We sure did find this to be true as we deconstructed, cleaned, and later recycled and demolished the two buildings on our new site.
I was pleased to say we were able to salvage many things from the buildings including doors, floor vents, cabinets, sinks, hardware, light fixtures, mirrors, even the exterior siding!
A good resource we used for the deconstruction was Olympia Salvage. Olympia Salvage was able to remove all the original 1 1/2″ cedar siding and reuse it for another green build project they were supporting. They are a non-profit organization and will provide you with an itemized donation receipt that in most cases is tax deductible (check with your accountant!). In fact, after we demolished the remaining buildings, we recycled all the wood and concrete material instead of sending it to the landfill.
For salvage, a local contact is Second Use Building Material who came and removed over two truck loads of treasures…They have a large retail store down in South Park with all sorts of doors, hardware, lighting and plumbing – many of which are beautiful vintage styles…And although, not used on our project, we often like to peruse another local re-use and salvage gem called Earthwise located just down the street from us on Fourth Avenue South. Earthwise is also stocked with loads of reclaimed materials including really wonderful vintage tiles we’ve used on past projects.
I would recommend that anyone on a budget or just up for the challenge of being green and savy to check out these places when starting a new residential project or remodeling an older home.
It was fun, even a few local Georgetown artists came to reclaim some of the old paint found in the depths of the carport for future works. I actually rummaged through the many bottles and came across several “treasures”…one being, these old chemistry dishes….I plan to use them for posey vases as we approach spring.
Salvaged Vases
