Choosing Casket for the Funeral
Planning a traditional funeral can be overwhelming especially when you just lost a loved one. There are plenty of things to consider but today’s focus will be about arguably one of the most integral items; the casket.
When looking for a casket, there are many choices to go over so let’s start by breaking it down to the two most commonly seen kinds of caskets, wood and metal. There are other choices out there but these two are certainly the most popular ones. Each can range from just under $1000 to several thousand. This value varies because of things like the manufacturer, the material used for manufacturing the casket, or even any additional features a casket may have such as gaskets or a locking system in which both metal and wood can come equipped.
We at Casket Mart are proud to have all of our regular caskets lockable in hopes to ease mind on decision making.
Other key points to be aware of when it comes time to figure out what casket suits the occasion best would be that metal caskets are usually more durable than the wood caskets are and can come in a wider array of colours though there’s something to be said about the awe-inspiring craftsmanship and richness in colour tone that goes into the wood casket as well.
When it comes to wooden caskets, those made of pine, poplar, cherry, or walnut tend to be quite popular.
On the other hand, metal caskets can be anything from steel, stainless steel, or even copper and all can look quite appealing. An extra note for metal caskets that needs mentioning would be the thickness. A metal casket’s thickness is measured by gauges and the lower the gauge, the thicker the metal. For example, our Denali 100 is 18ga while the Denali 200 is 20ga, so here the first is thicker and this is partly due to size, as the Denali 100 is classified as an overize casket; meaning it’s larger than the standard casket sizes. Incidentally, if your loved one was larger than average you may need to consider buying an oversized casket instead.
When it comes to the lid there is a choice to be made as well. There are a couple of main styles, that being the split lid, often referred to as a half couch, and a single piece lid, often called a full couch. Half couch is typically what gets used during viewings, so that might be something you’d need to keep in mind.
Now that we’ve covered the types and the overall exterior, what about the interior?
There are a plethora of choices to be made here as well but this time around, both metal and wood typically both come with much the same options; those being velvet, satin, crepe, velour, and linen, among others.
There’s only a few things left to look into, so let’s look over a pair of features briefly mentioned above as they could absolutely be seen as important. As said before, caskets can come with a lock. If it does, it comes with a special key that can be used to seal the casket tight. The other feature is the gasket. This is a rubber seal between the lid and the rim of the casket as well as a seal between the 2 lids on a half couch casket.
Take your time and make the right choice.
Buying a casket online is one of the most empowering choices you can have access to. No sales pressure combined with the comfort of your home you can give you the time you need to select the right casket for your loved one or for yourself if you’re planning ahead. As well, online stores tend to have larger selections for a price you usually can’t find at the funeral homes. Our store is up to 75% more affordable compared to some funeral homes, helping to relieve you of some of the financial stress you might have.
We ship free to most of Ontario within 2 days after the order has cleared. If there is an emergency please contact us and we will work with you to make sure the casket arrives on time. We can ship to your funeral home or household as well, whichever you prefer.
I hope this article helped you learn more about caskets and what you can look for when shopping for them.