What happens to a body when it arrives at a funeral home?

When a body arrives at a funeral home, it's first placed in a holding area, often a refrigerated unit, for preservation; then, funeral directors begin preparation, which involves cleaning, dressing, and potentially embalming (replacing blood with preservative fluids for longer preservation) or cosmetic work, depending on family wishes and religious/legal requirements for viewing or services. The body's condition (like rigor mortis) is managed, limbs are positioned, and it's prepared for the casket, ensuring dignified presentation until burial or cremation.

What happens when a body arrives at a funeral home?

Once a funeral home has picked up the body and brought it to their facility, they will then clean and dress and/or shroud the body. Afterward, the body will be placed in refrigeration to keep it cool until the day of burial, at which point the body will be transported to the burial site.

What do they do to bodies at funeral homes?

When remains arrive at a funeral home, it is subjected to a series of steps before the actual preparation of remains are complete.

1. Step 1: Pre-Embalming Prep. ...
2. Step 2: Preparation. ...
3. Step 3: Embalming Process. ...
4. Step 4: Washing. ...
5. Step 5: Dressing and Casketing.

How long does it take for a body to decompose in a funeral home?

Decomposition Timeline: On average, it takes 10 to 15 years for a body to decompose fully in a casket, though this can extend to several decades in sealed metal caskets, especially when embalming is involved.

How long can a body stay at a funeral home?

In most cases, so long as the remains are properly refrigerated, funeral homes can store a body for a few days to a few weeks. In some states or jurisdictions, there may be a legal limit on how long a funeral home can hold a body.

Mortician Shows Every Step a Body Goes Through at a Funeral Home | WIRED

What's the longest a funeral home can hold a body?

Instead of preparing the body with chemicals, morticians will store it in a fridge that keeps the body at two degrees Celsius. However, like embalming, it's important to remember that this merely slows the decomposition process – it doesn't stop it. A refrigerated body will last three to four weeks.

Can a funeral home not let you see the body?

A visitation, also known as visiting hours, is when friends and family congregate to remember and celebrate the deceased individual. During a closed-casket funeral, the corpse is not on display and it may or may not be held in a church or funeral home unless the corpse has been embalmed.

Do coffins collapse when buried?

Yes, coffins do collapse when buried, often quite quickly (even within days or months) due to the immense weight of the soil, especially without a protective outer container like a burial vault or liner, which is why most modern cemeteries require them to prevent sinking and maintain a flat surface. The speed of collapse depends on the coffin's material (wood breaks down faster than metal) and environmental factors like moisture, with wooden ones failing sooner, leading to the natural settling and sinking of graves over time.
 

Do funeral homes keep bodies in the fridge?

Yes, funeral homes commonly keep bodies in refrigerators (mortuary coolers) to slow decomposition, especially if there's a delay before burial or cremation, if there's no viewing, or for "green" burials where embalming isn't used. Refrigeration is a standard, often more environmentally friendly alternative to embalming, slowing decay for several weeks until final disposition.
 

What does a body in a casket look like after 1 month?

After 1 month, the liquefaction process commences. During this stage the body loses the most mass. The muscles, organs and skin are liquefied, with the cadaver's bones, cartilage and hair remaining at the end of this process.

What happens the first 5 minutes after death?

For the first few minutes of the postmortem period, brain cells may survive. The heart can keep beating without its blood supply. A healthy liver continues breaking down alcohol. And if a technician strikes your thigh above the kneecap, your leg likely kicks, just as it did at your last reflex test with a physician.

Why can't you cut hair after a funeral?

Children or grandchildren of the person who died should wait at least 49 days after the funeral to cut their nails or hair. This comes from the idea that the dead parent gave the children their nails and hair, so they should not be cut during the mourning period or after the burial.

Are the eyes removed during embalming?

No, the eyes are not removed during standard embalming; instead, embalmers close the eyelids, often using plastic "eye caps" or glue to maintain a natural, rounded look as the body dehydrates, though they might be removed if the person was an eye donor. If eyes are donated, a substitute is placed in the socket to support the lids, but otherwise, the embalming fluid provides some tissue support.
 

Can a body feel pain during cremation?

Cremation turns the body of someone who has died into ashes. This is only done after a person has died, so they do not see or feel anything.

What is the hardest death to grieve?

The death of a husband or wife is well recognized as an emotionally devastating event, being ranked on life event scales as the most stressful of all possible losses.

Do they take the clothes off a body before cremation?

No, clothes are generally not removed before cremation; the body is usually cremated in what they were wearing or a simple shroud/gown, with families often choosing specific, combustible attire for viewings or services. While some items like jewelry or prosthetics are removed, clothing is typically left on unless it's damaged or unsuitable (like synthetic fabrics that release toxins). 

How do bodies not smell at funerals?

Morticians use a combination of professional chemical neutralizers like Neutrolene or Smelleze, strong aromatic balms (e.g., Vicks Vapor Rub, Tiger Balm) applied under the nose, activated charcoal filters in respirators, and powerful air filtration/ozone systems, along with meticulous cleaning with enzymes and antimicrobial agents, to control decomposition odors in funeral homes and morgues. 

Which body part does not burn in cremation?

During cremation, bones and teeth (specifically enamel) are the body parts that don't fully burn away; all soft tissues vaporize, leaving behind mineralized bone fragments, which are then processed into the fine powder known as "ashes," along with any surviving tooth enamel. Metallic implants, jewelry, and casket parts also survive but are removed separately. 

How long can a body sit at a funeral home?

On average, most funeral homes agree for you to keep a dead body with them between 3 and 7 days. Within this period, there are a lot of activities to be planned if you want to go ahead with the funeral. However, this does not mean there is nothing to be done after seven days of the body with the funeral home.

Is a person fully dressed in a casket?

Generally, the body is dressed in clothing before being placed in a casket or cremation container for the cremation process. Families often include items in the cremation container, such as religious objects and flowers.

Do bodies turn to skeletons in coffins?

If a body is buried in a coffin very deep the ground it could take 50 years for all the tissue to de-compose, and hundreds of years for the bones to fully decay.

Do caskets fill with water?

Yes, caskets often fill with water over time, even with burial vaults, because no seal is permanent; groundwater seeps in, saturating the casket and interior materials, though vaults slow this significantly, protect against soil pressure, and maintain grave stability. While high-quality sealed vaults offer excellent protection for decades, natural elements eventually cause moisture intrusion, leading to discoloration, wood swelling, and material collapse. 

Is it bad to take a picture of someone in a casket?

There are some cultures and religions that prohibit the taking of pictures, especially of a dead body. The best way to know of these restrictions is to ask your host. Some of the guests may feel uncomfortable being photographed as well, especially when emotions are running high and some people may be crying.

Why can't you go home after a funeral?

Some cultural beliefs suggest that going home directly after a funeral might bring bad luck or offend the spirit of the deceased. Therefore, many people choose to gather in a different location as part of their mourning traditions and post-funeral practices.

Has anyone ever woke up before being cremated?

Yes, there are documented cases, primarily in recent news from Thailand and India, where individuals presumed dead and placed in coffins for cremation were discovered to be alive, often due to medical conditions like comas or extreme bradycardia (slow heart rate) mimicking death, leading to premature declarations of death and revival just before the cremation process was to begin. While extremely rare, these incidents highlight the difficulty in determining death and the importance of medical confirmation.