Funeral Supplies cont...

Urns hold cremated remains for the purpose of being present at a memorial service, burial, and/or to be held until a decision is made of where the final resting place should be. As with caskets, there are many choices when it comes to materials and every funeral home will have a different selection. One thing to remember when selecting an urn is to keep in mind what will happen to that urn housing the cremated remains. If, for example, the urn will be travelling on a plane, it is important to select a style that is not metal, so that an X-ray scanner can see through it. Or, if the urn is being placed in an above ground urn niche, select an urn that will fit the compartment.

Casket vaults are used to house a casket in for burial in the ground. The basic purpose of a casket vault is to maintain the structure of the individual grave plot. In doing that the ground remains relatively flat so that the cemetery is safer for visitors and for cemetery staff when they are cutting grass or digging other graves. The funeral director will ensure the family knows if a vault is required or recommended by the cemetery of choice.

Because vaults have a curved top, they are engineered to withstand static, dynamic and impact loads. A static, or stationary, load is simply the weight of the earth that rests directly over the burial vault. In most cemeteries today, the average grave has 18 to 24 inches of earth covering, which results in a static load of approximately 4,000 pounds. A dynamic load varies in intensity. This load is transferred to a burial vault when heavy cemetery equipment passes over the grave. Equipment used in cemeteries is much heavier today, as most cemeteries use backhoes and trucks to move earth, often weighing several tons. An impact or shock load is produced by a mechanical tamper or the dropping of a backhoe bucket, and delivers a very concentrated force through the soil.

Casket vaults will vary from reinforced concrete with a tongue and groove closure to ones with ornate designs and materials. Higher end vaults will have a heavy plastic (polyurethane) interior and a hermetic seal, which further protects the casket. But as with everything there is a choice. Personally, if a vault is either required by the cemetery or selected by the next of kin responsible for funeral arrangements the unlined reinforced concrete does the job.

How long does a vault last? It is hard to give an exact answer. Nothing lasts forever, but the concrete used in the construction of vaults is the same used for foundations of houses.