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Common Mistakes in Preservation

St one waiting it's turn to be fully uncovered again Photo by T Nigh

Some common mistakes of Cemetery Preservation and Maintenance.

1. Never allow shovels to touch a stone. IF you pry with a shovel for instance always keep soil between your shovel and the stone. A short handled straight spade is highly recommended over a long handled shovel.

1. Always clean soil and sod away from stones with a small PLASTIC garden shovel. Never scrape it away with a shovel.
   
   
2. If using a lift always use fiber belts to do the lifting. NEVER use a metal chain!
   
   
3. NEVER paint a stone. It can damage the stone by interfering with water travel and air drying, and can over time highly damage it. It will also look terrible as the paint wears away.
   
   
4. NEVER use silicone or other such compounds.
   
   
5. Never use a pressure washer to clean a stone. Indeed, the best way to clean is with plain water and a soft brush. A pressure washer will remove part of the stone and actually make it wear faster.
   
   
6. Never lay a stone down into a bed of gravel for instance if you can stand it up. If you have to cover the "Poetry" at the bottom of a stone to stand it up consider doing it! Above all if possible always stand up stones that might have spots to trap water.
   
   
7. Never allow a stone to be in contact with cement if at all possible. NEVER put the stones in a cement wall or into a cement floor for instance.
   
   
8. NEVER change the position of a stone. Do Not for instance line all stones up in a line, or put them all into one area of the cemetery to allow cleaning it. Never move a stone to cut the lawn. Never move a stone because it would be more in line with another. IF a stone is being run over by vehicles for instance and you have no way to stop that you MIGHT consider moving it to protect it. This would be one of the only times that you would do this.
   
   
9. NEVER attempt to straighten large high stones (3 meters or more for instance) without the proper lifting equipment and unless you have been well trained to do this. They could topple onto you and cause sever injuries or even death.

	NEVER plant a tree next to a stone. This practice should be banned! Photo by T Nigh
Old fashioned (Wrong way) to fix a broken stone But it does work and is all They knew at the time