Mention reclaimed materials and the image pops: salvaged wood beautifully repurposed as paneling or flooring. While reclaimed wood is indeed one of the most popular reused materials, the range of materials sought and available extends far beyond that.

“Reclaimed wood is a classic, and it’s an idea most people are familiar with,” said PlanetReuse operations manager Tim Bensman. “But we’re seeing a growing market for steel, doors, access flooring, granite and marble. Steel, especially, offers huge potential for reuse, and along with that a huge potential for cost savings as well as a greater ability to achieve additional LEED material reuse credits.” The LEED MR system awards credit for reuse of a variety of reclaimed materials. PlanetReuse works with the design team early enough in the process to allow a huge list of options for consideration. Continue Reading →

Fear not. If you didn’t get a chance to catch our first Eco Reno Demo Day on July 18th, 2009 you can still get an earful of the action!

Rebecca Rooney from local radio station CJSR’s Terra Informa program stopped in to capture some sound bytes and interview some of the folks who were there. Tune in to this pod cast to hear from Raising Spaces founder Andrea Jones, as well as Deborah Merriam of ecoDomestica reDesign, Clint Moar of Tailored Woodworking, and James McLeod of Panel Source International.

Eco Reno Demo Day – July Interviews (mp3)

And, mark your calendars for these upcoming events:

• Raising Spaces booth at the Capital X Green Zone Saturday July 25th
• Eco Reno Demo Day – August 22, 2009
• Eco Reno Demo Day – September 12, 2009

Since my last post, Chris and I enjoyed a fabulous fall break to Europe. Don’t get all jealous on me now, I’ll have you know that the weather was way nicer in Edmonton than anywhere we were. And, on the one really nice day we had in Rome, we couldn’t even wear shorts because we went to the Vatican! No bare limbs allowed. For real.

Plus, it was England’s wettest summer in 90 years! Anyway, we had a great time, visited with family, and saw some amazing historical architecture. Back to the house.

Here’s a video of us installing, sanding, and staining our reclaimed kitchen flooring. I think you’ll like it. I had way too much fun playing with a couple new video editing features.

We still have yet to put the final finishing coats on – 3 coats so far. If we had used harder wood, I might have considered wax. In any case, the products we used were: Continue Reading →

The old house at 9805 – 84th Avenue was built in 1910, so the property title says. Those were different and amazing times – I’m guessing that most houses had no indoor plumbing, and all heating was done by burning wood or coal in stoves.

As I deconstruct this house to make way for the Mill Creek NetZero Home (MCNZH), I’ve been encountering a lot of history. For example, when it was originally built, every square inch of the house was covered in 15-foot long, 3.25-inch wide planks of old-growth Douglas-fir. Continue Reading →

I’ve seen too many homes torn down before proper deconstruction has taken place. With a bit of effort, there are many treasures to be removed from an old house before the wrecking ball arrives.

Harwood flooring is a beautiful thing. The old pink house that will make way for the Mill Creek NetZero Home (MCNZH) contained about 400 square feet of maple hardwood before I salvaged it. Here’s how to do it.

Is It Salvageable?

Thickness

The primary consideration when deciding whether to save hardwood is its thickness. I’m talking about how long it measures if you start measuring on the sub-floor and measure towards the ceiling. Some hardwood started out thin (3/8″) and has been sanded once or twice. It’s probably too thin to reclaim, because you need to sand reclaimed hardwood once it’s been re-installed. If the tops of the nails/staples are showing, it’s definitely too thin reclaim. The maple in the MCNZH is 3/4″ thick – the thickness that it was when it was installed, so we’re good to go. Continue Reading →