Wooden Flooring Info

Reclaimed wooden floors, as well as other products from reclaimed lumber have increased in popularity in recent years, with demand for plenty of reclaimed wood species throughout the United States. Harvested from various structures that are no longer useful, such as factories or barns, or even from the bottoms of rivers, reclaimed wood is well adapted to its surroundings. Like all building materials, wood suffers from general usage and the passage of time. However, when using reclaimed wooden flooring, suddenly the effects of age are a pro instead of a con!

Reclaimed lumber is popular for lots of reasons. These reasons include uniqueness and appearance in general, as well as the strength and stability that comes with any wooden flooring. Often there’s even a story associated with the wood, and for the wood to have survived long enough to become reclaimed, it must be of the highest quality.

When renovating an older home, reclaimed wooden flooring offers a unique chance to match existing materials, making repairs transparent, especially when antique wooden flooring is a requirement in your project. Reclaimed wood is even useful in new structures, either commercial or residential, as it creates a sense of stability and permanence, opening up new design possibilities such as hand crafted items.

As customers look for ways to differentiate their home, the uniqueness factor of antique wooden flooring seems to be one of the biggest selling points.

Reclaimed wooden flooring is also exceptionally environmentally friendly. With the advent of the LEED rating system for environmentally friendly flooring and new construction, reclaimed wood is suddenly very much in demand. Using reclaimed lumber will boost your LEED ratings, not to metion ultimately providing for ongoing energy-saving tax credits for a one time cost.

Reclaimed wood from old buildings is generally better quality than any new materials. Slow-growing, first-growth timber is far denser and more stable than the newer, faster growing second-growth or plantation grown timber, and these superior materials are generally found in older buildings. Although reclaimed lumber is not actually specified as a component in framing, no one can deny its use as a sustainable wooden paneling.

Reclaimed wood is also great for the environment. Not only do no new trees have to be killed to produce it, but by using reclaimed wood in your wooden flooring, you’re also helping avoid energy expenditure that would be required at a landfill should this great building material have ended up there.

As with many things, especially things of real value and beauty, reclaimed lumber does come with a price. While it does support a sustainable building approach to life by re-using materials that would’ve otherwise gone to waste, the costs to retrieve and prepare the reclaimed lumber for use are not always cheap to the suppliers, which trickles down to the cost of your wooden flooring. When harvested from old homes or other buildings, the buildings must be de-constructred carefully to preserve the integrity of the reclaimed wood and protect it from careless handling. Once these old structures are taken down, the reclaimed wood begins to be transformed, eventually ending up in your home as reclaimed wooden flooring. This transformation involves multiple steps.

Rocks, nails, and other embedded materials such as textile travelers must be carefully removed in the initials steps taken in order to prevent damaged saws and manufacturing equipment that are used to bring this vintage reclaimed wood back to life. This tedious process addresses some of the character marks that many appreciate in wooden flooring as they represent a certain sense of timelessness that can only be had with hardwood. And although these worm-scars, dents, dings, and nail-holes are accepted, and sometimes sought after when purchasing reclaimed lumber for wooden flooring, they are graded according to the requirements of the customer, and there may be a restriction on just how much character the reclaimed wood should have. Often there is a higher focus on species and grain quality, which requires meticulous handling and years of experience to obtain the highest yield. It’s not uncommon for over 50% of reclaimed wood to go to waste in the production of high quality, useable reclaimed wood products. Though this may seem like a lot, the number will go down as technology increases, and 50% of something is still a lot more than nothing.

We’re constantly surround by wood. Not only is it all throughout our forests and parks, but it holds our books, our computers, and even our butts in our sofas and chairs. However, our world economy is based on mass production and high speed delivery, which ultimately dictates the price of all things. Reclaimed wooden flooring and other products made from recycled antique wood are really no different than organically grown food and other sustainable lifestyle items. They are somewhat more pricy than their cheaper, mass produced cousins. However, in the case of reclaimed wooden flooring, you’re gaining not only a gratifying wooden floor, but one made of a more enduring material. Reclaimed wooden flooring is certainly not for everyone. But if you intend to make an environmentally friendly home, it would be worth your while to see what’s out there.