# Sealed casket to bury a loved one? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 28, 2020, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715 "2020-04-28T10:47:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/21 "2020-04-28T20:33:39Z")
xx ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/22 "2020-04-28T22:12:07Z")
I’ve done some pre planning and am going for a direct cremation in what the crematory guy insisted on calling “an alternative container” but let’s be realistic, it’s a cardboard box. I had considered picking up one of the several caskets offered at extremely reasonable prices on [Costco.com](http://Costco.com), but then there’s the whole internment and such and it just started to get complicated. Dust thou art, and to dust returneth; this seemed like the quickest route. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/23 "2020-04-28T22:27:08Z")
Cremation actually seems the best, since then you can keep the remains right there in your home for the memories. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/24 "2020-04-28T22:30:01Z")
> [@Bill\_Door](#): > > Dust thou art, and to dust returneth. That’s why I never dust. It might be someone I knew. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/25 "2020-04-29T04:11:01Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Wood-chipper, then? I’d be okay with that so long as my friends and family didn’t have to see it. > [@DrDeth](#): > > Cremation actually seems the best, since then you can keep the remains right there in your home for the memories. Yeah, there’s a lot to be said for cremation. And you can scatter the ashes almost anywhere, since they aren’t a health hazard. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/26 "2020-04-29T05:20:42Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > That’s why I never dust. It might be someone I knew. There’s someone under my bed either a-comin’ or a-goin’. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/27 "2020-04-29T12:27:38Z")
> [@dennisdreams](#): > > I know nothing preserves a body indefinitely once buried - but anything that slows down the process would help me cope. Have you considered seeking therapy for this instead of indulging the futile need to preserve the dead body? ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/28 "2020-04-29T16:17:04Z")
**Moderator Note** > [@naita](#): > > Have you considered seeking therapy for this instead of indulging the futile need to preserve the dead body? The OP clearly does not believe the effort to be futile. As such, this comes off as a rather insensitive threadshit. Do not do this again. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/29 "2020-04-29T16:20:54Z")
Short of mummification or the budget that goes into Lenin’s corpse, rotting away is inevitable. It’s perfectly natural. Once buried, you never see the body again. Let nature take its course. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/30 "2020-04-29T17:45:19Z")
> [@dennisdreams](#): > > … > > As to why I would seek what I am seeking - it does seem a little odd to be asked this. Why do people put letters in the coffin that no one will read for example? You do what eases your fears or heartache. > > Any further replies welcome. I guess the burial of a letter seems less involved/costly than trying to stave off the inevitable decomposition. It gives you comfort to think of the dead body in the ground in as pristine a state as possible? Or do you think something like the spirit will need the body … When my MIL died, wife and sibs had her embalmed, and went on about what she would wear, and whether she would have shoes on. When they dropped the casket, my sole thought was of how creepy it was to have this plasticized body, all dressed up, 6 feet under. The idea of natural/green burial has far greater appeal to me. But different strokes. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/31 "2020-04-29T17:48:05Z")
> [@Dinsdale](#): > > When they dropped the casket, my sole thought was of how creepy it was… In an earthquake, caskets are giant underground maracas. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/32 "2020-04-29T18:11:59Z")
Re. mummification: I have seen a modern experimental mummy at the museum, so for sure this is theoretically possible and it works, but as long as it is not a commercial service offered by embalmers I do not see how the average person could get it done. If money were literally no object, you could maybe hire the proper experts. Even in Egypt, middle-class and poorer had to settle for cheap mummification and no sarcophagus. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/33 "2020-04-29T18:26:59Z")
ISTR reading how efforts to seal caskets and stave off decomp actually result in a - uh - ickier process than just letting nature take its course. Cremation takes a bunch of energy. For me, I’ll be kicking back at the body farm - unless composting becomes legal around here. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2020, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/34 "2020-04-29T18:30:15Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Yeah, there’s a lot to be said for cremation. And you can scatter the ashes almost anywhere, since they aren’t a health hazard. Not exactly. There are [laws and regulations.](https://www.joincake.com/blog/scattering-ashes-laws-explained/) ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/35 "2020-04-30T04:22:10Z")
Has anyone mentioned cryogenic storage? The goal is actually to bring the dead person back to life in the future, but anyone with a clue realizes this ain’t happening. Your body would be really well preserved until the corporation goes out of business and tosses your body into a landfill, or something goes awry and you canister thaws out and your body undergoes some sort of horrible decomposition. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/36 "2020-04-30T13:03:08Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > Not exactly. There are [laws and regulations.](https://www.joincake.com/blog/scattering-ashes-laws-explained/) I said “almost” Yes, there are rules. But as the article you link reports, most places are okay, as the ashes aren’t a health hazard. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/37 "2020-04-30T14:58:14Z")
> [@Darryl\_Lict](#): > > Has anyone mentioned cryogenic storage? The goal is actually to bring the dead person back to life in the future, but anyone with a clue realizes this ain’t happening. Your body would be really well preserved until the corporation goes out of business and tosses your body into a landfill, or something goes awry and you canister thaws out and your body undergoes some sort of horrible decomposition. If you are interested in this sort of thing, you should listen to this awesome[_This American Life_ - Mistakes were Made.](https://www.thisamericanlife.org/354/mistakes-were-made) ---
**Author:** ![RioRico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f04885/32.png) [@RioRico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RioRico)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/38 "2020-04-30T17:30:12Z")
To “safeguard” human remains, soak the body in epoxy. To immortalize the person, bury in a simple wood box so they remain in the chain of life. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/39 "2020-04-30T19:58:16Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > And you can scatter the ashes almost anywhere, since they aren’t a health hazard. > [@commasense](#): > > Not exactly. There are [laws and regulations.](https://www.joincake.com/blog/scattering-ashes-laws-explained/) > [@puzzlegal](#): > > I said “almost” > > Yes, there are rules. But as the article you link reports, most places are okay, as the ashes aren’t a health hazard. While it is true that you _can_ scatter ashes in most places, saying so without mentioning that to do so _legally_ requires some form of permission nearly _everywhere_ might lead people to think that they can just go out and scatter Gramps’ cremains anywhere anytime. This is decidedly not true. In the case of private land (which accounts for roughly [75% of all land in the U.S.](https://ballotpedia.org/Federal_land_ownership_by_state)) you are supposed to ask permission of the owner before scattering ashes. Most government-owned lands, such as national and state parks, seem to require some form of permission from park staff. In either case, failing to obtain permission is a misdemeanor in most jurisdictions. (I have no idea how onerous getting permission in National Parks is, or whether it is routinely granted or denied.) According to Federal law, scattering at an oceanfront beach (public or private) is specifically not allowed: you have to be at least three miles out, and also file a form with the EPA within 30 days! There may be no health risk to scattering ashes, but it seems to me that the restrictions in place are mostly because of the perceived ickyness. People don’t want to be downwind and get a faceful of ashes, or be swimming through Uncle Ed’s remains. Now, the chances of getting caught or penalized if you discreetly toss some ashes to the wind are probably quite small. But it is wrong to imply that people can _legally_ scatter ashes anywhere they want, just because it doesn’t pose a health hazard. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2020, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715/40 "2020-04-30T20:02:35Z")
Whatever you do, do **NOT** scatter the ashes in Disney haunted mansion. They watch for that, and they take it very seriously. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sealed-casket-to-bury-a-loved-one/852715.md?page=3)