Best Places to Find Reclaimed Wood
Reclaimed wood can be absolutely gorgeous, and it is also environmentally friendly. Tables, chairs, shelving, and more can be created out of reclaimed wood, and there are quite a few places where you can find it.
Where?
Here…
Small Stores
You can ask an array of small stores, including garden and equipment stores, for their pallets. Many smaller businesses don’t have any kind of contract in place that picks up their pallets. The pallets can be used for a wide array of items. You may be able to work with the pallets as they are, or you can break them apart to use the wood and repurpose them for tables, shelving, or anything else.
Lumber Yards
Some lumber yards are in the business of collecting reclaimed wood, cleaning it up, and selling it again. This gives you the opportunity to find the kinds of wood that you are looking for – whether it is alluring, or local. Each type of wood will have different characteristics. Some are going to be stronger than others, and some can have a beautiful rich red or brown coloring to the wood, which means you may not even need to stain the final piece.
Remodeling Contractors
Contractors may be pulling old wood out from their current projects. It’s possible they would rather give you the antique materials than spending the money on disposal costs. If you are in a neighborhood where there are many old houses, this may be the best opportunity to collect the wood that you are in search of.
Be sure you let the contractors know exactly what kind of wood are looking for. Try to avoid sorting through all of the debris, such as drywall and insulation. Let them know that you are willing to take the wood if nails are already in it.
Excavation Company
Farmers and developers will often call an excavation company. Tell them about your recycled wood projects, and they may call you before they start any kind of demolition project. It will give you the opportunity to look at the quality of wood from the barn or other building before they get started. It’s a win-win for the excavation contractors, too, because you may be able to take the wood off their hands so that there is less for them to dispose of.
Reclaimed Wood Builders
If you are not a DIY kind of person, you can also locate builders that specialize in using reclaimed wood. This allows you to identify exactly what you want and have it built with the recycled wood so that you can be eco-friendly without having to do your own build project. You may have the opportunity to find tables, chairs, and more all from a variety of different types of wood.