[Lion-hearted Girl]

Great post Bill! Thanks for the insider-info, your posts are always very interesting

[Billthegravedigger]

In extreme, and I mean EXTREME situations, vaults can flood. Steel burial vaults are designed for a depth of 4.5 feet, and 5.5 feet at the most. If they are buried deeper, the water can sometime get in because the amount of dirt will not allow it to float up, but it doesn't completely fill the vault, though it will rise up to the lower part of the casket.

[Billthegravedigger]

An old timer wanted us to dig a "vault grave", so we obliged. We dug a regular grave, then trimmed off the sides to create shelves. We then layed 1 inch oak planks across it after we lowered the casket and vault. Don't see many of these.

[Sandbwoy]

When Hell is full, the dead will walk the Earth

[Stef81]

What's the point in having one dug that way? The water issue?

[Billthegravedigger]

Originally Posted by SteFinch81 ↗

What's the point in having one dug that way? The water issue?

Nah, it's really down to preferences. They had steel burial vaults available decades ago, but not many people could afford them. Now, as back then a funeral home tries to make as much profit as possible, and they just simply cost too much for most people back then.

Not sure exactly when and where it started, but people came up with the idea of a "vault grave". A narrower grave is "stronger" and settles less, and therefor retains its shape and integrity better.

They would leave the very bottom of the grave around the casket just wide enough for the casket to set down in, but would trim the upper portion wider to allow oak planks to lay over the casket, and then galvanized metal arches over the planks.

That was very effective at keeping the grave from crushing the casket for at least a couple of decades, but provided no water protection. With the vaults they produce these days, there is no need to dig a grave that way, but it was an "old timer" that wanted it that way, so we obliged them.

We try to grant any REASONABLE request we can seeing that it's one of their final requests. We have seen them pour fifths of Jim Beam and several cases of beer on the caskets before, and ask us to pull them back up so they could party with them one last time, which there's no way I could legally or morally do. Some people.................

[Stef81]

Thanks for explaining that to me. I have one more question for ya .... ( we recently buried someone very close to me ). How long should you wait on the ground to settle before putting in a head stone? It's been about a year now & when I visited the grave the other day ( after a lot of rain ) the ground had shifted I guess? There was a cracked dirt outline in the shape of the casket around the area .... know what I mean? It weirded me out.

[Stef81]

Besides all that though, I think the idea of being a grave digger is flippin fantastic & super interesting. I bet you have some awesome stories. :thumbup:

[Billthegravedigger]

Originally Posted by SteFinch81 ↗

Thanks for explaining that to me. I have one more question for ya .... ( we recently buried someone very close to me ). How long should you wait on the ground to settle before putting in a head stone? It's been about a year now & when I visited the grave the other day ( after a lot of rain ) the ground had shifted I guess? There was a cracked dirt outline in the shape of the casket around the area .... know what I mean? It weirded me out.

What kind of stone do you plan on using ? The kind that actually sets down into the ground a few inches, or the kind that sets on a granite base above ground ?

[Stef81]

I'm really not sure yet. What do you recomend?