What is reclaimed wood?
The Wood Guide · Calculating with wood
DurabilityRecycled wood
Beams from a demolished farmhouse, boards from a pallet, an old cupboard door. Material with a history — and with a few practical catches.
- Demolition · furniture · pallets
- No new felling
- Watch out for nails and paint
Reclaimed wood at a glance
Also called reused or recovered wood: material that already has one life behind it and, after collection and processing, is put to use again.
The honest argument is simple. Every cubic metre of reclaimed wood is a cubic metre that doesn't have to be felled, and at the same time a cubic metre that isn't burnt or landfilled. The carbon the tree once captured stays stored for longer.
The second argument is aesthetic and at least as convincing: weathered fibres, old nail holes, a greyed surface that no stain can imitate. New wood cannot be old.
It sounds contradictory, but reclaimed wood takes handwork: dismantling, removing nails, sorting, planing, inspecting. That labour is in the price. You don't pay for the raw material, you pay for the sorting.
- Sources
- demolition, old furniture, pallets, packaging timber
- Processing
- dismantling, de-nailing, sorting, planing
- Quality grades
- from visible design work to rough building material
- Environmental gain
- no new felling, longer carbon storage
- Character
- greying and nail holes are part of it
- Watch out
- paint residue, metal, unknown treatment
To be fair: you don't always know what was once on it. Old paint can contain lead, old beams may have been treated with creosote or other preservatives. For a chopping board or children's toys, reclaimed wood of unknown origin is therefore not a good idea.
Where does it come from?
What do you want to do with it?
What do you find when inspecting?
Stamp on the pallet
From demolition to board
- Collecting and sorting — by species, thickness and condition
- De-nailing — handwork — largely determines the price
- Planing or brushing — clean, or keep the weathered surface
- Inspecting and grading — from design work to building stock
Four sources
Old buildings
Beams, floorboards and structural parts released during renovation. Often the finest quality: old, slow-grown wood with a dense grain.
Discarded furniture
Tables, cupboards and loose parts at the end of their first life. Often solid wood in smaller sizes.
Transport pallets
Pallets and packaging timber from logistics and industry. Rough material, plenty of it available, popular for DIY projects.
Demolition projects
What comes free when existing structures are pulled down. Variable quality, always check for metal.
What happens in between
- Collecting and sortingBy species, thickness and condition. Decayed or contaminated material is removed.
- De-nailingNails, screws and fittings out — handwork, and it largely determines the price. One missed nail costs a saw blade.
- Planing or brushingPlaning gives a clean board, brushing keeps the weathered surface. What you choose depends on the effect you want.
- Inspecting and gradingInto quality grades: from fine pieces for visible design work to material that mainly serves as building stock.
What it is suitable for
| Use | Suitable? | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Wall cladding, feature walls | Excellent | Only the look counts, so ideal for reuse |
| Furniture and tabletops | Good | Sufficient thickness and dry material; check for woodworm |
| Garden projects, planters | Good | Only if the original species and treatment can go outdoors |
| Load-bearing structures | With care | Strength is not certified; have it assessed |
| Chopping boards, toys | Not recommended | Unknown paint or treatment is a real risk |
Old wood can contain active woodworm, which then moves with it to the rest of your interior. Fresh, round exit holes with light bore dust underneath mean: still active. Check how to deal with woodworm before you bring it indoors.
Frequently asked questions about reclaimed wood
Is reclaimed wood cheaper?
Not necessarily. The raw material is free or cheap, but dismantling, de-nailing, sorting and planing cost labour. For visible design work the price is often higher than that of new wood.
Can reclaimed wood be used for load-bearing purposes?
Only after assessment. The strength class of reclaimed wood is not certified and its history is unknown. For non-load-bearing uses that is not a problem.
How can I tell whether old wood is still sound?
Knock on it — a hollow sound points to decay. Prod the end with a screwdriver: if it gives softly, there is rot. And look out for fresh exit holes of woodworm.
Can I use pallets for a vegetable planter?
Only treated pallets stamped HT (heat treated). The marking MB stands for methyl bromide, a substance you don't want next to edible crops.
Reclaimed wood in perspective
The most sustainable cubic metre is the one you don't have to fell.
Have a question about your project? Just ask — we're happy to help.
Photos via Wikimedia Commons: Brighton, England — Andy Li, CC0 · Raabs an der Thaya, Austria — Duke of W4, CC BY-SA 4.0