Reclaimed Wood - Environmentally Friendly and Elegant Addition to Your Home
No natural or manmade material can compare to wood when it comes to beauty and comfort. Unfortunately, centuries-long and reckless deforestation has caused a serious damage to the environment, while the timber industry can no longer meet the demands of the rapidly growing world’s population without causing further damage to the forests which play the key role in the quality of air we breathe and help control carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. For that reason it is crucial to reduce the rate of deforestation and repair the damage while we still have the time.
As already mentioned earlier, wood really has no alternative when it comes to products such as furniture and flooring. Both can be made from other materials as well but there is something about wood that is impossible to find in other materials. However, there is a way to furnish your home with wood without raising the rate of deforestation - reclaimed wood. It refers to wood which is obtained from old wooden structures such as barns and mills for example rather than by tree harvesting. The trees which have been already cut down cannot be restored but the wood from old wooden structures which would otherwise end up in landfills can be repaired, renovated and reused for furniture and flooring which look just as aesthetically appealing than furniture and flooring made of freshly cut wood, if not even more so. This is due to the fact that reclaimed wood often originates from over 100 years old structures giving it a unique “aged“ look and a touch of history.
Reclaimed wood is particularly popular for rustic style furniture and flooring because it naturally has a rustic look. However, it can also be used for contemporary furniture and flooring, and does not have to reveal its origin at all. On the contrary, some pieces of furniture made from reclaimed wood do not look any different from those that are made from newly cut wood. As a result, you should not have any major difficulties finding reclaimed wood furniture or/and flooring which matches your taste for style and beauty perfectly although you will probably have to take more time to search for it because the offer of reclaimed wood furniture and flooring is not as huge as of the one made of newly cut wood.
The prices of reclaimed wood furniture and flooring tend to be slightly higher due to higher expenses associated with dismantling and wood repairing. But then again, its environmental benefits, unique appeal and exceptional durability outweigh the extra cost. By choosing reclaimed wood furniture or/and flooring you will help reduce deforestation rate, add your home a piece of history and enjoy high quality furniture or/and flooring. Despite the fact that reclaimed wood is decades or even more than 100 years old, it is not inferior to freshly cut wood in neither quality nor durability. Even more, it is more stable and strong than newly harvested wood because reclaimed wood already went through the expanding and contracting process decades ago.