The 3 R’s of Green Construction (and what to do with material from a demo)

One of the most perplexing things that I see almost every day is the demo of a building to just rebuild a building of similar shape and size. While I understand that there may be times in which this is necessary due to the age of the building or other circumstances, there are still materials in that building that could be reused; often, they're just scrapped and sent to the landfill.


This frame of thought can also apply to home remodels. When a room has lost its appeal, no longer serves its purpose, or is damaged beyond repair, you have to remove the old material. Depending on what this material is, it may still have some use left in it. This use may not be in the manner that it was originally intended, but it may still serve a purpose!

When you're performing your next remodel or repair, think about the 3 R’s for green construction:

Recycling

This may seem like it would be obvious, but for a lot of construction-related items it can be hard to imagine how they would be recycled. The truth is, at this point and time, it can be very hard to recycle the materials. However, it is possible. As more individuals discover the possibilities and the resources come available, this will be an easier task to perform. In the meantime we can look at some of the possibilities of recycling.

• Tile can be recycled into tile again. The challenge: While there are companies that produce recycled tile, they are typically limited to industrial waste, and use very little post-consumer material. Of the few that do have recycling programs for post-consumer material, the one program with which I am familiar for collecting material is extremely restrictive to the point that they're almost impossible to use! 
• Wood materials can be chipped and used as mulch for flower beds. The challenge: The wood has to be free of metal for conventional chippers
• Drywall can be used for a soil amendment. To best apply this, the material must be ground into a powder and spread on the soil. Again, crushing the material is not an easy task for most individuals. 
• Brick/Cement blocks can be crushed to use as mulch, gravel, or bedding material for cement pads. The challenge: This can be labor intensive if one is to crush it by hand.

Reusing materials

Some materials on the jobsite can be easily reused in the same project. Most of these include trim. This is something that has been done for years in the insurance restoration industry! If the material can be reused, it will be carefully removed and reinstalled. Some items, such as baseboards or crown molding, may not need to be changed in a remodel, as trim patterns have stayed rather consistent over the years.

Other items commonly reused include doors, sinks, cabinets, and toilets. All these items, and more, can be reused in the home if they are still functioning. If the items don’t fit in your remodel plans, you can donate them to local charities that can resell them to others who can use them. One of the most common in my area is Habitat for Humanity. They use the proceeds from the sales to build homes for individuals in need.

In the same line of thinking, if you are looking for items to install, you can actually check out a store like Habitat first! You may be able to find what you need at a reduced price. I've often found materials that are hard to find at these stores, like doors in older homes, and they're much cheaper than buying the product new or even purchased from a for-profit salvage store. With a little cleaning and paint, you may end up with a great deal!

Repurposing

If you can’t recycle it and don’t think it can be reused for the same purpose, then repurpose the item. The easiest of these is the use of trim. I have reused trim to make backsplashes on vanities, trim out mirrors, and make key/coat hangers.

If you are really handy, you may be able to turn some old doors into a bed or use old wainscot in pieces of furniture. Wood is beautiful in its own right, and our predecessors made pieces of artwork when they crafted some of these items. Using some of the old trim for other purposes extends the showcase of beauty that it contains.

You can break up old tile and use it to cover a tabletop, or you can take old door knobs and make them hangers. Newel post can be turned into plant stands, and windows can be used as drawing boards. Repurposing of material is only restricted by your imagination! Because of this I find this to be one of the most versatile of the 3 R's.