D/2 Biological Solution has come to the rescue for me on this gray granite gravestone located in Elmwood Cemetery in Lorain, Ohio where "the coal and iron meet" and that means pollution I'm afraid.
Albert and Marie (Weber) Limes were my uncle and aunt. I remember them as a child mainly since my uncle Albert died when I was 12 years old.
Their gravestone is one that I have been washing almost yearly for a least 10 years with water and a brush. It has suffered like so many finished and unfinished grave markers around it with the horrible black streaks and marks that I fear are the result of such pollution found in the area in my hometown.
So, in May of 2015 I did something different. I cleaned their stone with D/2 Biological Solution. I used my gloves and face mask to be sure as I am a sensitive person to smells and solutions. The smell of ammonia always bothered me for days.
So, I wetted down the gravestone and then sprayed some "D/2" on it and proceeded to scrub lightly with my white soft bristle plastic brush (think Rubbermaid), and rinsed the stone again with plain water. I visited the stone a couple of more times in 2015. There was an improvement; but not dramatic, but I was pleased it was looking cleaner without looking "bleached" or anything in that drastic category.
So, now it is May of 2016, and I visited my uncle and aunt's gravesite again. And, I saw in person quite evidently the improvement in appearance being more pronounced for the gravestone. So I took a new photograph of it.
I wanted to share my before and after photographs also because I think doing comparisons help us view progress in the making.
Older grave markers don't have to look showroom perfect, or like brand new -- and that is something I think many who clean them sometimes lose sight of. They are historic one of a kind artifacts, and we should treat them with care.
