Headstones are generally made of stones like marble, limestone or sandstone. Over the years, a headstone can start to weather because of moisture and freezing temperatures. But one of the more annoying problems you'll encounter with a headstone is when moss starts to grow on it. In a properly maintained public cemetery, this won't happen. But in a family plot on private land, you may have to remove moss from a headstone yourself in order to protect the stone and keep it free from stains. This could be as often as once a year. The following will show you how to do this.

What You Will Need

• Shears

• Garbage Bags

• Sponge

• Soft Brush

• Distilled Water

• Wooden Dowel

• pH Neutral Photo Wetting Agent

• Clean Towels

• Spray Bottle

Step 1. Use garden shears to cut away any foliage or high grass blocking the headstone. Also get rid of any clippings or trash, placing everything you removed in a garbage bag. This will not only improve the appearance of the headstone, it will make it easier for the sun to reach and dry the surface. Moss is less likely to grow on dry stone.

Step 2. Use a soft sponge or soft brush to carefully remove any dirt or bird droppings on the stone. If it's a flat stone, surround it with towels to keep any dirty water from running back across the stone when you rinse.

Step 3. Use a sponge to saturate the entire stone with distilled water. Wait a few minutes to allow it to seep into the stone. Because distilled water has no minerals in it, it cannot damage the stone in any way.

Step 4. Using a dowel that has an angle at either end, scrape against the stone to remove as much moss as you can. As you are doing this, re-wet the stone using the sponge.

Step 5. Into 1 quart of distilled water, mix half an ounce of a pH neutral photo wetting agent. Use a spray bottle to spray the solution over the entire stone. You want to fully saturate it.

Step 6. With a circular motion, use a soft brush to clean the area of any remaining moss or residue. Use pure distilled water to rinse the stone every so often while you do this. Repeat this until all of the moss is removed.

Step 7. Rinse the stone one last time to remove any traces of the photo wetting agent. Thoroughly dry the surface of the headstone with towels.

To replace a headstone, or to buy one that is moss resistant, visit providers, such as Maurice Moore Memorials.