How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint with Material Reclamation in Remodeling

Thirty-nine percent of carbon emissions come from buildings, and in the next twenty-five years, buildings are expected to be a leading contributor, according to the U.S. Green Building Council. By incorporating locally salvaged materials, remodelers can help reduce the industry's overall emissions. 

Steve Pallrand is the owner of Home Front Build, a custom builder and remodeler operating in Los Angeles, and he's a reclamation expert and an environmentalist. Through his business, he extends the life of building materials by not only incorporating reclaimed materials into his home s and projects, but also by doing the reclamation himself. Steve and his team have become masters at the slow, meticulous disassembling of old homes. In doing so, he's been able to salvage priceless crown molding, antique gas lighting systems, redwood paneling, and more usable framing lumber than imagineable. It's beautiful, and it ends up saving his client's a lot of money. It also ends up helping save the environment. In this segment, Steve discusses the importance of reclamation and provides a few tips to help remodelers who want to reclaim wood, masonry, doors, lighting, and more. 

Three Tips for Material Reclamation in Remodeling

1. When you demo a home, salvage old materials such as quality fir to reuse. 

2. Try and use reclaimed materials in other ways, such as chipping old wood into mulch for landscaping. 

3. If the flooring isn't damaged, remodelers can restore and reclaim the materials for an updated look. 

Watch the video to learn more!