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SALVAGE, RECYCLING, RE-USE

There are many ways to keep building materials out of the landfill.  In demolition, especially of older structures where the quality of the wood which was used is probably superior to anything readily available today, it is worth extra time to salvage materials for re-use, either for the same project or a later one.

In this example, ceiling beadboard from a porch which was removed to make way for an addition, has caught the attention of the homeowners, who are removing nails from it.  "You can use your sledgehammer, but use it gently" were my instructions to the demolition carpenter.  It took only a few extra minutes to provide usable lengths of good quality fir from the 1920's, which the homeowners stripped, refinished, and made into wainscotting in their new library.  In addition, all the decorative trim and columns were saved.   Greenbuilders stockpiles such materials for later projects if the homeowner has no use for them.

We separate and save other demolition products.  At the start of demolition, we set up containers for different materials.  This does not have to be complex.  In the example to the right, an old roof was demolished.  It was easy to pull off the copper flashing, which can be sold for recycling, and toss it in one of the barrels, as shown. The second barrel contains wood scraps for burning.   Our procedure for removing framing lumber is to demo it using standard procedures but then to cut away the parts of the lumber which contain nails, often just the ends.  What is left is usable clean lumber of good if nonstandard lengths, and scraps containing nails, which can be burnt.   One of our company personnel uses a woodstove as the primary source of heat, the wood scraps make good kindling.

Baltimore has a facility, the Loading Dock, which will accept many building materials, including odd sizes of lumber and many used items such as windows and kitchen and bathroom fixtures.  For example, in a recent project we removed a bay window, spending a little extra effort to make sure it came out in one piece with the glass intact, producing an item which could be donated for a tax deduction. Our homeowners are generally happy to pay the hauling fee in exchange for the tax deduction, and for the satisfaction of knowing that a low income family can re-use the item.  Other cities presumably have similar organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity. We save materials left at the end of a job, and either give them away, or carry them to the new jobsite.

So, is this practical?  It is important to choose actions which fit your needs and the project.  The point is to look at the beginning of the project and see what would ordinarily be thrown away which you can reuse without much extra time or effort.  We found that the effort was worth it not only in terms of principle, but in terms of what was practical and cost-effective.  It is hard to describe the satisfaction for all concerned in completing a project which sent almost nothing to the landfill.