Not to downplay the value of antique lumber–buying and selling reclaimed material is what we do, after all–but just because it’s old, doesn’t mean it’s worth its weight in gold. Some reclaimed material is worth the time and effort it takes to prepare it for re-use, while other lumber may not be in the right shape to take on a new life in a new building.

What kind is it, and how old is it?

If you know a few basic facts about the lumber in question, that’s a good place to start when you’re considering whether it’s a good candidate for reclaiming or not. Certain types of lumber simply aren’t available in the newly-harvested market and are now seen almost exclusively in reclaimed material.

American Chestnut, for example, was nearly wiped out in the early part of the 20th century by chestnut blight; antique chestnut lumber is now rare and therefore more valuable.

Even wood varieties that are relatively common can be more valuable when they come from an antique source. Douglas fir, for example, which is a favorite of ours, has always been in plentiful supply in North America. However, the trees harvested generations ago were harvested when much larger and older than the relatively fast-growing timber that’s grown in managed forests today. The Douglas fir you find in an old Craftsman bungalow is going to have much tighter growth rings and other desirable characteristics, than the Douglas fir you might be able to pick up down at your local home supply store. So if you know that your wood is of a variety or quality that’s unavailable today, it’s more likely that your structure is worth something.

How stable is it?

Wood products are sturdy and can stand the test of time. That’s why the reclaimed lumber market exists–because the materials in a building often still have more life in them even after the building itself is no longer needed.

But even the hardiest product is going to experience wear and tear. Is there rot in the wood? Is it so worn that it won’t stand being dismantled, shipped, and then possibly re-milled or cut into a new shape? Many beams, for example, are no longer strong enough to be used for structural support, such as a beam in new construction. They could, perhaps, be used in another way, such as a fireplace mantle, where the function is mainly decorative.

Re-milling the beam and turning it into interior siding or trim is another option. But if you are looking at old wood that’s been exposed to 100 years of rain, wind, and snow, it’s most likely showing its age. Old beams often have checking and splitting–those are cracks in the wood that develop with age. Antique lumber could be buckled, warped, or otherwise just plain too old to stand up to a new use.

You also need to consider what hazards might be lurking in the wood–either on the surface, in the case of old paint, or under the surface, in the case of bugs or hidden nails.

If there is lead paint or asbestos-containing material on the wood, that makes it much more difficult to process and re-use. And no one wants to install antique lumber in their home and then discover that they’ve brought beetles or termites along with them.

There are processes to deal with such hazards–kiln-drying and treating for insects is standard practice when prepping reclaimed lumber for sale, as is removing any old nails if it’s going to be re-sawn–but it adds another layer of time and effort to the process.

How much material is there?

The final thing you need to realize is that much of the lumber might simply be lost to the deconstruction and re-manufacture process. In a study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania, the authors purchased about 6,000 board feet of antique hemlock from a deconstruction project. In the course of evaluating the material, the authors discarded what was too damaged to reuse, then re-processed the rest into fresh-sawn lumber.

“In the end, about 66 percent of the original volume of lumber supplied was lost as waste to produce the final finished products,” the study states. “Purchasing lumber for use in remanufacture requires a savvy buyer to minimize front-end costs,” they concluded.

So keep that in mind when you’re mentally calculating how much you’ll get for that old outbuilding–the amount of material you end up with might be much less than what you started out with, once what’s un-usable is removed.

The bottom line is, your grandpa’s old barn might might be worth something, especially if it’s in relatively good shape, and is some kind of material that’s hard to come by today. But don’t count on the barnwood to fund your child’s college education; stop to think about how much truly useable wood is in the structure, and how much work it might be to process it, before you go taking a crowbar to it.

Natural Home and Garden: All Decked Out

You can read more for yourself here:

Natural Home and Garden: A Healthier Home

Natural Home and Garden: All Decked Out

Many thanks to Natural Home and Garden Magazine for the shout-out!

Nature dries dead standing timbers. Dead standing trees like oak timber and fir timber are less likely to be warped and twisted compared to living timber when harvested. And although forest fires wreak havoc on living forests and habitats, the fires do not affect the structural integrity of dead standing timbers – the bark is burnt, yes, but the wood remains intact. In the case of dead standing oak, caterpillars eat the tree’s foliage without damaging the trunk.

Harvesting dead standing timbers prevents living trees from being logged, sustaining healthy forests and reducing risk of wildfires (dead wood fuels fire). Harvesting dead standing timbers is a win-win situation for forests and the wood industry.

It’s also a winning situation for wood-wise consumers. With bright, sunny skies and warmer temps on the way, consider giving your outdoor living space a facelift using dead standing timbers.

Here are four dead standing timber ideas for outdoor spaces:

No. 1 – Dead standing timber for outdoor fireplaces

For major wow-factor, add dead standing timber to make a cosmetic mantelshelf or décor frame to your existing outdoor fireplace. Take it up a notch by mixing up wood species – dead oak and dead fir – in your outdoor fireplace feature.

No. 2 – Dead standing timber for outdoor canopy structures

Use dead standing timbers to build an outdoor canopy structure over your existing patio or outdoor living space. The outdoor canopy structure can be freestanding or an extension of your home. Using dead oak and dead fir as the canopy frame will create warmth, depth, and permanence to your outdoor living space, not to mention sun protection when topped with canvas. Added bonus: You can entertain for hours on end without worrying about the pop-up plastic canopy blowing over or weakening after only a season of use.

No. 3 – Dead standing timbers for outdoor pergolas

If you want sun protection but a more organic look, use dead standing timbers to build a freestanding slatted pergola. The criss-crossed beamed roof can be left open for an airy feel, providing minimal weather protection, or can act as a trellis for vines or other climbing plants. Either way, a pergola of dead standing timbers will charm up your outdoor living space.

No. 4 – Dead standing timbers for outdoor furniture

An outdoor living space is an extension of your home and nothing says home like furniture. Use dead standing oak timbers and dead standing fir timbers to build a beautifully functional bench, outdoor coffee table, or old-world patio set. Dead standing timber furniture will accentuate your outdoor living space and last a lifetime.

If you’ll be using dead standing wood timbers for structural purposes like a hearth-bench on the fireplace or a freestanding pergola, be sure to have the timbers professionally graded. Ask the folks at AltruWood for more information.

- Nicole Morales

We’ve also been Facebooking and Tweeting for some time now. Every once in a while we like to highlight the things we’ve been talking about on our social media sites. Especially when we think it’s worth further notice. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane for the month of March to see what’s been on our minds.

Buildings for sale at one measly Euro for residents to turn into a self-styled home. There have got to be similar deals in the U.S. right now. Know of any in your neck of the woods?

Creating a wall from reclaimed wood from Apartment Therapy. And we happen to know where you can get some reclaimed wood!

There’s lots of talk of prefab housing these days, but this advice seems to lend itself to homes both prefab and not.

Tiny spaces have also been all over the place lately, but this may be our favorite recently.

A skyscraper made of wood. It’s seems a retro idea, but what’s old is new again given how steel currently rules most cities.

On Facebook, we put forth this question: To glue down solids on concrete or not? This is something we are asked about frequently.

We were featured in Architect Magazine in March. Heading up a section on reclaimed wood, a pretty picture of one of our hand hewn beams.

Taking a step away from wood for a second…Have you ever seen leather floors? It was one of our crazy flooring pics of the day on Facebook.

For music lovers who also appreciate good design comes the ReAcoustic iPhone and iPad dock. Yes, it’s made from wood!

Here’s an option that may ease your worries: lumber salvaged from dead standing oak.

These are trees that have been killed by gypsy moths: the moths defoliate the trees, killing them, but leaving the trunk intact. It’s good, structurally sound wood, just no longer living and growing and producing CO2. You can have lovely oak floors or beams in your home, while knowing that no new trees were sacrificed specifically to produce them.

Never heard of the gypsy moth? If so, count yourself lucky. These little bugs were first brought to the U.S. in the 1860s by an unlucky scientist named Leopold Trouvelot, who was attempting to cross the moths with silkworms to produce a disease-resistant, silk-spinning super-bug. Unfortunately, gypsy moth larvae escaped from Trouvelot’s Massachusetts home, and the result was a ravenous pest infestation that has become one of the most destructive forces to hit North American hardwoods. It affects mainly forests in the northeastern U.S., with some problem areas in the Midwest and south as well.

The good news for wood-lovers is that gypsy moths only go after the leaves. They feed on the foliage, and leave the rest of the tree alone. However, after several years of successive defoliation, many trees die as a result.

It turns out that these trees, while they may be technically dead, still have a lot of life left in them. Through careful salvage logging, the trees can be felled and milled to create beautiful, usable lumber. According to one study, forests in Illinois contained dead-standing oak trees with trunks up to four feet across.

Few logging companies today would be felling live oak trees of that diameter. To get that kind of material, you’d have to reclaim it from old buildings or other structures that were built prior to today’s logging regulations. With dead standing timber, you can get a look that’s similar to that antique lumber, without as much hassle.

When you’re reclaiming wood from buildings, it takes a great deal of time and effort to process a piece of lumber so that it’s fit to be re-used. Dead standing oak provides the look of that old wood, with one key difference: it’s never been used before. That makes it easier to cut and mill to your specifications. No bolts or nails to watch out for, no additional costs from dismantling a building. In fact, some studies have shown that dead standing timber is actually more stable than timber that’s harvested when it’s green–wood that dries naturally, while it’s still standing, has less shrinking, warping, and cracking than wood that’s cut green and dried later.

One thing to know about dead standing oak is that it’s not entirely pristine. Once a tree dies, other critters tend to move in, so lumber milled from dead standing oak may have worm holes or other markings from its previous life in the forest. For most buyers, that’s okay. After it’s cut, the wood is checked and treated carefully to make sure it’s insect-free and nothing but a few small markings are left. If you’re shopping for antique wood anyway, you’re looking for wood that has a tale to tell; those marks are considered a badge of character, marking each and every board as unique. Wood reclaimed from an old gymnasium may bear dents and dings that tell the tale of a million basketball games played out on its surface; beams from an old barn might show the marks of the hand-held saw form the craftsman who originally cut it. Lumber from dead-standing oak will tell the tale of its life in the forest–and the little creatures that called it home before you did.

So if you’re looking for a way to add the beauty and character of antique oak into your home but you don’t want to cut living trees or deal with the effort and expense of wood reclaimed from buildings, consider dead standing oak. It’s a way to take the devastation caused by a nasty non-native pest, and turn it into something beautiful after all. Call AltruWood to find out about getting dead standing oak for your next project.

- Jennifer Rouse

When old wood bridges are in need of a fix, their timbers are replaced with concrete beams. And although the bridge has been made over, the old timbers aren’t discarded – they’re made over too. That’s because the old bridge structures were made from old growth timbers, wood from trees that grew slowly and developed a higher ring count and increased durability. Reclaimed cedar from old bridge timbers has dried naturally throughout the decades, adding more stability compared to kiln-dried wood.

And when old wood bridges go bad, the bridge is decommissioned and deconstructed. Its wood is then salvaged and milled into reclaimed wood for structural and non-structural purposes. The Metro Vancouver Watershed Management Division in Canada did this with a portable milling project in the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve (LSCR) in 2008. Old wood logging bridges, felled trees across logging roads, and stockpiled timbers were milled on site to produce reclaimed wood for other woodland projects in the LSCR, including the restored Bear Island Bridge.

The LSCR pilot milling project is just one example of how reclaimed wood from old bridges and logging roads can be used. Reclaimed cedar from old bridges and logging roads can be graded and converted into reclaimed beams, reclaimed cedar siding, and reclaimed lumber for non-structural uses, such as décor ceiling beams and mantel fixtures.

Reclaimed cedar can be processed to fit any profile. Ask yourself these questions and keep your answers in mind when shopping around for reclaimed cedar:

• Do you prefer reclaimed cedar with a clear appearance or a knotty appearance?
• Do you need the reclaimed cedar to be professionally graded?
• Does the surface of the reclaimed cedar need to be free of nail holes, metal content, and checking?
• Do you prefer a rough sawn, hand hewn, circle sawn, or wire brushed reclaimed cedar surface?

And don’t forget to ask your reclaimed cedar vendor about their buyer’s guide before placing an order. Doing so can prevent unwanted surprises and headaches when you buy reclaimed cedar and any other reclaimed wood product like reclaimed wood beams and hand hewn beams.

- Nicole Morales

Ipe is a challenge to cut, nail, drill, and paint. In a word, Ipe is indestructible. It’s resistant to decay, rot, and bug damage. Ipe doesn’t float in water, it sinks – it’s that dense (in a good way). Because of FSC® Certified Ipe’s strength and resiliency – it carries a Class A fire rating – this tropical wood is highly sought after.

In the last decade, word has spread about Ipe’s indestructibility. Ipe’e Janka hardness rating is a very high 3684, nearly 40% harder than white oak. As for Ipe’s longevity, Ipe decking can last 20 years with proper maintenance.

Naturally, Ipe is popular for home flooring and decking, not to mention railroad tracks, bridge supports, and hardy tool handles in commercial industries. But Ipe supply is not meeting Ipe demand. There’s not enough Ipe to go around. Ipe is hot stuff.

So as long as your holding out for Ipe, AltruWood would like to offer you a list of other fine tropical wood alternatives, similar in appearance and just as durable. And, yes, just as hot.

FSC® Certifed Jatoba or Brazilian Cherry is like Ipe’s kid sister – nearly as strong, just as stubborn (to work with), and a lot more subtle. Jatoba features warm orange brown tones in a similar stripe-like pattern – it’s a lighter shade of Ipe. Jatoba is commonly used for wood flooring and other applications where shock resistance is needed (e.g., tool handles).

FSC® Certified Cumaru or Brazilian Teak sits right along with Ipe on the Janka Hardess scale. Cumaru’s Janka Hardess is 3560, but the two tropicals look nothing alike. Cumaru is more like the chameleon of exotic woods, changing from yellow to red to brown depending on its region. Cumaru also has a distinct wave-like pattern and coarse texture. Cumaru is used for wood flooring and decking.

FSC® Certified Tigerwood is the sassiest of exotic wood species with its bold black stripes threading in and out of rich orange and deep honey hues. In other words, Tigerwood puts the tiger in the tropics. Tigerwood is harder than white oak – it has a Janka Hardness of 1850 whereas white oak has a rating of 1360. While Tigerwood is not as dense as Ipe, it has the same 20-year lifespan for any use. Tigerwood is used for flooring, decking, paneling, and shutters where appearances matter.

- Nicole Morales

Without further ado, projects we hope will inspire your next project:

Last fall, UC Davis opened West Village, currently the largest net-zero development in the U.S. We look forward to seeing more, and larger similar developments in the years to come:
Higher Cred

This home is truly unique, the wood used is gorgeous, and — to tick a third box — it was built with sustainability in mind:
Unique Design Near the Great Barrier Reef

We loved the Douglas fir ceiling in this home. It perfectly demonstrates the natural good looks of one of the Pacific Northwest’s great beauties. If you’re looking for something similar, call us!
Open House

Here, a thoughtful article on recent architectural preservation projects:
Restoration Redux

This is a great re-use of barn siding:
Abandoned Stable Becomes Luxury, Off-Grid Home

It’s not often you see a home with this much exposed wood. Here is a stunning demonstration:
Boathouse and Seasonal Residence

Think of all the ways this traveling structure can be used:
House Arc

It’s never too early to start learning about green building!
Pretty Preschool

A review of retro-fitting and the value historic buildings to the environment:
Why Historic Buildings Matter

And we can’t resist this story about one woman fighting against deforestation so that she and her fellow villagers can cook dinner:
Lady Tarzan

Reclaimed wood often gets tagged as worn-out. Nothing could be further from the truth. Much of today’s reclaimed wood kept structures together for 100 years before being torn out for discard or reuse. Reclaimed wood is not worn if it still performs, which is why wood vendors deconstruct old warehouses and barns in the first place.

FSC® certified wood may not be the best choice for a renovation or new construction project for several reasons. Budget constraints, extensive supply needs, and reusing preferences are three common reasons. So, reusing wood such as reclaimed western red cedar is ideal. However, reclaimed cedar doesn’t have to look old, which is important when new-looking wood is needed to meet aesthetic preferences and design builds.

Reclaimed cedar can be repurposed into new-looking lumber that’s as stable as, well, 100-year-old wood. There are extra steps and time involved to repurpose reclaimed cedar to fit your project needs. These steps may include: Cutting down planks for fitting purposes, re-sanding to remove surface blemishes, and refinishing to polish off the job.

AltruWood recommends the following when shopping for reclaimed western red cedar slated for repurposing and reusing projects:

- Ask for professional grading when reclaimed cedar is slated for structural purposes.
- Ask your vendor for their reclaimed wood buyer’s guide.
- Ask about warping, rot, splitting, and loose knots, characteristics that can affect reclaimed wood’s structural integrity.
- Ask to see the wood or pictures of it, if possible, before purchasing.

It’s worth mentioning that using reclaimed western red cedar keeps our forests healthy. You help sustain our forests be decreasing the demand for new wood, including new FSC® certified wood products.

Check out Altruwood’s blog for more of the wood-stuff, including FSC® Certified & Reclaimed Western Red Cedar and FSC® Certified Wood: Recycled and reclaimed wood products.

- Nicole Morales