Building With Recycled Materials
Friday, October 14, 2011
Recycled building materials are getting easier to find
According to the Building Materials Reuse Association, recycling is becoming more common in the construction industry. That means reclaimed building elements like doors, windows, plumbing fixtures, and wood flooring are increasingly easy to find.
Habitat for Humanity’s nationwide chain of ReStores sells recycled items, and many cities have architectural salvage yards. Online, neighbors advertise unwanted items on community bulletin boards, such as Craigslist, and national directories of recycled materials, such as EcoBusinessLinks, can be great sources for hard-to-find elements. And the price is right: reused pieces can be 50% to 75% cheaper than their new counterparts.
Nonetheless, the time-consuming legwork of finding good pieces takes persistance. But to make the process easier, spend time thinking about and researching online what you want before you begin to shop.
Searching for salvaged materials. Sounds terrific, right? But it’s not that simple. Using recycled building elements is like shopping at a thrift store: You can’t be certain you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for. Anyone interested in a good deal to spruce up their home—an ornate wood mantelpiece or a set of Victorian doors, for example—has to be willing to compromise on some of the details and commit some time to the endeavor.
If you live in or near a city and have access to a salvage yard, you’re in luck. If not, you need to go to the ‘world-wide-web’. If you’ve got something particular in mind, plan on spending a few afternoons at the salvage yard trying to track down what you’re looking for. The same is true if you’re exploring online: locating the right piece may take longer than you’d expect.
Before beginning your search, make sure you’ve got measurements in hand. It’s useful if you can allow for some wiggle room: unlike Home Depot or Lowes, the items on sale are usually one-of-a-kind pieces. So while a recent truckload might have dropped off a beautiful old mantelpiece, the size might not be an exact fit, so know in advance if you can manage with a slightly larger or smaller size.
Dealing with lead paint. Some old items need to be treated with serious care. Anything painted prior to 1978, when the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) banned lead in paints, in all likelihood, has lead-based paint on it. Older paint doesn’t mean the pieces are unusable, but the paint must be thoroughly removed or sealed—never scraped or sanded. The CPSC offers guidelines for treating lead paint in the household.
Finding savings. Some salvaged pieces are better deals than others. The greatest potential for savings is often flooring. Careful shoppers can find used floor boards from quality old wood that’s difficult to come by these days. Maple, white oak, and rare heart pine flooring can oftentimes be found which results in great savings over the cost of new flooring. Other useful finds are doors, particularly those already on a frame, and plumbing elements. Antique light fixtures can be a great bargain, but check whether they’ve been recently rewired before you buy; otherwise, you may have to do it yourself, or pay an electrician for the service. Windows are common, but many older widows are single-pane and not energy efficient. These are better used for interior walls to add light and air flow between rooms.
Finally, don’t forget to add in transportation costs. Not all salvage yards deliver, and those that do aren’t necessarily cheap. The cost of getting materials across town could be $100 or more. So it might make more sense to borrow or rent a truck on your own.
- Scott Askew
Posted in: Intown Atlanta Real Estate News