As I build my small house in the woods I like to use as many reclaimed materials as possible, including lumber. As it happens, my brother came across enough lumber to fill two trailers that would have been otherwise discarded, taken to the landfill, or burned. I often remind him that I’m looking to build my house with less money as possible, and also without having a mortgage.
Using reclaimed lumber and other materials is the best way to make that happen. I used lumber for my foundation that was taken from an old house being torn down. I was able to get lumber that was 3×6 and 7. The lumber for the foundation was hand hewed which meant the sizes were not exact for each piece. I had to chisel the ends to size in order keep them level. The lumber my brother got also had been nailed together with 2×4’s underneath, all of which I had to take apart by hand with a hammer and pry bar.
Using reclaimed lumber does save a lot of money, but the tradeoff is having to use your time and energy to remove the nails, seperate the different lengths, treat the lumber, stack it and protect it from the elements.
Visit my website: A Path To green to see the video.
