain, extreme sunlight, or icy cold winters. They are built to last decades with memorial marker maintenance.

However, harsh weather and time take their toll on the headstone and lead to its degradation and weathering. Harsh conditions can make the headstone more brittle and hard to read. Hence, making them unable to perform their function properly.

Despite being made from the toughest material possible still need protection and cleaning to make them last longer. So, if you want to protect the headstone placed on your loved ones’ graves, follow some protection activities that are explained in the article below.

Understand Your Monument

A wide range of headstone and memorial markers are available in the market. They differ in terms of the materials used in their construction, size, and style of writing on it.

Therefore, before going for headstone maintenance, or seasonal protection activities, it is important to understand the nature of your memorial marker first. If you do the understanding job well, you will be able to protect the marker on your loved ones’ gravesite in every season, including winter.

For instance, if you have a bronze or a headstone made of any other similar metal, it is important to make some efforts and protect them from moisture as much as you want. Upholding a canopy over them can do the job. The same goes for marble headstones as well.

However, on the other hand, granite headstones are by far the most popular headstones owing to their reliability and durability. Granite is a natural stone that can easily withstand all the weathering and is impervious to rain, snow, hail, breeze, and even dust. So, if you have a granite headstone placed, you might not need a canopy to protect them; just annual cleaning and maintenance are enough to make them last even longer.

Avoid Protectants

Yes, if you want to protect the headstone, you have to avoid the use of headstones protectants available in the market. It can be tempting to spray or coat an extra layer of protection on the memorial stone to protect it from the harsh environment.

However, these materials can do more harm to the stone than good, especially to the ones that are already damaged or weak.

Clean Annually

All the memorial markers, irrespective of the materials used for their construction, should be cleaned at least once a year. If the headstone of your loved one is located at a place where it gets dirty, grungy, and faces a lot of dust storms, you may also want to shift your cleaning frequency from once to twice a year.

When you remove the dust and grime from the surface, it prevents them from penetrating deeper into the headstone which can make them brittle and extra prone to damage.

Remember to clean the stone with water and a soft-bristle brush. Hard brushes and chemical cleaning agents can erode the stone surface. Strong cleaning agents can seep in the stone and damage it. Moreover, some people believe that shaving cream is very effective in cleaning a headstone. It is nothing but just a myth. In fact, the cream can give headstone long-term damage, even if apparently removing grime from it. So, avoid using the wrong and rumored effective materials for memorial cleaning.

Add A Canopy

Although most headstones or grave markers can withstand weathering perfectly well, if still, you want to be worry-free about damaging the last honor point of your loved one in winter, you can add a canopy over it. However, remember to seek permission from the cemetery before doing so.

A headstone faces all kinds of winter harshness, from heavy snow to icy cold winds, hail storms, and rainfall. However, placing a canopy over it can save it from all these conditions lowering the exposure to harshest weather conditions.

This protective act can especially be fruitful for the markers made from bronze and other metals. Keeping these markers away from moisture as much as possible can make them last longer than their expected life span.

Conclusion

Headstones are originally made to stay and face outside conditions for extended periods. However, if you choose the location, material, and size of the headstone carefully, you can avoid many problems. If you choose the right material according to the location, you will have to deal with little maintenance problems. Such as choosing a bronze headstone in an area with high humidity levels is a bad choice. This will make your headstone corrode faster while having granite placed instead will do the job nicely. You can suffice with annual cleaning and maintenance activity for it.

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