Recycled Building Materials

In an effort to lessen waste, many builders are seeking to reuse materials which would otherwise end up as trash. Many structures, especially in urban areas, can be effectively rehabilitated, saving immense amounts of new construction costs, maintaining important cultural links, as well as avoiding massive amounts of landfill waste. Other structures can be carefully dismantled, saving lumber, bricks and other recyclables for new projects. High quality old-growth timber has been salvaged from old barns, which is then used for new homes. Waste wood can be reused to create a number of board products. Many of these, unfortunately, depend on toxic binders, but efforts to make healthy alternatives continue. Additionally, sawdust and recycled plastic have been used to create long-lasting lumber substitutes. Efforts in these areas have been spearheaded by the Wood Reduction Clearinghouse. Windows, doors and other fixtures can be refurbished and reused, saving valuable architectural heritage and creating unique resources for owner-builders. Others use "junk" in innovative ways.

The advantage of this approach is the obvious environmental benefits as well as the aesthetic possibilities. Disadvantages include the time, labor and cost to build with old treasures because of refurbishment, special detailing necessary, and the time spent to find, dismantle and transport these resources.

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Wood

Wood is an ideal building material: strong, easily worked and beautiful. Its major disadvantage is that its use is unsustainable, with current clear-cutting practices leading to widespread deforestation. Natural builders are seeking alternatives to conventional stick-frame construction, where wood is used indiscriminately, and have begun to use wood in new ways.

Building with exposed timber-frames surrounded by materials such as straw-clay or straw bales can take advantage of the beauty and structure of wood while eliminating its unnecessary use. Innovations in bentwood truss construction in Nova Scotia shows ways to create strong members using smaller diameter trees. Other builders are finding uses for driftwood, and irregularly shaped trees which would otherwise go to waste. Innovative use of scraps and sawdust make the best use of wood for panels, hybrid products, etc. In addition, increased popularity of non-wood construction systems can lead to reduced wood use and ecosystem rehabilitation.

Appropriate timber use is closely tied to sustainable forestry practices. Selective cutting can provide ongoing sources of material while saving delicate ecosystems. Using smaller diameter or unmilled lumber can save large old-growth trees; innovative uses of non-traditional species or young, second growth trees can also be an effective strategy.