FREE WOOD Bin

I've talked about this fairly often so I thought I'd show you the FREE WOOD bin.  We are extremely fortunate that there is a business close by that sets out their leftovers for people to pick through for free.  Over the years we have benefitted tremendously from picking items up from here to use on projects at home.

A big stack of doors that didn't pass quality control - free for the taking

Not only have I brought home trim and usable lumber, but also scraps for firewood to take camping or use in our backyard fire pot.  A lot of people get their firewood there as well.

That's a pretty good sized load

On Easter the youngest and I headed over there to see what we could find for a project we have in mind for this summer.  A project with no budget, so scrounging the wood bin is going to be a big part of the process.  We'll be checking it pretty regularly to get the supplies we need.

At $4 a piece free 2"X4"s are a great find

Along with the wood scraps they offer up their pallets as well.  Up until now I've never brought home a pallet, however I found a long narrow one that I decided to grab because of the really nice 2" X 4"s it was made with.

We filled up a 16 oz. sour cream container with nails, screws & wire staples

Last Friday evening after work we began "processing" the wood we found, removing nails, screws and those dreaded staples.  In an hour and a half the girl and I had managed to remove and disassemble two thirds of the pile in the back of the truck.

Saturday morning I tackled the pallet and what was left.  It took me another hour and a half to get all of the wood apart and cleaned up.  When I was done I was actually left with two piles for two projects instead of just one.  That was pretty exciting.

A nice stack of siding, trim boards and more 2"X4"s

When I started to add up what some of this wood would have cost me had I gone to the store to buy it I realized I'd brought home nearly $100 worth of usable wood, OSB, siding and exterior trim.  So did it make the hard work and time spent worth it?

What wasn't salvageable ended up in the fire pot
It was really nice to sit and relax by the fire and drink a beer afterward

You bet!  Right now I have more available time then I have the money to spend on purchasing this stuff at the store.  So to me it is definitely worth it.  And not only did I find a lot of what we need for our summer project, but I also have enough stuff for a bonus project as well.  That really makes it worth the time and effort I've put in so far.