Recycling your construction materials

While building your own house is a great joy that can fill you with pride, it can also create a considerable amount of waste that can be an eye sore. As a sustainable and eco-conscience builder dealing with this waste is stressful and a challenge. Hauling everything off to the landfill is the easy way but horrible eco-wise. Finding beneficial ways to donate, recycle or reuse our waste is the responsible way to go. Here is how we are handling our construction waste.

Wood: Pieces of wood over 15" in length can still be used for building projects in and around your house. I have set aside a pile just for pieces of wood over this length. We will be installing many built-ins in our small house and these pieces will be used for benches, bookcases, shelving and tables inside and outside. Smaller pieces can be put into a pile for use in your fireplaces or as scraps needed for treehouses, gardening, obstacles courses or rope swings. *DO NOT burn pressure treated wood since the chemicals it is treated with can be harmful as a smoke. Instead reuse these outside as garden fencing, rope swings or tree ladders.

Plastics: I have several large tarps that we used to cover our house at various stages before it was weather sealed and we also used them to cover construction materials. Now we are no longer using them and they have been inhabited by large spiders. I want them to go because those spiders creep me out and the tarps prevent the grass from coming back. I have done several online searches for recycling 6 mil plastic sheeting and so far I have only learned that, yes, it can be recycled. Where? I have no earthly idea. Certainly no where near where I live (WAY east of Atlanta, outside the perimeter). So my next option is Freecycle.org. I have listed these three tarps for free is someone will pick them up. While I don't hold much hope that someone will want my slightly holey, pretty dirty but very large tarps, you never know what someone else wants. I have gotten rid of a very large supply of glitter on this site so anything goes. Should no claimant come forward then I plan on cutting the sheeting and tarp into smaller pieces to use as garden fabric, house wrap for a treehouse, emergency use in my car and future McGuyver projects.

Roofing: Our metal roofing can easily recycled since it is 100% metal. We only ordered what we needed so any leftovers we have are cut scraps that cannot be reused. If we had any large panels left over we could have reused them as a well house roof or tree house or donated them to habit for humanity. A quick search for metal recycling in your county and state should reward you with a scrap metal processor in your area.

Plumbing & electrical: If you have any unused plumbing fittings they can be returned or donated to habitat for humanity. Long lengths of electrical wire and gang boxes can also be donated. Short scraps of electrical wire can be sold to scrap metal processors. Cut pieces of PVC and the electrical sheathing can be recycled at your local plastics recycling center but call your local curbside pickup company to be sure they accepts these items.

Cement: This is a highly reused item but difficult to find someone to recycle it for you. You can crush it up and use it to make french drains, as underlayment in your garden, as a sidewalks in your yard to add it to your driveway. Larger pieces can be used as filler in large garden containers, to hold down your crawl space moisture barrier, as trailer blocks or garden edging. The CDRA website can help you find a recycler but non are within my area.

Paints: Extra paints can be donated to habitat for humanity or kept for touch ups. Also, extra paints can be retinted if you don't like the color or want to save on small projects. Small amounts not needed or very old should be mixed with kitty litter and covered and thrown away as any liquid content can run to our water supply and is costly to clean.

Misc: Caulk containers, plastic bags, nails, etc. It depends on what it is really. Plastic bags need to be cleaned and then taken to a local store that will recycle them. Caulk containers can be separated into the cardboard tube and the plastic nozzle and each recycled separately or you can just toss them depending on how eco-conscience you are. Nails can and should be pick out of your yard so they are not stepped on and then you can send them to the same place you took your roofing and electrical wire, the metal processors.

#Recycling #Buildingasmallhouse #DIY