The Pros and Cons of Reclaimed Wood :: What to Know
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The use of reclaimed or salvaged wood isn’t a new concept. But a surge in popularity is in full bloom. This is due in part to the emergence of green building and remodeling practices. Reclaimed lumber is simply wood with a past life, now used for a new purpose.
Reclaimed wood is being salvaged from, well, everywhere and anywhere. Common sources include pallets, storage crates or an old barn. Sometimes this wood is then used un-altered, without any further machining. (Yielding a rustic and old-timey look.)
In more sophisticated applications, reclaimed lumber is milled into products like reclaimed hardwood flooring. This lumber too is even being used to create reclaimed engineered wood floors that look like they were made from virgin products.
Editor’s Note: This article focuses primarily on purchasing reclaimed lumber in that “aftermarket”. It also includes some key things you should know anytime you use reclaimed wood. Enjoy!
Like all materials, reclaimed wood has not only benefits, but it also has some drawbacks.
The Downside of Reclaimed Wood
* Legitimacy
Because of the popularity of reclaimed lumber, some dealers make false claims about the source of their products. To make sure lumber is truly reclaimed, purchase it from a reputable dealer. They provide certifications from organizations such as the Forest Stewardship Council or the Rainforest Alliance.
* Price
Reclaimed wood may be more expensive than virgin wood because of the process it undergoes. A dealer sorts and prepares the wood so it’s safe for consumer use, and often there is a lot of nail pulling and extra work involved over using virgin lumber. If you have experience handling lumber, you can mitigate this cost in some cases by deconstructing wood products yourself.
* Toxins
Companies may treat (or may in the past treated) lumber with chemicals and paint, which can contain volatile organic compounds, adhesives, preservatives, insecticides or lead. If you’re sourcing reclaimed wood on your own, test the lumber for toxins. Also, by learning about the wood’s past life, you may be able to gather information about any treatments it has undergone.
* Pests
Many pests like to make their homes in wood. Before purchasing reclaimed lumber or deconstructing an item to get your own wood, inspect it for signs of an infestation. Signs can include asymmetrical holes in the lumber, the presence of bugs, or wood that crumbles when you touch it. In any case, if you are using reclaimed wood as a building material, it should be kiln-dried to ensure invasive pests are killed.
* Hidden dangers
If you don’t purchase reclaimed wood from a company that sorts and processes it, you may find hidden dangers like nails or other organic matter. Handle the lumber with gloves, and inspect it for items of concern before you start on a project.
Pallet wood has become incredible popular. If you choose to disassemble a pallet and/or attempt salvage from items like engine boxes or other shipping containers do so with care.
The Advantages of Reclaimed Wood
* Multiple uses
You can use this lumber to make reclaimed hardwood flooring, decks, wall paneling, tables, countertops, cabinets, shelves and anything else you can make with timber.
* Environmentally Friendly
When you use reclaimed lumber, you decrease the demand for newly sourced lumber, which helps curb deforestation. If harvested responsibly, reclaimed wood is a renewable resource that reduces landfill waste as well as the use of environmental hazards to manufacture new products. For example, it’s better for the earth to install an engineered reclaimed wood floor than it is to install petroleum-based carpeting or linoleum.
* Quality and Strength
Reclaimed wood is up to 40 points harder on the Janka hardness scale than virgin wood because it often comes from old-growth trees instead of first-generation forests.
* Guilt-free exotics
The use of premium woods is becoming a sustainability no-no for some in the design world – unless it comes from reclaimed lumber.
* Looks
Because it’s aged and weathered, reclaimed wood has a desirably unique look that’s hard to find in new materials.
* Added interest
Reclaimed lumber has a story that adds to the appeal of your finished project. Sources of the reclaimed material can include old barns, ships, crates, decommissioned buildings, schools, homes, railroads, pallets and more.
* LEED points
Using reclaimed wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council can help your construction or remodeling project earn LEED points.
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From an economic and environmental standpoint, reclaimed timber makes sense. By being smart about the wood you reuse or repurpose, you can enjoy the benefits of the reclaimed material without consequence.
Editor’s Note: For more on Understanding Lumber Grading, see this fantastic article from Woodworker, Shannon Rogers.
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— This post was contributed by Viridian Reclaimed Wood. They are a reclaimed wood flooring, paneling and furniture salvaging and materials company locally owned and operated in Portland, Oregon.
All images via Viridian Reclaimed Wood.
For much more from Building Moxie on adventures with salvaged materials, please explore. ~jb
Nice listing of pros and cons. I might add that one may want to look into fumigation, depending on where the reclaimed pieces will be located as we have seen that kiln drying may not completely take care of the issue. We also opt for pressure treating to clean the timber up if it was used in an old barn.
With regard to the hidden dangers, it is safe to caution on nails that will grab saw blades and be very costly too…unless you pay the source to guarantee that.
Reclaimed wood is certainly a great option in some cases and certainly is the only foolproof way to get an aged looking project. Sometimes it is tricky with defects in larger beams.
I love the idea that a reclaimed piece continues to hold that carbon that it took in while growing and thus allows other trees that are still growing to continue to sequester carbon too.