Repair Headstone Lettering

It is essential to repair the lettering on headstones. This shows the loved one’s first and last name as well as their dates of birth and death. However, with the passage of time, a monument like a gravestone may suffer damage and the engraving fades. They can even become unreadable due to external aggression. Here is how to repair headstone lettering.

Trust us with your headstone repair

Our family business takes care of your headstone cleaning and the renovation of any other monument funeral marker in a cemetery. With over 100 years of experience, we offer you our expertise in lettering restoration for your family headstones.

We make sure that your funeral monument and lettering on headstones stays flawless thanks to our professional, high-quality workmanship. We only use natural, eco-friendly products that respect the planet to wash headstone clean and to maintain them in an original state.

4 steps to understand the headstone lettering restoration

The headstone lettering restoration process is called “headstone repainting process.” Here is how this process is carried out by our expert marble workers:

1. Scrape off the leftover paint with a brush.
2. Clean the part to be repainted inside the letters using white vinegar and a soft cloth to obtain good adhesion.
3. Paint the letters, if you want you can use black paint making sure not to use too much acrylic paint, for example. 
4. We finish with real gilding and a coat of varnish for an optimal style. Then comes the drying time.
5. With your headstone clean then comes the drying time.

At Martel & Sons, we make sure to use paint suited to the type of material of your funeral markers (granite memorial, marble, grey granite etc.).

Lifespan of an engraving

Generally, the lettering on a grave marker fades after 10 to 20 years. The scale is large, as it varies according to the weather conditions in the region, original condition, the original type of engraving and the type of paint or gold leaf used. Don’t neglect the maintenance of the lettering on your headstones. It should be done as often as possible to keep them in the best possible condition.