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Archiver > KS-CEMETERIES > 2004-09 > 1094161560


From: "Jean Cloke" <>
Subject: Re: [KS-CEM] cleaning headstones
Date: Thu, 2 Sep 2004 16:46:00 -0500
References: <20040831011651.1733.qmail@web81504.mail.yahoo.com>


Thanks, Orlena. I looked through the previous posts and you are right. Mr. Bonner is free to believe what he believes and do as he pleases, but so are we all. I prefer to not take the chance on damaging an old stone. He continually says he wants proof it is damaging, but he has not proven it is not, so I will not take that chance. I am not a chemist, nor an expert on stones. I just want to do genealogy and preserve everything I can from history. Whether it is my family or not, I prefer to use caution and not take a chance on doing harm to anything of historical value. That is why I did the research to find what was recommended by the experts in the field. Maybe Mr. Bonner owns stock in a shaving cream company or something. LOL

Have a good day,
Jean C.

----- Original Message -----
From: Orlena<mailto:>
To: <mailto:>
Sent: Monday, August 30, 2004 8:16 PM
Subject: RE: [KS-CEM] cleaning headstones


http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/TOMBSTONES/2002-05<http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/TOMBSTONES/2002-05>;

Apparently, Mr Bonner has been lobbying for shaving cream before. He is not likely to change his mind. Maybe he's right, maybe he's wrong, it really does not matter.

TOMBSTONES-L Archives: May 2002

To maybe save everyone frustration, you might want to read the previous comments before we all end up in the same place.

Check out the entire page. There seems to be some interesting information here.

Orlena


"Bonner, Gregg" <<mailto:>> wrote:


Hi Jean, and other interested readers,

Many web sites say the same thing because they all derive from the same
erroneous information.

I agree that it is better to be safe than to take a chance that doing
something might hurt the stone. However, putting shaving cream on a
stone is NOT one of those things that may hurt them. It is known that
shaving cream will not hurt the stone, so there is no chance-taking
involved. I know a lot of people cling to this idea of shaving cream
hurting stones like it were a religion, but as a scientific discussion,
this case was closed many years ago when the ACTUAL study was done, and
it turned up nothing.

This whole thing got started a long time ago when someone worried about
"stearic acid" being in the ingredients of shaving cream, and the person
being frightened by the word 'acid'. Then, in investigating the actions
of acid on stone, they found information about the actions of
hydrochloric acid on certain stones. So the fear was compounded by
presuming that stearic acid, one of the weakest acids on the planet,
would act similarly to hydrochloric acid, one of the strongest acids on
the planet. And this notwithstanding the fact that even the weak stearic
acid is neutralized in shaving cream with the addition of a base.

I have seen many sites which promulgate the "evil of shaving cream", and
the claims are not just false, but ridiculously false, and in every
case, rather than serving as a warning, really just demonstrate a rather
profound ignorance of the topic at hand on all levels. And the fact that
it is an evangelical effort can be seen by the sites including things
like a link to the 'material data safety sheet' for stearic acid. This
has nothing to do with cemetery preservation, and is rather a
transparent attempt at fear-mongering.

Again, I don't know if shaving cream will help CLEAN a stone, but I know
it won't HURT the stone. Usually people put shaving cream on a stone to
help take a better picture. The no-shaving-cream advocacy doesn't do
anything to help preserve stones, it only makes it more difficult to
take a good picture.

Gregg Bonner




-----Original Message-----
From: Jean Cloke [mailto:]
Sent: Monday, August 30, 2004 12:37 PM
To: <mailto:>
Subject: Re: [KS-CEM] cleaning headstones

Mr. Bonner, you really should look at some of the other websites that
Orlena sent. They say pretty much the same thing that the one I sent
said. Some of them address the myths about shaving cream and other
chemicals. I'm not a chemist or geologist, just someone concerned that
old stone's will be damaged and historical pieces be destroyed by the
errors of well-meaning people.

My point is, that if there is even a remote possibility that something
will harm an old stone it shouldn't be used. I know plain water and a
soft brush won't harm them, so I prefer to use that method rather than
take a chance on leaving a chemical on the stone that will do damage in
the years to come. I would hope that most people who are concerned about
preservation, history, and genealogy would have a similar opinion, that
it is better to be safe than sorry where these old stones are concerned.


Have a good day,
Jean C.




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==== KS-CEMETERIES Mailing List ====
NOTICE: Posting of virus warnings, test messages, chain letters, political
announcements, current events, items for sale, personal messages, flames,
etc. (in other words - spam) is NOT ALLOWED and will be grounds for removal.
Consideration for exceptions, contact Kathleen Burnett <mailto:>
Check out the KS-CEMETERIES Volunteer and Cemetery Inventory Website located at
http://www.rootsweb.com/~kscemete/kscem.htm<http://www.rootsweb.com/~kscemete/kscem.htm>;

==============================
Gain access to over two billion names including the new Immigration
Collection with an Ancestry.com free trial. Click to learn more.
http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=4930&sourceid=1237<http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=4930&sourceid=1237>;


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