What "Reclaimed" Actually Means
Reclaimed wood is timber that has been salvaged from existing structures or products. It might come from a demolished barn, a retired shipping pallet, an old factory floor, or a bridge that's being replaced. The key distinction is that it's wood that would otherwise end up in a landfill or a burn pile.
It's different from "recycled" wood (which is typically chipped and reconstituted) and "sustainably harvested" new timber (which is still freshly cut). Reclaimed wood is the real thing — old timber given a second use.
The Environmental Argument
The numbers are hard to argue with. According to the EPA, construction and demolition debris accounts for roughly 600 million tons of waste in the United States each year. A significant portion of that is usable wood that goes straight to landfill because salvaging it takes more effort than tossing it in a dumpster.
When we salvage timber, we're addressing two problems at once: reducing demolition waste and reducing demand for newly harvested trees. An average dining table uses about 200 board feet of lumber. That's timber that doesn't need to be cut from a living forest.
There's also the carbon angle. Wood stores carbon absorbed during the tree's lifetime. When it's burned or left to decompose in landfill, that carbon is released. Keeping old wood in use extends its role as a carbon store, sometimes for another century.
Quality You Can't Replicate
Beyond the environmental case, reclaimed wood is simply a superior material in several ways:
- Density. Old-growth timber grew slowly in dense forests, producing tight, even grain. Modern plantation-grown lumber grows fast and wide, resulting in softer, less stable wood. A reclaimed Douglas fir beam is noticeably harder and heavier than its modern equivalent.
- Stability. Wood that has been in a structure for fifty to a hundred years has already done all its shrinking and expanding. It's fully seasoned. New lumber, even kiln-dried, can still move and warp as it adjusts to its environment.
- Character. Nail holes, saw marks, weathering patterns, and colour variations from decades of exposure give reclaimed timber a visual depth that no stain or distressing technique can imitate. Every mark has a real origin.
- Species. Many of the species available in reclaimed form — old-growth redwood, American chestnut, heart pine — are no longer commercially harvested. Salvage is the only way to work with these woods today.
Where We Source Our Timber
Our primary sources are in Oregon, Washington, and northern California. Each type of structure yields different material:
- Agricultural barns: Douglas fir and cedar in large dimensions. Often beautifully weathered on the exterior with clean, tight grain inside.
- Industrial warehouses: Heavy oak and fir timbers, often in very large cross-sections. Great for table slabs and structural elements.
- Residential demolition: Mixed softwoods, typically in smaller dimensions. Good for shelving, panelling, and detail work.
- Marine structures: Old docks and piers yield salt-weathered timber with distinctive silver-grey patina. Limited supply but striking material.
We never buy reclaimed timber without seeing the source first. Knowing where the wood came from lets us check for contaminants like lead paint or chemical treatment, and it gives each finished piece a documented provenance.
The Tradeoffs
Reclaimed wood isn't perfect for every application. It requires more labour to prepare — de-nailing, checking for metal fragments, milling out damaged sections. Material yield is lower than new lumber because not every board is usable. And pricing is higher, reflecting the additional handling and the scarcity of quality salvaged material.
But for furniture that's meant to be kept, used daily, and eventually passed along, the tradeoffs are worth it. You get a piece with genuine history, built from material that isn't available any other way, and you keep old wood out of the waste stream in the process.