Choose An Eco-Friendly Reclaimed Wood Coffee Table
A reclaimed wood coffee table makes a terrific accent to any room, and also makes an excellent conversation starter. Making something from reclaimed wood is a smart way to reuse a precious resource. It also makes for a great looking coffee table with a ton of character.
People are beginning to find innovative solutions to our environmental dilemma with ideas like reclaiming wood to be used for home furnishings. Fewer trees are cut down to make the wood needed to build your reclaimed wood coffee table, so it’s much better for the environment. Reusing and recycling materials isn’t just good for mother earth, it’s also becoming quite trendy and fashionable. A reclaimed wood coffee table might be made out of many different kinds of wood including pine, oak, teak, maple, cherry and many others. Most reclaimed lumber is sourced from old buildings such as barns or other old structures that are ready to be taken down. The materials are sorted to determine what can be salvaged and afterwards the good lumber is pulled out, processed and sorted and turned into furniture like a reclaimed wood coffee table or used for flooring material or other uses.
A reclaimed wood coffee table may come in many different styles and may include modern embellishments or other modern day niceties such as rolling casters. You may find reclaimed wood coffee tables that are round, square, rectangular, triangular or any other kind of strange style someone may think up. It really all depends on what kind of wood is available and how imaginative the creator of the coffee table is.
Most reclaimed wood coffee tables are hand made by furniture artisans, and not pressed together particle board that’s shipped to you in a box from a factory. They have real age and character to show off, and since they’re hand made every table created will have a unique story to tell. Most manufacturers give you a little background on where the reclaimed wood came from and how it was previously used. This special story about your new coffee table makes a great ice breaker on game night, believe me.
Reclaimed Wood Coffee Table
There are some niche manufacturers of reclaimed wood coffee tables and a lot of people who build and sell them privately. There are also some big box chains that carry reclaimed wood items, though they are typically offered in limited quantities due to the nature of the materials used to create them. It’s also possible to find people that can custom build any kind of reclaimed wood furniture you can think of, even recreating modern designs with antique wide plank flooring to match your décor.
A quick search online will reveal many different options to choose from. If you choose to buy online, you should be aware of any additional charges including freight and handling. Buying furniture is different than buying other smaller items, so there may be some additional details you need to be aware of. The good part about shipping a reclaimed wood coffee table is that they are very rugged and do well in the shipping process for the most part.
Reclaimed Wood
Most reclaimed wood is rescued from old factories, barns and warehouses although some companies are known for taking wood from less common sources such as wine barrels, railroad tracks, train cars and even wood from abandoned coal mines. Antique lumber is commonly used for home décor, but it can also be used to build new structures such as homes, garages, barns and even buildings used by businesses. It can also be used for siding, cabinets, flooring and of course furniture.
Reclaimed wood has become increasingly popular for a number of reasons, with the first reason being the wood’s appearance. Reclaimed wood is aged, weathered, nicked, bruised, abused and most importantly, beautiful. It shows its strength as it has withstood the tests of time and once again rises to be used in another creative way. It’s also an amazing way to contribute to green building, which is building things in a way that is environmentally responsible and resource efficient throughout the life cycle of the building. Another reason reclaimed wood is great is that the planks are typically wider than traditional wood that’s harvested by lumber companies.
Many people also claim reclaimed wood is much more stable and durable than newly harvested wood because it has seen more changes in humidity over a greater period of time. Odds are, the wood found in your reclaimed furniture or home décor has been expanding and contracting for well over a century already.
The industry of reclaimed lumber picked up steam in the early 80s when people on the West Coast began to reuse softwoods on a larger scale. The industry has always been powered by environmental concerns, but has also gained popularity due to the declining quality of harvested lumber. It has also become increasingly popular to the strength and durability of the wood, which creates high quality products that will last a lifetime.
Meanwhile over on the East Coast reclaimed wood was being sold by industry pioneers as early as the 1970s but the industry stayed very small until the 1990s when waste disposal costs increased and deconstruction and recycling became a more cost effective options than outright demolition. This became a major crossroad in the lumber industry as reclaimed lumber finally made it to the forefront.
Reclaimed Wood Drawbacks
With the building popularity of reclaimed wood, one of the major drawbacks is that it’s actually becoming much more difficult to find reclaimed wood to buy. It’s actually gotten to the point where people have begun attempting to pass off newer lumber as antique lumber. The wood that was once considered demolition trash is quickly becoming a hot commodity, becoming more valuable than it was when it was first created and used.
It’s also a lot more common for reclaimed wood to be misidentified because of how hard it is to tell the difference between different types of wood once they become aged. The only way to know for sure is to cut the material open, which is time consuming and will lower the value of your materials. Misidentifying types of wood is typically only important when using reclaimed wood for structural purposes. Pine coffee tables and oak coffee tables are among the most common types of reclaimed wood coffee table.
Reclaimed wood is also becoming more expensive than freshly cut wood. People have begun to understand the value of antique wood and are now willing to pay a premium for it. The added costs of dealing with reclaimed wood such as dismantling, sorting and processing the wood can make it quite expensive. This has also driven up the prices of the many things made with antique wood. What you could once get for a few bucks at the flea market is now being sold in upscale stores for hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Another drawback with using reclaimed wood is that it may contain imperfections and have small pieces of metal or other debris embedded in it. You have to be careful when working with recycle wood as a broken nail sticking out can ruin a planer quickly. Processing the wood by cutting off nails and other metal fixtures using a metal saw blade is advisable if you plan to work with this type of material. Imperfections like cracks need to be carefully examined when using reclaimed wood for building any kind of structure. You have to make sure you are aware of any weaknesses in the wood you are using to avoid any negative consequences.
Another thing you need to know about reused wood is that typically you will not be able to find out if the wood has been treated at any point during its lifetime. Volatile organic compounds such as those found in lead paint, wood stains, lacquers and other wood treatments may actually seep from our recycled wood. This is especially important when you consider putting a reclaimed wood coffee table in your living space. Fortunately, you can be sure that major manufacturers and specialty makers of reclaimed wood furniture will likely test the wood for any harmful elements that may be present to protect their customers.
Reclaimed Wood Dining Table
A reclaimed wood dining table is an excellent way to provide your family with a durable, functional table that’s built to withstand the tests of time, including spilled milk and the occasional food fight. When you buy a dining table made from beautiful recycled wood you are buying the last dining table you will ever need. You will be able to pass it down through many generations in your family, along with its unique story and personality.
You might find a dining table made from reclaimed wood in many of the popular styles you are used to such as round tables, square tables, hi-top tables and more. You can also find tables that have many popular features you can’t live without like the ability to add a leaf for additional seating. Some tables also offer upscale features such as slide out table extensions or a turntable Lazy Suzan in the middle for the easiest taco bar you’ve ever had.
When you buy a reclaimed wood dining table, you can know you are doing a good thing for the environment. It’s important to set a good example for your children, and taking a stand against a world filled with cookie cutter compressed board furniture shipped from China is a great start. Reusing materials is the smart way to cut down on your carbon footprint and live a more eco-friendly lifestyle.
Not only will you help the environment, you will also own a unique piece with a history as unique as your own. A table made from reclaimed wood has more character than a room full of big box store furniture. The history of where the wood from your table came from will be a great conversation starter at your next big dinner party.
A dining table made from reclaimed wood will be much more durable than fresh wood as antique wood has had plenty of time in many different environments which makes the wood more stable. It’s likely the wood that was used to build your table was already used as a roof somewhere for 100 years, so it’s unlikely you will be able to cause more damage than the four seasons can cause outdoors for years on end. This makes a reclaimed wood dining table an ideal choice for someone who wants a table to last a lifetime. They may be more expensive up front but you will save in the long run as you will never have to buy another table again as long as you live.
Not only that, but because reclaimed wood dining tables have become so popular, you will have a much easier time selling one if you are ready to upgrade, downgrade or try something new. People love big heavy furniture pieces made from solid wood. They know how rugged and durable they are, which makes them very popular among people from all walks of life. Likely, by the time you are ready to sell your table it will have actually gone up in value since most of the intrinsic value of a table is the materials used to build it and the time it takes to put it together. Since your reclaimed wood dining table is so durable, you won’t lose any value when you use it.
Conclusion
It’s easy to see why reclaimed wood furniture such as dining tables, coffee tables, end tables, beds and more have become so popular. The wood used has a rich history and tons of added character from years spent serving another purpose. It has also become hardened through years of service which makes the products made from it much more durable. Not only that but you get to feel good about making a positive impact on the environment with the products that you buy.
This makes reclaimed wood furniture an easy choice for anyone who is aware of the many amazing benefits. If you are interested in reclaimed wood products, it’s a good idea to buy them now as they are sure to only increase in price and popularity. A reclaimed wood coffee table can provide much more style an elegance than a traditional coffee table ever could.