Well, the answer is no. You don\u2019t have to pay the retail price for your lumber. In fact, you can often get great lumber for free or very cheap. You won\u2019t even have to settle for nondescript \u201cwhitewood\u201d that you find at the big warehouse store.<\/p>\n
You can get hardwoods such as oak for free. How\u2019s that? Here are your options.<\/strong><\/p>\n Related:<\/strong>\u00a0Types of saws and their uses<\/a><\/p>\n Lugging furniture to a dumpster or to the town dump is sometimes difficult; other times, it\u2019s impossible. That\u2019s why so many people leave furniture on the curb with a sign saying \u201cfree.\u201d If you\u2019re thinking \u201cbut I don\u2019t need a new futon\u201d, you\u2019re missing the point. That furniture is likely made out of wood. Depending on the age of the furniture and the type of furniture, it might even be made out of hardwood.<\/p>\n You want to stay away from the pressboard stuff; it\u2019s not built to last and it\u2019s difficult to work with. However, a sheet of pressboard does make a good backing for a bookcase.<\/p>\n Why This Is a Great Source:<\/strong> Discarded furniture is a great source of wood because it\u2019s free. Also, older furniture is often made out of hardwoods such as oak and maple. Couches typically had wooden support structures that are a softwood that is lightweight and easy to work with.<\/p>\n Caveats:<\/strong> The main concerns with hauling old furniture around are bugs, space, and effort. If something has been sitting on the curb, especially something with cloth padding, it could have developed mold, mildew, and bugs. You should make sure you inspect it thoroughly or leave it outside of your house until you can be sure it\u2019s not moldy or infested. Also, you\u2019ll have to find somewhere to keep the furniture until you can break it down. Lastly, you\u2019ll need to actually do the work of breaking it down. If you\u2019ve got a reciprocating saw with a good blade, you should be able to work through any piece of wooden furniture in no time, though.<\/p>\n Where to Find It:<\/strong> So, where do you find discarded furniture? The first and most obvious choice is simply to drive around until you see it. Alternately, you can try www.freecycle.org<\/u><\/span><\/a>. Find your area and get to hunting.<\/p>\n Related:<\/strong>\u00a0Best cabinet table saws: review & buying guide<\/a><\/p>\n Not all states produce statistics about the amount of waste that is produced in their states; however, many scholars estimate that as much as 30% of all waste in landfills comes from construction waste. That waste consists of packaging materials, materials used in the construction but not in the final product, and discarded building materials. It\u2019s that last one that should interest you. Discarded building materials often includes wood. For example, if a worker is cutting a ten foot beam down to an eight foot beam, what happens to that extra two feet of beam?<\/p>\n If it is useful somewhere else, it might be used. Otherwise, it will likely end up on a burn pile. This is a pile of odds and ends as well as damaged wood that is going to be discarded. Oftentimes, construction sites will let you take it for free; it saves them the trouble of having to haul it. However, make sure you speak with the foreman on site and get express permission to take things.<\/p>\n Why This Is a Great Source:<\/strong> A construction site provides you with large amounts of wood. Furthermore, that wood is going to be professional grade. Also, it is often free.<\/p>\n Caveats:<\/strong> You\u2019ll need gloves to navigate the different pieces of wood. Damaged wood and discarded construction pieces will likely have nails and splinters. You\u2019ll also need a truck of some sort to haul the wood away. Lastly, the wood was discarded for a reason. In many cases, it will be cracked, waterlogged, or stained. You might only use a small amount of what you take, but that\u2019s fine because it was free.<\/p>\n Where to Find It:<\/strong> You\u2019ll need to find a construction site within driving distance. You can find a scholarly rundown of wood waste at construction sites here<\/u><\/span><\/a>\u00a0if the data interests you.<\/p>\n Related:<\/strong> Best jobsite table saws reviews and buyer guide<\/a><\/p>\n Check out my review of the best inexpensive miter saws here:<\/p><\/div> Pallets are fabled sources of cheap wood. Every beginning woodworker has probably read through dozens of blogs about all of the incredible things you can do with pallets. Why are they so popular? Well, roughly four or five billion board feet of lumber is used to create pallets in the United States every year.<\/em><\/strong> That\u2019s billions of free board feet just waiting for someone to claim them. Also, each pallet has about 40 feet of lumber. That\u2019s enough lumber to build a bookcase with just one pallet.<\/p>\n You should know that some of the best pallets are actually from foreign importers. Big box stores like Walmart and Target tend to use very cheap pine pallets; they also use a service for their pallets, which means they want them back.<\/p>\n Why This is a Great Source:<\/strong> Each pallet has a surprising amount of wood. They\u2019re also designed to withstand thousands of pounds of load and even shipping overseas. They\u2019re sturdy wood that you can find just about everywhere.<\/p>\n Caveats:<\/strong> The major caveat when working with pallets is the incredible amount of work. Pallets are nailed together typically with annular ring nails which are ridged nails. That means they\u2019re built to last. They don\u2019t come out very easily. You\u2019ll likely need a pry bar and a hammer. Those who are experienced with salvaging pallets say they can get through each pallet in about thirty minutes.<\/p>\n Where to Find Them:<\/strong> You should avoid the huge box stores; they likely use low-quality pallets anyway. The best pallets that you\u2019ll find are typically from stores that get foreign imports. The foreign importers often use hardwood pallets to ensure they survive the long journey. You should look at motorcycle dealers, car dealers, shops specializing in German or British cars, tile stores, and anywhere that imports granite or marble. They\u2019ll likely have some great pallets.<\/p>\n Any pallet that is leaning up against a dumpster is considered fair game. However, if the pallets are stacked behind the store or leaning against a wall, ask before you take them. You wouldn\u2019t want to accidentally become a thief.<\/p>\n Related:<\/strong>\u00a0Brushed vs Brushless Power Tools:\u00a0Is it all hype?<\/a><\/p>\n If you\u2019re good at spotting different species of tree, you\u2019ve likely noticed that the trees in your neighbourhood are probably better wood than whatever you\u2019re finding at the hardware store. Oak, cherry, and hickory are very common trees depending on where you live. Some of them in your neighborhood could easily be fifty to a hundred years old. If that\u2019s the case, they would make incredible sources of hardwood lumber. You don\u2019t want to cut them down for the lumber, but if they were to fall during a storm, someone would need to remove it. If you have a storm in your area, you could offer to help your neighbors by cutting up their trees. In exchange for cutting up the trees, you get to keep the wood.<\/p>\n Why This Is a Great Source:<\/strong> Fallen trees are an excellent source because they\u2019re often higher quality wood than you could otherwise afford. They also produce incredible amounts of wood. Board feet are calculated by width times length times thickness. So, a twenty-foot oak tree could easily produce 100 board feet from one tree.<\/p>\n Caveat:<\/strong> Make sure you ask your neighbors before you start cutting up their trees. Also, this will require a lot of labor. You\u2019ll need a chainsaw (Makita<\/a> and Husqvarna<\/a> make some good ones) and a truck. You\u2019ll also have to haul all of that lumber into and out of the truck. It\u2019s a lot of work but it\u2019s probably worth it.<\/p>\n Where to Find Them:<\/strong> If there\u2019s a storm, you might want to just drive out looking for downed trees. Otherwise, you might find your neighborhood on https:\/\/nextdoor.com<\/u><\/span><\/a>. It\u2019s a social network for your local area.<\/p>\n Related:<\/strong>\u00a0The Ultimate Guide to Cordless Drills on a Budget!<\/a><\/p>\n If you need a good portable contractor table saw you can check out my review of best contractor table saws here:<\/p><\/div> For any number of reasons, a building might need to be torn down near you. The people who are doing that demolishing might be looking for someone to help them. Sometimes, they might even offer to pay you. However, a better form of compensation might be allowing you to keep whatever wood you take from the building. Depending on the age of the building, you could end up with some great lumber.<\/p>\n For example, buildings that are more than about 60 years old probably used old growth hardwood for their flooring. Old growth wood is wood that comes from forests that could be 200 or 300 years old. The wood is denser, stronger, more rot-resistant, and a richer color. It\u2019s the best wood for any hardwood project. However, it\u2019s very difficult to come by because most of the old virgin forests had either been cleared or protected by the 1940s. However, you can still find the wood in use as flooring in old buildings; those might be the exact kinds of buildings that are being torn down.<\/p>\n Why It Is A Great Source:<\/strong> A deconstruction project is a great source of wood because you\u2019ll find large amounts of it. Some of it might even be rustic or heirloom hardwood that will make great furniture. Finally, it will all be processed and planed for use in a building; that means it\u2019ll be more uniform than some scrap you might find.<\/p>\n Caveat:<\/strong> As with many of these other suggestions, the first caveat is that you\u2019ll need to spend a lot of your time and energy on the project. You\u2019ll need tools and protection to make sure that you can deconstruct the building safely. Then you\u2019ll need a truck to load and haul the lumber.<\/p>\n Where To Find It:<\/strong> You\u2019ll likely be able to find local demolition and deconstruction jobs in your area if you search Craigslist. Oftentimes, people are even offering to allow you to haul off any materials you want. It saves them the trouble of hauling it off. You should also consider woodworking forums or Reddit. There are entire subreddits devoted to odd jobs around the house. Try searching for your area, but be careful and always vet someone before you show up at their house.<\/p>\n1. Discarded Furniture<\/h2>\n
2. Construction Sites<\/h2>\n
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Best Cheap Miter Saws<\/h2>
3. Wood Pallets<\/h2>\n
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4. Fallen Trees<\/h2>\n
Best Benchtop Table Saws<\/h2>
5. Demolition Projects<\/h2>\n
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