Free Reclaming Wood

[kingchristo]

Hello everyone i like free things as much as everyone else and like the idea that things can be made out of old rubish. Im thinking of trying to get hold of some old furniture and using the wood from it. Just not sure where people would be throwing old wood away. Got an idea of standing outside of the tip asking people for wood that they are throwing away has anyone got any ideas on this or done something similar. (hammer)

 

[theartfulbodger]

I get my wood from the wood recyling place

I'm sometimes half tempted to get furniture from freecycle and "recycle" it :wink:

 

[kingchristo]

yes ive thought about doing that. The main thing to look out for is the new chipboard rubish that alot of stuff is made out of now. What is the wood recyling place called and what kind of prices do they charge thanks

 

[theartfulbodger]

Here's a list of ones around the country
http://www.communitywoodrecycling.org.uk/buy.htm#Top

Here's the localish ones to me
http://www.woodchuck.org.uk/
http://www.oxfordwoodrecycling.org.uk/?Home
http://chilternwoodrecycling.co.uk/default.aspx

They aim their prices at 1/2 or 1/3 of the going rate from the commercial places

Can't find my pricelist but there's some sample prices here
http://www.oxfordwoodrecycling.org.uk/?THE_WOOD_SHOP

6X2, 7X2, 8X2, ALL just £2.05 per linear metre.

Roofing batten - just £0.35 per metre!

4X2 £1.15 per metre

Old but good scaffold boards (3.9-m long) £13.00 each

 

[Jacob]

Auctions often good for recyclable furniture e.g. I got three massive hardwood Victorian/Edwardian wardrobes for £5. End of auction they may even give stuff away.
Otherwise skip diving, freecycle, small ad in local shops etc etc.
It's also one of the best possible exercises in furniture design and construction as you pull stuff apart and see what works well, what fails, how things were done.
There's a lot of waste with recycling - bits are already small, have nails etc, so a woodburner is essential and you get free heat as a bonus.

 

[paultnl]

Another recycler http://www.cambridgewoodworks.org.uk/

 

[kingchristo]

never thought about going to an auction that is a good idea yes i like to see how things have been made and if i could use these ways myself. There is a few wood reclaming sites i may look into starting to reclame wood myself.

 

[paultnl]

Recycled tabletop

 

[kingchristo]

Cool i like it you can do some good stuff with the old wood. Im really thinking about getting into collecting wood to make my projects just got to find a way to let people know that i would collect there wood for free.

 

[AndyT]

Auctions often good for recyclable furniture e.g. I got three massive hardwood Victorian/Edwardian wardrobes for £5. End of auction they may even give stuff away.
Otherwise skip diving, freecycle, small ad in local shops etc etc.
It's also one of the best possible exercises in furniture design and construction as you pull stuff apart and see what works well, what fails, how things were done.
There's a lot of waste with recycling - bits are already small, have nails etc, so a woodburner is essential and you get free heat as a bonus.

+1 - and Victorian furniture can yield the sort of wood you cannot go out and buy from a timber yard. I made a (not bad) jewellery box from pine drawer sides - 1/4" thick and ten inches wide, clean, clear wood. Worlds away from anything available now.

 

[doorframe]

The main thing to look out for is the new chipboard rubish that alot of stuff is made out of now.

Recycled tabletop

I've been saving a table with the plan to recycle it into a drum table like this one by Gasman....

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/victorian-drum-table-t48027.html

Halfway through the 1st cut I stopped and threw the whole top in the bin. Damn thing was vaneered MDF!!

I knew it wasn't chipboard, but was convinced it was good wood :roll:

At least the rest was real. Some sapele at least.

Roy

 

[jack55]

Hi I managed to get enough second hand boards from a local reclamation center to build these.

A friend was getting rid of a large section of decking railing which when planned up made doors for a wall cabinet the rest of it is old shelving.

The rest of the rails have made the frame for a rolling stand for my sanding machine. which i have just applied a coat of paint on tonight.

If you get some old wood off friends and use it let them see the results and word spreads not to chuck away the stuff with out giving you first chance.

 

[Digit]

At auctions take a look at the high number lots.
You may well be surprised how often the stuff is given away rather than remove it. Often people spend more on the article of their choice than they intended and leave early. DAMHIK!
My local tip has a notice saying 'Help yourself!' in front of all sorts of timber.
In 21 years I have purchased only one piece of hardwood. (Who said tight?)
The pile also keeps my wood burner running!

Roy.

 

[MickCheese]

At auctions take a look at the high number lots.
You may well be surprised how often the stuff is given away rather than remove it. Often people spend more on the article of their choice than they intended and leave early. DAMHIK!
My local tip has a notice saying 'Help yourself!' in front of all sorts of timber.
In 21 years I have purchased only one piece of hardwood. (Who said tight?)
The pile also keeps my wood burner running!

Roy.

If I so much as looked at a piece of wood at our tip they would call the police and have me shot.

It's run by the Gestapo! :twisted:

Mick

 

[mbartlett99]

Same in Herts, I think the boys there make a healthy living off flogging the good stuff. Staff might as well be wearing jackboots.

 

[Digit]

Ours was like that, (this will be political!) but the council sold the license to a private group and basically anything that they can't make money on, help yourself!
Furniture, doors and windows, beds, cupboards, trade off cuts, felled timber, the lot!

Roy.

 

[fluffflinger]

The privately run "re-cycling" centres around here have AMPR cameras (I kid you not) and according to the staff I am now limited to 8 visits in 3 months. As for leaving with something that you didn't enter with, not on your life!!! Belive me I even got shouted at for asking a guy if I could have the hose of the vacuum cleaner he was about to dump, he was fine but the guy sharing a brain cell with his broom was having none of it.

I honestly prefered when it was council run, at least over time you could build a "relationship" with the guys and stuff got properly re-cycled.

There were rumours that we were getting a timber re-cycling depot in Northampton but it seems to have died a death.

 

[Digit]

It's truly amazing the amount of timber that is dumped locally.

Roy.

 

[Mark A]

Our local tips are exactly the same, but I have 3 little tips which might help...

1 - bribe them

2 - someone distract them while the other plunders the skips

3 - wait for the rugby to be on the tv and while the jobsworths are huddled in their portacabin grab the swag


works every time :wink:

 

[paultnl]

3 - wait for the rugby to be on the tv and while the jobsworths are huddled in their portacabin grab the swag

Can't do that, the only thing that will get me out of the shop is rugby. My son has just been selected for England under 18 trials RESULT!