We obtain our timber from dismantling old commercial and industrial structures that are slated for demolition.- – old sawmills, graineries, wharfs, canneries and warehouses. Much of the timber in these structures was originally harvested in the 1800’s and early 1900’s.

Wood is one of the most re-usable materials available anywhere and it can be manufactured into a multitude of products. The use of reclaimed material prolongs the usable life of the timber that was cut from huge virgin old growth trees during the last century. This reduces the pressure of cutting our current precious forests.Recycling wood is a key component of preserving our limited inventory of forests. Wood is renewable, however it is a very slow process – so why not reuse one of the most reusable materials available.

Aside from the eco-logic behind the reclaiming of wood there is another very important reason that wood is reclaimed – there simply is no substitute for ancient old growth wood. The timber retrieved from old structures was originally cut from virgin old growth forests over the last few centuries. These forests yielded timber that was slow growing with fine, straight, tight grain and much of the wood was free of knots. The aesthetic and physical characteristics of ancient old growth timber is very appealing. The natural process of aging over many decades produces timber that is dry and stable thus there is no further shrinkage. The natural aging and drying process also brings out beautiful colors unique to each species of wood.

Reclaimed Heart Pine Flooring is actually harder than most other pine species found due to it’s aged and hardened past. Usually most Antique Heart Pine is reclaimed from Old Cotton Mills, Warehouses and salvaged buildings that have been around since the early 19th century having been stored or holding up structures for over 100 years the pine sap and heartwood gets hard like resin over time then becomes even more durable then even before made into a Heart Pine Beam. So with that being said the older the beam the harder the heart pine flooring will be.

Recycling wood is not a new concept – cultures around the world have salvaged timber from older structures for many centuries. There is evidence of recycling in timber structures that have been standing for centuries.

Waverly Wood Flooring actively pursues structures that are due to be demolished so that we may dismantle and salvage as much of the marketable old timber as possible. We find timber in old factory warehouses, mills, fish packing plants on the coast, timber wharfs and the list goes on.

A lot! The timber structure must be carefully dismantled according to safe work procedures. After the timber has been removed from the structure, it is carefully handled by a determined crew who cleans all visible metals such as nails, spikes, bars, brackets, drift pins etc. This extremely labor intensive work requires the use of specialized prying bars and nail pullers, sledge hammers, power saws and most importantly dedication to the act of saving a timber.

From this stage the timbers are sorted in terms of sizing and grades. They are then ready for the customer or further processing such as re-sawing into other sizes, profiles of material. Prior to cutting or planning ancient old growth timber, each piece must be metal detected and all metal must be removed from the timber.