You may be familiar with the traditional funeral service where you have a casket present while the ceremony is being conducted. However, many people nowadays are opting to choose cremation because of its many benefits especially if you are considering the costs. In this post, Riverdale-on-Hudson Funeral Home, a Bronx funeral home will provide you useful information about the many benefits of direct cremation services. 

Riverdale-on-Hudson Funeral Home, Inc is one of the best funeral and cremation providers in Bronx, NY and surrounding areas. Locally-owned and operated since 1966, we take great pride in serving the families in the community with dignity and compassion. Our objective is to go above and beyond in providing burial, memorial, and cremation services in The Bronx and NYC, as well as to create an atmosphere of serenity at a time when it is most needed. Call us today at (718) 884-6100.

What is cremation?

Cremation is the process of burning a body at high temperatures so that all organic matter can be reduced to ashes. Cremation is an ancient ritual in which families and loved ones gather together for mournings. It has been practiced around the world since antiquity as it provides many benefits such as minimizing the impact on natural resources while preserving cultural practices or respecting religious beliefs about death associated with cremations.

How long does it take to cremate a body?

A cremation usually takes about three to four hours, with another one to two hours for processing. Once a body is cremated, it typically takes seven or ten days before the ashes are returned back home.

What is the difference between cremation and direct cremation?

The main difference is direct cremation is less expensive. With traditional cremation, you can still have a funeral service and usually takes days before the actual cremation itself. However, for direct cremation, the body is taken directly from the hospital or morgue to the crematorium. It is also cheaper for direct cremation since there are no other potential costs.

The biggest benefits of choosing a direct cremation service

1. Simple and easy to plan

Planning a cremation that includes a funeral, memorial service, or celebration of life ceremony can be complicated. There will be many different decisions that you’ll have to make. But planning a direct cremation literally couldn’t be any easier. You’ll have the chance to focus on mourning your loved one’s loss as opposed to trying to throw together funeral plans for them when you go with a direct cremation.

Pros: Saves you time to do other things other than planning for a funeral or memorial service. It also relieves you of the stress that comes along with planning the funeral.

Cons: Many families may prefer a conventional funeral service as a simplified direct cremation may not be therapeutic enough for remaining family members.

2. Time efficient

If you’re in a huge hurry to cremate a loved one, you really can’t go wrong with direct cremation services. Since there isn’t a whole lot of planning that will need to be done, you’ll be able to stage a direct cremation almost immediately. While there are some legal guidelines that might delay your loved one’s cremation slightly, you aren’t going to have to worry about your loved one’s services taking too long at all. You’ll be able to get them underway in the blink of an eye so that you can get them over and done with.

Pros: Since the cremation process takes place within 2 - 3 days after death, it requires less time commitment for visiting relatives and friends.

Cons: Some relatives or friends may not be able to witness the cremation since it takes place almost immediately.

3. Cost-effective

Cremation services in general usually cost a whole lot less than burial services. But direct cremation services are going to help you get your costs as low as you can possibly get them. In some instances, you might even be able to cremate a loved one for under $1,000 when you go with a direct cremation. The final cost is ultimately going to depend on which funeral home that you decide to use, but you’ll sleep better at night knowing that you’re not going to break the bank on your loved one’s cremation services.

Pros: If you prefer not to bury the cremated remains, you can receive additional financial benefits from the cemetery and headstone dealer, substantially reducing the cost of the typical funeral.

Cons: Because direct cremation services are less profitable for the funeral home, personnel may attempt harder to offer you extras.

4. Major flexibility

Let’s say that you hold a direct cremation for a loved one and then later decide that you would like to plan a memorial service for them after all. Guess what? You’ll be more than welcome to do it. Following a direct cremation, your family will be given your loved one’s remains. From there, you can stage whatever kind of funeral service you want. A lot of families have come to appreciate the freedom that direct cremation gives them in this regard.

Pros: Direct cremation can be very flexible to the different services you want and you are not tied down to do the standard practice. In fact, you can even do a life celebration.

Cons: Thinking about the many service options that may be available to you can be a bit stressful, unlike a funeral package where everything is laid out.

 5. More environmentally friendly

Direct cremation is friendlier to the environment because it eliminates a lot of wasted resources that would have been required for traditional burial.

Direct cremations are better than more conventional methods in terms of environmental impact, as they do not require setting up an elaborate casket made out of materials like metal or wood which takes time and energy to create and then bury underground after use. Direct cremation also reduces waste by eliminating plastic liners on biodegradable coffins which needlessly take away from our limited natural resource supply until finally being filled with chemicals such as formaldehyde before disposal into landfills where toxic fumes can cause respiratory problems among those living nearby.

Pros: People who are concerned for the environment when they were still alive can still contribute even when they had passed away.

Cons: The only time cremation can matter to the environment is when the majority of people in the world chooses this type of service.

6. Portability

When you bury a casket on the earth, it holds your body in place and cannot be moved without significant cost. If you're cremated into ashes though, they can easily be transported around after death for any family who may move home frequently or may want to keep their loved one close by.

Pros: You are not limited to cemeteries or columbarium for the final disposition, there are literally a lot of options available to you.

Cons: For the most part you will need to get an urn to initially place the ashes.

Are you intrigued by direct cremation services and interested in learning more about them? Riverdale-on-Hudson Funeral Home, Inc. can break them down for you when you visit our funeral home in Bronx, NY or give us a call now at (718) 884-6100 to set up an appointment with a funeral director.