# Tombstone Stakeing Help??



## turtle2778 (Jul 9, 2006)

Hey guys...I need to know what you use to keep your tombstones from flying away or falling over. I want to try and make it so that the little a-holes who take stuff just cant walk in my yard and help themselves. I have a lot of store bought thin tombstones so jammin a piece of pipe inside them wont work. Ive looked, but cant find anything on here telling ya how to keep them up or what you guys use. THANKS SO MUCH.


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## arcuhtek (Oct 5, 2007)

I know just the thing.....

My tombstones are 2" thick so this works well. You say yours are thin, but you do not say approx. the thickness. So I hope this works for you.....

I get what is known as "ladder reinforcing" (also know as "H" reinforcing or mortar joint reinforcing) and buy a pair of hand held wire cutters....not just stereo wire cutters...these need to be fairly heavy duty (buy the reinforcing first and you will see what I mean).

This reinforcing is in the shape of the letter "H" but is a continuous pattern for as long as the reinforcing is sold (4', 8'). Here is a link to a photo of it. (was too big to post here) http://www.semetals.com/images/Masonry/weldwallladder.JPG

I just cut off about 3-4" on each side of the "horizontal" member of the reinforcing and make myself a miniature "H" shape. carefully slide the top 2" up into my tombstone (leave 2" for your foot to slide into) and begin to push it into the ground. Now use your foot to force it into the ground. The ground must be soft or close. This stuff is great, but it will bend. Once you are done...you can push your tombstone down to the ground so all 4" are up into the tombstone.

I get the ladder reinforcing at a masonry/brick/block place here in town. I dont think they sell it at Lowes or HD.

ITS CHEAP!

Some words of caution:

1. If your tombstone is less than 1" thick, you will want to be VERY VERY VERY careful. If you do not "aim" the reinforcing properly....it will shoot out the face of the tombstone about 2" up....as it continues on a wrong path. Just take your time...it will be worth it.

2. If it is REALLY windy..and your tombstone is thin, there is a chance that the wind might push the tombstone over, and yet the reinforcing will hold steady in the ground. The result is reinforcing blown out of the face of the tombstone....its not the end of the world, but you wont be happy.

The good news is that if you get it right....at the end of the haunt you have the option of keeping the reinforcing with the tombstone, or pack up all the reinforcing as one group of items. I separate out the reinforcing and pack it together. Next year, the reinforcing slides right in with no problems.

Also...this method allows you to properly display the tombstone from any viewing angle. No wood stakes that you have to hide in the back.

Oh and one more thing. Once you cut the first piece, you can use it as a template for cutting all the other "holders" you intend to make. No measuring required.

Hope this works.
Kevin


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## CraigInPA (Sep 28, 2007)

I have a number of store-bought foam stones, and a 200 degree viewing angle (i.e., no one sees the back of the stones very easily). I bought construction stakes from Lowes, sprayed them with gray and black paint to match the stones, then glued them on with gorilla glue. It's very important that you weight the stake on the stone to get a good bond. You can then easily pound them into soft earth without damaging the foam stone. I found about 6-8" is more than enough sticking out the bottom to hold even the 30" stones upright in the 25 mph winds we had yesterday.


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## BigDave (Sep 24, 2007)

*Another Idea*

I cut 1/2" PVC into about 15" lengths and glue (use Loctite construction adhesive) to the back of the headstones. I then pound some rebar (or something similar) into the ground and slide the PVC over the rebar.

It works great and has withstood winds between 30-40 mph (a regular occurence here in North Texas). It probably won't help keep them from getting stolen though. Someone else on the forum gave me the idea, and it works great.

-Dave


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## Magic Taco Truck (Jul 2, 2007)

BigDave said:


> I cut 1/2" PVC into about 15" lengths and glue (use Loctite construction adhesive) to the back of the headstones. I then pound some rebar (or something similar) into the ground and slide the PVC over the rebar.
> 
> It works great and has withstood winds between 30-40 mph (a regular occurence here in North Texas). It probably won't help keep them from getting stolen though. Someone else on the forum gave me the idea, and it works great.
> 
> -Dave


Ditto this. My store bought tombstones just recently weathered two days of rain and winds (in North Texas as well). PVC attached to the back with Liquid Nails and rebar in combination with the crappy original plastic stakes that they came with. Worked great.


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## Uruk-Hai (Nov 4, 2006)

I cut a scrap piece of plywood about 2-3" bigger than the base of the tombstone. I then drill 5 holes in it - 2 in the back corners and 1 in the center front. The other 2 holes are positioned so they line up with the center of the tombstone itself. I use 10-12" nails and push 2 of the nails up from the bottom into the tombstone - like others have said, be careful to go straight in or you risk poking through.

Once the nails are in, remove them for now. I use heavy-duty construction adhesive and apply it all over the base of the tombstone and fill up holes you made with the nails. Press the plywood down into place and put the nails back into the holes that are now full of glue. Smooth out any excess and once dry paint the plywood grey.

To "plant" the tombstones use the remaining 3 nails and drive them down into the ground through the other holes in the plywood base. I find that doing it this way the tombstones are more than secure from wind and as it takes a bit of effort to get the nails out of the ground it helps to stop any attempted theft. (not that it would stop a determined thief but it would make it difficult)

I've just put up some new photos on my website showing the process. Here's the link...

http://www.hectorturner.com/halloween/tombstones.html

If you scroll down to the bottom of the page and look at some real life examples you'll notice many of them sit on a base stone not just the bare ground so doing it this way with the plywood looks realistic too.


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## slimy (Jul 12, 2006)

I do the 1/2" pvc with rebar. Use liquid nails to glue the pvc on. Let it dry about a day. 

We just had 50 mph straight line winds (not gusts) and I did NOT lose a single tombstone. 

This method will NOT prevent theft, however. For theft protection, I would shove razor blades in the back with the blades showing. That way if anybody's hands are where they are not supposed to be..........


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## Smelly-Skelly (Sep 29, 2006)

I like the idea of the PVC and rebar set up, but theft is an issue. I have glued plywood to the bottoms, but this can be in the way when trying to store them in the off season.

Here is what I am thinking of as I just had several tombstone damaged from high winds yesterday.

Get a sheet of the exterior Luan plywood from HD (about $10), cut plywood to fit base of stone and glue to the bottom (since it is thin it won't be noticable). Cut a 2nd piece of plywood (say 3/8, 1/2 etc) that is the same depth of the stone but about 2-3" longer on each side. Paint it the same color of stoen or black. Use wood screws to secure to bottom of the stone, drill holes on both sides that extend out the 2-3" and secure this with long stakes (local HD or hardware store has 10" similar to RR tie stakes). It takes some effort to remove the stakes.

This is similar to what I am doing now, but the trouble I am having is the liquid nails fails between the foam and the tombstone, the plywood is still staked to the ground, but the tomstone is in the neighbor yard. Maybe the added piece of luan and screws will secure them a little more.

Any thoughts?


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

He's another approach.
I have used luan plywood, cut in the shape of your tombstone.
Applied adhiesive to the back side of the tombstone. I also ran a few screws (with washers) from the front into the luan.
I would then tape in my wood stakes securing the tombstones to the stakes with screws.
I did forget to mention that this was all painted the same color as the stones.
I would get 60 days out of the display.


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## airscapes (Oct 3, 2006)

This will only apply to a very few .. but..
If you can weld, or know someone who can.. 
For foam tombstones, use 3/16 round stock (steel rod) cut to 12" lenghths, grind points on each end using a bench grinder or whatever you have.
Use one of these pointy rods in a drill to make a hole 6" deep in the bottom of your stone at each side about 3" in from either side(be carefull to go straight)
Now using some 1" or 1 1/4" x 1/8 or 3/16 bar stock, mark of section about 2 1/2" long. Drill 3/16 holes in the center of each section. Now cut each section on a chop saw or with a hack saw. Slide over rod till centered and weld in place. you could use appoxy if no welding equipment. Place rod in previously drilled holes in tombstone and press into ground. 
Seems like a lot of work, but if you have the equipment it takes about 10 minutes ..


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## arcuhtek (Oct 5, 2007)

Is there really that much theft out there? Granted I only put up my display for a day or two, but I have never even thought about theft....okay maybe I have....but not enough to worry. If it were not for rain, heck I would leave my fog machines outside (until I can clean up the following morning) and those darned fog machines cost me a bloody fortune!

Maybe I should buy one of those cheap webcam wireless cam security systems for use a couple days a year!!! LOL


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## grim reaper (Aug 18, 2005)

or if you can do what i did and bury them into the ground.


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## Merlin (The Quiet One) (Feb 23, 2006)

I duct tape the back of mine to the stakes.....usually keeps them up but doesn't deter theft. 
Yep Arcuhtek, there is theft.


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## arcuhtek (Oct 5, 2007)

I realize there is theft. I was questioning the magnitude, such that it factors into a security plan for a residential, non-professional, non-commercial haunt.


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## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

This has been talked about in another forum here...where is it???


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## spotnik (Sep 15, 2007)

I glue or screw a piece of plywood to the stone and use the green fencing stakes sold at lowes (various sizes for snow fencing etc) and then drive a screw thru the metal stake into the plywood. fast and easy and very stable in the wind
in fact I have a cemetary gate that is about 9 feet tall and ithas stayed in a nearly upright position during the recent high winds here in michigan (20 - 30 mph) I also use these stakes to theft proof a lot of my stationary props - very handy


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## BigDave (Sep 24, 2007)

*Big Winds Here Today*



BigDave said:


> I cut 1/2" PVC into about 15" lengths and glue (use Loctite construction adhesive) to the back of the headstones. I then pound some rebar (or something similar) into the ground and slide the PVC over the rebar.
> 
> It works great and has withstood winds between 30-40 mph (a regular occurence here in North Texas). It probably won't help keep them from getting stolen though. Someone else on the forum gave me the idea, and it works great.
> 
> -Dave


Winds gusted to 40 mph here today and no tombstones lost. This works great.

-Dave


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## loganmonster (Oct 29, 2007)

*Holding gravestones in place on the lawn*

How do people hold their gravestones in place outside when there is wind?

I have tried just using the silly pegs that come with some of the gravestones and have tried tent stakes, but nothing seems like a good easy solution. What do you think?


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## dusty588 (Oct 8, 2006)

What I do for my styforfoam tombstones, is stick green gared stakes into the stones, or duct tape the sticks to the back, and stick them in the ground. Works well for me.


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## Hauntiholik (May 17, 2006)

There was some discussion on staking tombstones in this thread:
http://hauntforum.com/showthread.php?t=8846


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## turtle2778 (Jul 9, 2006)

Thanks to all for the great ideas. I especially like the razor blades.


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## loganmonster (Oct 29, 2007)

Thank you!


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## dynoflyer (Oct 8, 2006)

I glue a 6" X 6" scrap of plywood to the back with Gorilla Glue and let it dry. I pound two 1/2" dia. pvc stakes into the lawn (you could use wood stakes, too). Then predrill a hole through the pvc and run a drywall screw through the pvc into the plywood. Works great and avoids having to pound on the tombstone.


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## Hellspawn (Oct 13, 2006)

I can get up to 50mph gusts where I live, so this was a big concern of mine.

What I ended up doing out of desperation (out of time) was take 1/2'' grey elec conduit (the thin walled stuff) cut it into 12'' sections and just gorilla glue two to the back of each tombstone.

Once dry, I took 1/4 rebar (fits the conduit perfectly) and just ran it through the conduit and pounded it into the ground 4-6''

I was very skeptical, but had no choice at the time, all the tombstones survived some of the worst winds we have had with no problems whatsoever, if your concerned with the asthetics of having pipe glued to the back of your stones, you can either build a "back" to the stone to cover up the pipe or do something else, I think ill build backs to my stones for next year.


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## Mooch (Oct 29, 2005)

We glued a thin board on the back also and a 1 foot length of pvc to the board with gorilla glue. Painted it to match tombstone and then we just pound a piece of rebar into the ground where we want the tombstone and slide the pvc on it. Works great.


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## Sickie Ickie (Jun 20, 2006)

dynoflyer said:


> I glue a 6" X 6" scrap of plywood to the back with Gorilla Glue and let it dry. I pound two 1/2" dia. pvc stakes into the lawn (you could use wood stakes, too). Then predrill a hole through the pvc and run a drywall screw through the pvc into the plywood. Works great and avoids having to pound on the tombstone.


I could have used this advice last week! LOL I gorilla glued lathe on the back and pounded that into the ground. The force from pounding knocked them from the tombstones, so I ran some drywall screws from the lathe into the stone.


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## crazy4bass (Oct 16, 2007)

I used duct tape and taped pieces of gray 1/2" pvc to the back of the tombstones, then placed pieces of rebar in the ground and slide the tombstone over that. Worked like a champ and stood up to 3 days of wind an rain.


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## trishaanne (Aug 20, 2005)

Since I use whatever free styrofoam I can get my hands on, not all of it is very thick. I hammer rebar into the ground and then thread fishing line through the stones in a few places and tie it around the rebar. Works well even in the heavy winds.


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## halloween71 (Aug 9, 2007)

Duct tape to a sturdy stake works really well.This was my first year decorating my yard.I was really getting aggravated with the tombstones why do they even bother with those flimsy "stakes".I have also for small 16 inch tombstones cut a clothes hanger and inserted it into the tombstone and then into the ground.


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## kerryike (Oct 5, 2006)

If thr styrofom is thick enough, like 2"...drill a 1/2" hole up through the bottom about 3" deep. Then use a small piece of rebar (about 6") and stick the other 3" into the ground. If the tombstones are smaller, just buy and cut some 1'4"metal rod that you can find at Lowes or Home Depot and use 2 to stabilize them.


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## jimmyzdc (Sep 24, 2007)

I really need to do the rebar thing as well. This morning I came out and almost all my tombstones had blown over. Hopefully tonight the winds will be calm. Another thing to add to the list for next year


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## tuck (Oct 27, 2007)

all of my tombstones were made out of the 2" styrofoam. I drilled a half inch hole in the bottom center about 6 to 8 inches up. Then cut off pieces of 1/2 PVC and put gorilla glue on the outside of the pipe and shoved it into the hole of the stone. A nice 2' rebar hammered into the ground and run the stone through the rebar via the pipe and they did not move even in the high winds we had this year. 

That probably sounded much more complicated than it really was.


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## slightlymad (May 25, 2006)

This reminded me that its an election year in these parts and all those horrible signs that get stuck in the side of the road are free game as of 12:01am wednsday morning. i think I will leave work early and get a few those metal frames will not only make great stakes but may work well as dowls.


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## Gothyc Designs (Dec 30, 2006)

Iuse ½" rebar 2 feet long. Pound 1' into the ground and 1' goes into the tombstone. As you build the tombstone, drill out the hole, or if laminating to make thicker, such as 3" thick tombstones, carve or melt a 1" section in the foam. Depending on your design of tombstone, 1 or 2 rebar stakes should do just fine. Using 2 would mean less likely to spin in high winds. But in my area, 1 seems to be good enough. I have put mine away for the season. If I can get a chance, I'll try to post some pics to give a visual, but its pretty simple. I'm sure some have done this before. but this is what I thought of to do.

Later,
Gothyc Designs


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## Bone Dancer (Oct 7, 2005)

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g34/BoneDancer381/2007_1031Halloween070004.jpg

I got this method from a link in here a couple of years ago and it works great for me.
Use liquid nail for syrofoam to glue a 2x2 with holes drilled onto the back of the stone, use a nylon tie to attach it to a stake in the ground, easy to put up and to take down.


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## CreepyCanmore (Mar 27, 2007)

I used PL200 (I think...might have been PL400) to glue big pieces of plywood to the back of the tombstones, them pounded about 2 foot lengths of rebar in the ground (went in about 6 -8 inches) then used screws screwed in on angle around both sides of the rebar into the plywood to act as holders. 

It works great and the plywood adds weight to the tombstones, so less likely to be affected by wind. I got the rebar from a friend and I cut it off at an angle, using an angle grinder, on one side to make it easier to go into the ground (the ground here is semi frozen already, but it still works).


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## Bloodhound (Oct 16, 2007)

I use rebarb two in the back and one in the front, cover with fake moss and will withstand the strongest kansas winds


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## edwood saucer (Aug 21, 2006)

16" Stakes and zip ties...works like a charm - however - if you tie the zips too tight - they start to work their way through the foam...


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