Over the summer, I put out an open invite for folks to come up to the house site and salvage wood from the framing demolition. I had at least fifty people up to the site over the next few months. With the historically high cost of lumber, many were very grateful for free supplies (even if it required some creativity and nail-pulling). Others seemed to enjoy the challenge of reusing and recycling materials. A few folks seemed more interested in seeing the house and chatting, but were nice enough to take a symbolic board or two.
Scheduling and meeting people at the site wasn’t always easy, but the payoff was big on my end as well. For one, I was able to avoid significant demo and dump fees. More importantly, it was rewarding to see a lot of this wood turned into cool projects instead of going to the dump. The house wreckage became shelving, swing sets, research stations, cabins, animal enclosures, concert stages, benches, greenhouses, garden beds, docks, camping platforms, and much more.
I also ended up with a couple gift cards, encouraging notes, and a whole lot of beer. Thank you to everyone who stopped by to grab some wood and talk. Giving away the demo wood has been one of my favorite parts of the project so far.
Posted December 23, 2021.
View on Instagram
Check out the AK House Project Instagram account for feedback and comments on posts.
