Yeah, nice score. I want to know why that library was using mahogany for shelves. I wish you could post pics in these comments. I'd love to see what you did with that wood.
I recently went from big box store “lumber” to a hardwood dealer. Then I very fortunately found a local guy that salvages trees from construction sites and mills them into slabs. I’ll never buy from anyone else now. His price is nearly half the hardwood dealer and he has some amazing and beautifully grained pieces.
That's what I love to find. Especially if you can be a little flexible in the specific lumber you're looking for you can find some really amazing stuff there.
Construction sites often throw away tons of usable lumber. As long as you talk nicely to the foreman and are fine with pulling a few nails its a great way to get cheap construction lumber for free.
I live in the Mojave Desert in southern CA. We don't have trees. We do have some military installations though. And those large installations have their own landfill or dump site. They segregate their trash by material. I had worked at one of these places for 30-years and often drove my pickup to the "woodpile" near the landfill during lunch. I've built a pergola, a fence, a shed, a raised garden bed, a carport, and some furniture with free reclaimed lumber I've extracted from a military installation woodpile for free. Most of the wood is construction grade pine, but some hardwood too. They are happy to give away their scrap lumber because it means less that they have to process. They grind it into chips and compost it. They give away free compost too, but that stuff tends to burn roots.
My neighbor was kind enough to give me an assortment of wood. He told me and I quote, “it’s all in the shed!” He wasn’t very happy that his shed was stacked up nice and neatly with all of the other assortments of wood!
Living in Chicago, the alleys are a great source of free lumber, everything from pallets to furniture (mostly particle board but the occasional solid wood piece) to actual lumber someone decided to toss. Gotta love the alleys.
I hit the “Construction Debris” section at the local recycling center. Can be hit or miss but I scored most of what I needed to do a 6’x6’ coop I’m working on.
Look up mitigation companies. At the end of the day, they have to spend $200-400 or more on dump fees. You can get great wood flooring that was wet. Talk to them, you can get the acacia, Walnut, Maple… As long as you’re fine with cleaning up the wood, you’re saving them a ton of money and you’re getting great Hardwood. It’s free, it saves them money, it’s worth the effort.
Aloha James, My source of free woods here in Wahiawa is' Floatsome', wood floating in the lake. It might be construction wood pieces or actual logs. I'm working on assembling the needed hand tools to make these 'finds' a manageable size to haul out as well.
For small projects with unique woods I use branches I have trimmed on my fruit trees. If you don’t have your own orchard the local farmers market or garden center would be a good place to find them.
I used to use pallet wood, but often times they are riddled with dirt, sand and even tiny stones since they generally have heavy loads on them and rest on the ground. You MUST clean them well (and obviously look for nails). I've ruined new planer and jointer knives because I missed some embedded gravel and whatnot. I've gotten nice wood out of them though.
New subdivision areas where they’re clearing trees. We grabbed lots of beautiful Pecan. They had more than we could store at home. That was when I had a chainsaw mill, but it would also be fine for smaller pieces (like James’ firewood example). Good video, James.
If you want basic construction grade pressure treated timber for interior/extols construction and big projects then just head to your local skip or get in touch with builders. They always have loads leftover after a project which they take to the skip or leave with the client as they don’t have room to store it themselves. Pallet wood can also be used, I find it is best for outdoor projects like sheds because you can use them as walls without disassembling them. For hardwood, skips (if your lucky), eBay - reclaimed timber or just old furniture. Find something which is cheap, made of nice wood but in bad condition and dissemble it for the timber. I’ve used old pianos for plenty of solid sapele lumber before and it literally paying £1 to get one or even being paid money to take away the piano. If you want really fancy woods, it will be expensive. But veneer is a great option
I used to work at a lumber yard as a kid. We always had a “bone pile” of returned items from big time builders. Yards will often return wood that’s been outside in the weather that the builder couldn’t use. Only for the guys that buy entire home packages and have 10-20 homes being built at all times. Price is generally low and can be bartered down. We had employees that have built entire pole barns outta this stuff. No joke! Took awhile to scab the wood, but done cheep. Ask at yards when the mill work comes in……a lot of that has wood supports or crates that can be torn down into usable lumber. Look to see if a local university has a second hand store or a large trash area. I’ve scored some amazing solid wood furniture, doors, shipping crates, ect. Don’t trespass. Start a conversation with the university facility department. Salon schools is another place! They throw away everything. Talk with the maintenance guy. Shipping crates and furniture. Into scrapping metal…….salon schools is a good place. They burn washers, driers, piping, wiring, appliances like crazy! They are always happy to do less work. Get know deck builders in upper priced areas! I’ve scored actual redwood that was 30 years old and I’ve had it for 20 years now. I’m currently trying to get some kind of deck wood…..it’s a type of Brazil hardwood. It’s on a open trailer in the weather! The owner didn’t like how it retained heat! I just built a goat play area outta 1/3 of it for him. I’m gunna get the rest come hell or high water! It has a fruity smell when cut. Very hard and dense. I’ve scored three pieces…….I’m plane it up and see what the wood looks like.
My local ATV dealer has lumber from the cribbing attached to the pallets to create the "box" they are shipped in! Takes a bit to breakdown, but after that the options are endless!
one of my favorite sources for lumber is estate sales. Most of these companies see lumber as a burden and will just put a per piece price on the pile of lumber in the corner or a low price on the entire pile.
A lot of contractors have a dumpster on the site of new construction, these days most dont save left over lumber because it takes up space thay dont have. If you ask permission its not usually a problem to rifle through the dumpster. You may find some tresure there!
Here in Phoenix just trimmed mesquite trees to prepare for the monsoon. The limbs arent that big but a 2 inch slice of mesquite *starts* at $25 at my local wood store. I'd be interested to hear your opinion on the saw mill Wood Mizer craze; Out of the Woods guy gets $800 a slab which means a tree trunk could be $10,000 plus $$$. Good vid thx James.
I work at a loading dock. We have some wood there. Sometimes good, straight 4x4 that I've taken for free. I notice some freight that come in have been packed and braced in plywood and 2x6's. Especially, expensive freight, like marbles, machines and mirrors, etc. I wonder sometimes if those companies give away those lumber.
We have Closeouts and Second hand "thrift" shops for just about everything around here in TN... INCLUDING yep, construction materials. Lots of "lumber yards" and "big-box stores" also have a "Culls" dispensary... Depending on your market and area, your store of choice may have a large one or a small one... and of course, some don't have such a thing as "Culls"... Culls are the "screwed up ones" the various sized and shaped specific lumber or materials that simply will not EVER get "full price"... Most popularly, 2x4's are culled around here, so nearly every store (especially the Closeout) has a 2x4 Culls corral, where you get the bent and twisted weirdness of a piece of otherwise "decent" wood for a buck a piece ($1/ea)... There are ways to flatten and straighten boards without cutting them up, BUT you'll want to be a bit meticulous in the culls racket... They can be pretty bad... Just look for enough reasonable straight wood to accomplish the component you need out of it, and you get wood for a dollar... I also keep my eyes about when I drive, for buildings in poor condition... This includes shed, garages, barns, any old building... AND when I can I return to those properties and ask questions. I have access to trucks, trailers, and vans, AND plenty of tools, so the offer to clear out a decrepit mess for people can not only earn you some wood for your work... BUT sometimes it gets you PAID TO TAKE IT... Once in a while, I even get paid to haul off whatever's inside the building(s) TOO!!! At construction and fabrication sites, there's almost always a "waste pile". This includes renovations, and other than "traditional" construction or carpentry and framing worksites. There's usually a "site boss" who's responsible for safety and all, and you're well advised to talk to him if possible... BE PATIENT AND POLITE. That can work wonders for you. IF you gain access to the dumpster, there's more than wood at stake. CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF. The biggest complaints these guys have about people who raid the waste is a mess... that they have to answer for. BUT cleaning up, earns you a reputation as a GOOD player. Rental Shops... There's also the Rent To Own, business models (which I frankly consider dubious at best)... AND they load all manners of broken, damaged, and partially missing items into their dumpsters. Some of them don't even bother paying attention to what's legally allowed in a dumpster, so the garbage pick-up crews (hint hint) will get to know you and be happy as long as you don't leave them a horrible mess either... Finally...just a word about safety. Whether waste-piles or traditional metal containers... Dumpster diving and trash molestation is DANGEROUS business. Dress and act accordingly. Everything from extremely sharp broken glass to hazardous chemicals and crap you shouldn't even find is probably in there. Handle everything with care and don't just recklessly crash into stuff in the dark with abandon... I've found everything you can think of from cases of porn' videos, to bags of drugs and hypodermic needles in dumpsters. It's a fine place to search for irreplaceable parts and obscure materials... BUT WATCH OUT... AND PLEASE try to leave it cleaner and nicer than you found it. One person "shit's in the pool" and then everybody suffers... Garbage IS public domain the moment it hits the street or a collection point... BUT leaving a disaster is vandalism and property destruction. They can't legally stop you searching and scouring or taking... They CAN jail us, fine us, harass us, etc... for illicit behavior. ;o)
my favourite (england uk) is those rough heavy orangey brown crates that stone gets delivered in here in uk. it looks rough and always warped cupped etc. with a few housrs you can get some absolutely stunning grained pieces with a thicknesser. its so dense and heavy. ive look and looked what they wood is and im told its eucalyptus but im still not 100 percwent sure
I live in a new house with a lot of construction still going on. I have spoken with several former who tell me I can have any wood I can find in trash piles. 2x 4s, 6s 10s and more.
I go to our county parks. The parks dept. Cuts up trees that have fallen blocking pathways and such. We are not supposed to remove anything from the parks but I do one piece a day. I recently made a side table rustic for out door use I think the wood is hemlock or white cedar not sure but it looks good.
We used to get 1/4 " steel cable from indonesia...the 5000ft reels had spoke centers that were all teak woods...one of my coworkers took them apart and. Made a set of coffee table,end tables that were really nice
Cheap lumber is way better than cheep lumber, which you probably forgot ... is the lumber harvested by Tweety Bird with his tiny bird axe. Every time he hits the cross-grain with his 3 inch hatchet ... he cheeps at both ends because he is so old. Enjoy that. $0.02 Love this channel.
I like to pick up logs that people have from felling trees on their property. I have picked up some nice white oak that way and lots of pine which I will use for prototypes. I have also picked up some ash and walnut that way. U can get it free by offering to take away for them. Many folks will go for that because it saves them disposal fees at the landfill. A local sawyer near me will kill anything I bring him for a really good price. Usually &0.35/ bd ft.
Kind of the same, I’ve been lucky lately old headboards and footboards with really nice mahogany and the sawmill and hardwood dealers that sell rough cut lumber. Take Care
i worked in aviation building cabinets , tables , galleys , and sideledges . i was the guy that ALWAYS stayed late on Holidays to clean up the shop . it allowed me to scrounge up a TON of exotic hardwood scraps . now that i am retired i have tons of all kinds of Select Exotic hardwood scraps and a 2 foot thick pile of extremely expensive hardwood veneers . It pays off doing clean up , BIGTIME . i also put in scrap passes twice a year at aircraft companies . i ended up with 2 rented storage bldgs slap full of all kinds of exotics to build clocks out of .
Winnipeg Manitoba Palliser furniture so large they produce wood grain printed 11/16 mdf for their furniture production. 1980 $.45 per sq ft 5' x10' sheets . For left over production stock eg 17" x48 " 50 pcs $.15 sq ft. Filled up dads 14 x22 garage piled over 3' high stacks of various sizes for $500 in 1980 11/16 melamine partical core was about $1.30 sq ft So left over stock can be had for cheap😊
This is very geographical, are lumber yards here that its 2.50 a board foot for kiln dried hard maple, 6 for cherry, 8 for walnut and quarter sawn oak. if u want to build this year, thats the way to go.. finding lumber like you do is a whole hobby on its own.. interesting your outlook and methods, your very frugal lol ps, im the guy at the cabinet shop throwing out that 8/4 walnut so i have a perception that is influenced by that heavily
Thanks everybody for the ideas with so much ingenuity and diversity, along with this great vid as well. I've been trying to find good info on here, but about half the vids are clickbait or "pallets are an excellent source of free wood" 😐
It's not super cheap but if your looking for a sawmill harbor freight has one for $2,000 so like I said not super cheap but I think it goes up to 20" wide and maybe 10-12ft long. And as far as Mills goes the next cheapest is around $8,000
Pallets - cruise the industrial areas for old pallets. You can find oak, cherry, walnut, mahogany, teak, etc, that is in good shape but watch out for nails as these hard wood pallets have seen a lot of use.
I have never seen a pallet made from anything other than cheap pine. I stay away from pallets because they tend to be chemically treated, but also you just never know what nasty shit has been stored on top of them during transportation or in storage
I'm finally getting started with woodworking. I'm finding pine 2x4s ($2) and plywood (~$10) are ok - as long as the knots aren't in way. You reminded me that there is trucking company down the road that has stacks of free pallets. Maybe I'll check what they have available soon. There's also a huge lumber mill across the state line that has a massive dump of scraps in back. My father-in-law picks up his winter fire wood there in the fall. We just go into the main office, smile real nice at the lady running the front desk, and ask politely if we can pick through the pile. We haven't been turned down so far. Usually, we can fill up his 12' trailer with nice hickory, redwood and oak - lots of oak. 2 seasons ago he found a nice piece of walnut - 28"x10"x4" - I hope I can find a piece like that this season! Online that would cost over $200 if was available! Best wishes! Dave
Goodwill. Most of the furniture is fiber board, but occasionally, you'll find solid wood furniture for pennies on the dollar because it's dinged, broken and stained.
I've got a small 4x8 cargo trailer that I had replaced the floor and sides a while back and I stained all of the wood with, what I thought, was a good quality stain. Over time the 4x8 piece of exterior ply started to rot at the rear of the trailer and I have a big whole and delamination going on the rest of the floor. Any ideas for repairing and what woods I will I need to accomplish this calamity?
When it comes to sheet goods it has less to do with the wood and more to do with how you cover them. a high grade exterior paint and calk will do more then the best marine grade plywood.
@@WoodByWright I'm working on an outdoor lumber rack right now. For me the free lumber was taking over my shop. The only disadvantage I can see for free lumber is not having an immediate use.
I got 10 beech beams, 2 m long, and around 10 cm wide and 5 cm thick. (It's beautifull wood ^_^ I love beech) for 20 euros further more he basicly gave us a whole load of other wood (including tropical hardwood, square acacia slabs 10cm thick, padouk, ash, oak and something else which I don't know the name of) we got the entire van filled up for 50 euros.. happy days
I found 8 brand new custom wood doors at the local Habitat store. They came from the local door mill and were mistakes, that is the doors were built wrong for the customer making them worthless to the mill. I paid $150 for all 8, probably less than $1/bf. Next time I will go directly to the door mill and ask them.
This sounds terrible, but after a particularly bad storm, drive through the area that got hit, and you'll find all kinds of fallen trees and 'ruined' lumber. I'm from NJ, after hurricane Sandy hit the shore, there was all kinds of wood everywhere for months. Trees, pieces of homes, furniture, play sets.. I know, I feel bad profiting off of something like that, but some people are happy to be rid of their storm debris. Also, look up backyard playsets. You know, the big wooden ones the parents love, but the kids grow out of way too fast. Great for out door furniture!
What do you do when you get a whole lot of mill rejects? I got a whole bunch of undimension pine blocks and miscellaneous pieces and I don't know where to start to make something out of then. I was hopping to make a laminated bench top but the dimensioning seem horrendous. (warpped, bowed twisted... different sizes..)
It used to be possible to buy furniture that had seen better days, and recycle the wood - nowadays, furniture made out of "real wood" ( other than new pine ) is thought of as valuable whatever its condition... Some good ideas from you - I will take a look online as you did. Thank you ! You STILL have the Dad's joke book then ! Here's mine - "What do ghosts serve as dessert ? Ice scream !". HA HA ! OK OK I'll shut the door as I leave...
Exactly. I still look for furniture like that in second hand stores. Cheaper pieces of furniture with good wood. But they're indeed becoming harder to find.
@@blokdijkblues It seems to be a universal problem then ! And nowadays some of those older items of furniture can only BE used in new pieces, because modern homes are so much smaller than 50 years ago. Certainly in the UK anyway - how about you ? A wardrobe of mid twentieth century will no longer go into a new home - it will be too tall to fit into the bedrooms ! But it is a joy to rework an old piece into something new, as you say !
@@WoodByWright I have not fought with anyone. There's some places that leave pallets out. But in the winter that goes fast. Right now it is pretty hot so I don't imagine many are running fires to keep warm. But folks that use split wood are already laying it in. The pallet burning crowd is a different social strata you could say. They tend to not plan much in advance.
Love your channel, but it was the first time I noticed that where your located. I'm here in Louisville ky but grew up in Loves Park , haven't heard anyone from there in along time,by the way I like the free wood suggestions.
My wood interest is in power carving (bowls etc.), and I am not fast at it so I just keep my eye open for the occasional DIY tree trimmer that throws his wood in the alley.
@@WoodByWright honestly though, there is a website that helps you search for "steals" of that exact variety. If someone misspells their listing as "cheep" lumber, your "cheap" search probably id not going to find that, and those folks tend to lower their prices more often than realizing their spelling mistake. This website helps you by searching several common misspellings of your search, often yielding results in which folks have dropped prices due to no interest. Anyway it can sometimes be very helpful to search misspellings.
That's funny I'm going to enjoy this one just figured out I need 10 2×6's. As far as free goes your right you always spend something and I prefer to spend time, it's how I built my workshop only spending $85, and that sounds like a horrible shop, but I have a table saw, scroll saw, 3 routers (one attached to a table), a compound sliding miter saw, like 10 hand planes, tons of chisels ECT. Didn't spend a bunch of money but I did spend a lot of time doing things for people and in my opinion tools are a better payment than cash. I get my wood from the woods surrounding my home, but Sawyer's around here are expensive so learning to split and size with hammer, wedges, and planes.
@@1pcfred I live in North Florida it's generally pretty hot, by noon my 11,000 gallon pool is 98° and it still feels better than ambient temperature outside. It's generally rather humid but when the trees here die they stay very hard even while they spalt so once it's dead you have a couple years before you have to cut it down or risk it falling, then you have a couple more before it starts to get punky, even during rain season it dries out pretty quick, plus 80% of the trees near me are Live Oak and that stuff is tough
@@drawlele I guess you'd have to see what I am dealing with here to appreciate it? I've never seen anything quite like it myself. I've lived in Florida too. My woods just has its way of dealing with dead wood that is quite efficient. If it isn't pressure treated any wood outside here is not long for this world. Right now the humidity is only 93% So a rather dry spell for this time of year.
@@1pcfred I grew up in northern Indiana and southern Michigan and after the thaw of snow it was wet for awhile sometimes and wood would rot out quickly if not used in one way or another. If you don't mind where are you at? 93% is either muggy like you don't want or super soggy and chilly in my experience.
I just took it as it was a plain head to his mallet, nothing super fancy done with crazy woods or anything! I’m a newb so apparently it went over my head lol 😂
I can get palettes for free or, it's the timber yard where the choice is expensive pine or don't even think about it, horrendously priced anything else.
@@WizardsNews oh dear, there's always someone isn't there? "Makes for a lot of fun." ??? really??? each to their own as they say...it's not something i would derive much fun from myself...can't see the hilarity in simply misspelling a word, not unless it involved a very clever pun
That’s kind of a loaded question, Where do you go to find WOOD? I wish my wife asked herself that question more often. lol 😂 I’m just kidding, but I’m actually serious.
lol welcome to wood by right. That's half the fun of this channel. I like to put those in from time to time in different places. Especially the title card I usually try to miss something up in there every week.
@@larrymedlin3546 No, we're not in school, but we are in a literate and articulate society. That means we should all care about correct spelling, grammar and punctuation. If you don't care, you are in the minority, and the rest of the world laughs at you for being such a bird brain.
@@WoodByWright Might be fun for you, but you have to bear in mind that YT is viewed not only by native speakers with little or no education, but also by non-native speakers who wish to improve their English. It's therefore unfair that you burden them with misspelt words for the rest of their lives.
I picked up 7 large book shelves from a library for 16 bucks. They were solid mahogany. My best score ever.
That is a happy day.
Dang, I’m I’m jealous. I hope you had some help
Yeah, nice score. I want to know why that library was using mahogany for shelves. I wish you could post pics in these comments. I'd love to see what you did with that wood.
I recently went from big box store “lumber” to a hardwood dealer. Then I very fortunately found a local guy that salvages trees from construction sites and mills them into slabs. I’ll never buy from anyone else now. His price is nearly half the hardwood dealer and he has some amazing and beautifully grained pieces.
That's what I love to find. Especially if you can be a little flexible in the specific lumber you're looking for you can find some really amazing stuff there.
Where are you located?
gotta dry it tho
That's amazing!
Construction sites often throw away tons of usable lumber. As long as you talk nicely to the foreman and are fine with pulling a few nails its a great way to get cheap construction lumber for free.
I live in the Mojave Desert in southern CA. We don't have trees. We do have some military installations though. And those large installations have their own landfill or dump site. They segregate their trash by material. I had worked at one of these places for 30-years and often drove my pickup to the "woodpile" near the landfill during lunch. I've built a pergola, a fence, a shed, a raised garden bed, a carport, and some furniture with free reclaimed lumber I've extracted from a military installation woodpile for free. Most of the wood is construction grade pine, but some hardwood too. They are happy to give away their scrap lumber because it means less that they have to process. They grind it into chips and compost it. They give away free compost too, but that stuff tends to burn roots.
My neighbor was kind enough to give me an assortment of wood. He told me and I quote, “it’s all in the shed!” He wasn’t very happy that his shed was stacked up nice and neatly with all of the other assortments of wood!
😂
Living in Chicago, the alleys are a great source of free lumber, everything from pallets to furniture (mostly particle board but the occasional solid wood piece) to actual lumber someone decided to toss. Gotta love the alleys.
I hit the “Construction Debris” section at the local recycling center. Can be hit or miss but I scored most of what I needed to do a 6’x6’ coop I’m working on.
Look up mitigation companies. At the end of the day, they have to spend $200-400 or more on dump fees. You can get great wood flooring that was wet. Talk to them, you can get the acacia, Walnut, Maple… As long as you’re fine with cleaning up the wood, you’re saving them a ton of money and you’re getting great Hardwood. It’s free, it saves them money, it’s worth the effort.
Aloha James,
My source of free woods here in Wahiawa is' Floatsome', wood floating in the lake. It might be construction wood pieces or actual logs. I'm working on assembling the needed hand tools to make these 'finds' a manageable size to haul out as well.
For small projects with unique woods I use branches I have trimmed on my fruit trees. If you don’t have your own orchard the local farmers market or garden center would be a good place to find them.
that is a great idea!
I used to use pallet wood, but often times they are riddled with dirt, sand and even tiny stones since they generally have heavy loads on them and rest on the ground. You MUST clean them well (and obviously look for nails). I've ruined new planer and jointer knives because I missed some embedded gravel and whatnot. I've gotten nice wood out of them though.
For power tool guys, there is no better jig making material than old ikea desks on the side of the road. I call them “ikea slabs” 😝
LOL nice!
😂😂😂
New subdivision areas where they’re clearing trees. We grabbed lots of beautiful Pecan. They had more than we could store at home. That was when I had a chainsaw mill, but it would also be fine for smaller pieces (like James’ firewood example). Good video, James.
Thanks. Nice find
Hey bro, save me some of that and I'll compensate you.
If you want basic construction grade pressure treated timber for interior/extols construction and big projects then just head to your local skip or get in touch with builders. They always have loads leftover after a project which they take to the skip or leave with the client as they don’t have room to store it themselves.
Pallet wood can also be used, I find it is best for outdoor projects like sheds because you can use them as walls without disassembling them. For hardwood, skips (if your lucky), eBay - reclaimed timber or just old furniture. Find something which is cheap, made of nice wood but in bad condition and dissemble it for the timber. I’ve used old pianos for plenty of solid sapele lumber before and it literally paying £1 to get one or even being paid money to take away the piano. If you want really fancy woods, it will be expensive. But veneer is a great option
I used to work at a lumber yard as a kid. We always had a “bone pile” of returned items from big time builders. Yards will often return wood that’s been outside in the weather that the builder couldn’t use. Only for the guys that buy entire home packages and have 10-20 homes being built at all times. Price is generally low and can be bartered down.
We had employees that have built entire pole barns outta this stuff. No joke! Took awhile to scab the wood, but done cheep.
Ask at yards when the mill work comes in……a lot of that has wood supports or crates that can be torn down into usable lumber.
Look to see if a local university has a second hand store or a large trash area. I’ve scored some amazing solid wood furniture, doors, shipping crates, ect. Don’t trespass. Start a conversation with the university facility department.
Salon schools is another place! They throw away everything. Talk with the maintenance guy. Shipping crates and furniture. Into scrapping metal…….salon schools is a good place. They burn washers, driers, piping, wiring, appliances like crazy! They are always happy to do less work.
Get know deck builders in upper priced areas! I’ve scored actual redwood that was 30 years old and I’ve had it for 20 years now. I’m currently trying to get some kind of deck wood…..it’s a type of Brazil hardwood. It’s on a open trailer in the weather! The owner didn’t like how it retained heat! I just built a goat play area outta 1/3 of it for him. I’m gunna get the rest come hell or high water! It has a fruity smell when cut. Very hard and dense. I’ve scored three pieces…….I’m plane it up and see what the wood looks like.
My local ATV dealer has lumber from the cribbing attached to the pallets to create the "box" they are shipped in! Takes a bit to breakdown, but after that the options are endless!
I usually buy shorts at the lumber yard as I don’t usually do big projects
that is an interesting idea!
one of my favorite sources for lumber is estate sales. Most of these companies see lumber as a burden and will just put a per piece price on the pile of lumber in the corner or a low price on the entire pile.
Oh ya that is a good one!
It's Sunday and I'm getting my tools ready to go pick up a 1930s oak and walnut wardrobe. Have a nice day everyone.
Sounds like a fun time!
A lot of contractors have a dumpster on the site of new construction, these days most dont save left over lumber because it takes up space thay dont have. If you ask permission its not usually a problem to rifle through the dumpster. You may find some tresure there!
That was how I built my first bench.
Here in Phoenix just trimmed mesquite trees to prepare for the monsoon. The limbs arent that big but a 2 inch slice of mesquite *starts* at $25 at my local wood store. I'd be interested to hear your opinion on the saw mill Wood Mizer craze; Out of the Woods guy gets $800 a slab which means a tree trunk could be $10,000 plus $$$. Good vid thx James.
ya large slabs can go for a mint now a days. I thought about getting one a few years ago!
These are some great tips. most of the time i find lumber for free on a secondhands website. Thaks for sharing your experiences
I work at a loading dock. We have some wood there. Sometimes good, straight 4x4 that I've taken for free. I notice some freight that come in have been packed and braced in plywood and 2x6's. Especially, expensive freight, like marbles, machines and mirrors, etc. I wonder sometimes if those companies give away those lumber.
Thanks for the insight on salvage wood for building a house.....
We have Closeouts and Second hand "thrift" shops for just about everything around here in TN... INCLUDING yep, construction materials.
Lots of "lumber yards" and "big-box stores" also have a "Culls" dispensary... Depending on your market and area, your store of choice may have a large one or a small one... and of course, some don't have such a thing as "Culls"...
Culls are the "screwed up ones" the various sized and shaped specific lumber or materials that simply will not EVER get "full price"... Most popularly, 2x4's are culled around here, so nearly every store (especially the Closeout) has a 2x4 Culls corral, where you get the bent and twisted weirdness of a piece of otherwise "decent" wood for a buck a piece ($1/ea)...
There are ways to flatten and straighten boards without cutting them up, BUT you'll want to be a bit meticulous in the culls racket... They can be pretty bad... Just look for enough reasonable straight wood to accomplish the component you need out of it, and you get wood for a dollar...
I also keep my eyes about when I drive, for buildings in poor condition... This includes shed, garages, barns, any old building... AND when I can I return to those properties and ask questions. I have access to trucks, trailers, and vans, AND plenty of tools, so the offer to clear out a decrepit mess for people can not only earn you some wood for your work... BUT sometimes it gets you PAID TO TAKE IT...
Once in a while, I even get paid to haul off whatever's inside the building(s) TOO!!!
At construction and fabrication sites, there's almost always a "waste pile". This includes renovations, and other than "traditional" construction or carpentry and framing worksites. There's usually a "site boss" who's responsible for safety and all, and you're well advised to talk to him if possible... BE PATIENT AND POLITE. That can work wonders for you.
IF you gain access to the dumpster, there's more than wood at stake. CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF. The biggest complaints these guys have about people who raid the waste is a mess... that they have to answer for. BUT cleaning up, earns you a reputation as a GOOD player.
Rental Shops... There's also the Rent To Own, business models (which I frankly consider dubious at best)... AND they load all manners of broken, damaged, and partially missing items into their dumpsters. Some of them don't even bother paying attention to what's legally allowed in a dumpster, so the garbage pick-up crews (hint hint) will get to know you and be happy as long as you don't leave them a horrible mess either...
Finally...just a word about safety. Whether waste-piles or traditional metal containers... Dumpster diving and trash molestation is DANGEROUS business. Dress and act accordingly. Everything from extremely sharp broken glass to hazardous chemicals and crap you shouldn't even find is probably in there. Handle everything with care and don't just recklessly crash into stuff in the dark with abandon... I've found everything you can think of from cases of porn' videos, to bags of drugs and hypodermic needles in dumpsters. It's a fine place to search for irreplaceable parts and obscure materials... BUT WATCH OUT...
AND PLEASE try to leave it cleaner and nicer than you found it. One person "shit's in the pool" and then everybody suffers... Garbage IS public domain the moment it hits the street or a collection point... BUT leaving a disaster is vandalism and property destruction. They can't legally stop you searching and scouring or taking... They CAN jail us, fine us, harass us, etc... for illicit behavior. ;o)
Lots of good info there
@@WoodByWright Thanks... just hope to produce the better behind me, than when I came here. ;o)
my favourite (england uk) is those rough heavy orangey brown crates that stone gets delivered in here in uk. it looks rough and always warped cupped etc. with a few housrs you can get some absolutely stunning grained pieces with a thicknesser. its so dense and heavy.
ive look and looked what they wood is and im told its eucalyptus but im still not 100 percwent sure
I live in a new house with a lot of construction still going on. I have spoken with several former who tell me I can have any wood I can find in trash piles. 2x 4s, 6s 10s and more.
I go to our county parks. The parks dept. Cuts up trees that have fallen blocking pathways and such. We are not supposed to remove anything from the parks but I do one piece a day. I recently made a side table rustic for out door use I think the wood is hemlock or white cedar not sure but it looks good.
LOL sounds like fun!
We used to get 1/4 " steel cable from indonesia...the 5000ft reels had spoke centers that were all teak woods...one of my coworkers took them apart and. Made a set of coffee table,end tables that were really nice
Sweet! that sounds liek fun!
Most of us are here because we have more time than money. Good tips! How do we identify old furniture that's good for lumber?
Cheap lumber is way better than cheep lumber, which you probably forgot ... is the lumber harvested by Tweety Bird with his tiny bird axe. Every time he hits the cross-grain with his 3 inch hatchet ... he cheeps at both ends because he is so old. Enjoy that. $0.02 Love this channel.
Beat me to it!
LOL Welcome to Wood By Wright. that is half of the fun here!
I like to pick up logs that people have from felling trees on their property. I have picked up some nice white oak that way and lots of pine which I will use for prototypes.
I have also picked up some ash and walnut that way. U can get it free by offering to take away for them. Many folks will go for that because it saves them disposal fees at the landfill.
A local sawyer near me will kill anything I bring him for a really good price. Usually &0.35/ bd ft.
now that is a good friend!
Kind of the same, I’ve been lucky lately old headboards and footboards with really nice mahogany and the sawmill and hardwood dealers that sell rough cut lumber. Take Care
Ooh. Happiness
i worked in aviation building cabinets , tables , galleys , and sideledges . i was the guy that ALWAYS stayed late on Holidays to clean up the shop . it allowed me to scrounge up a TON of exotic hardwood scraps . now that i am retired i have tons of all kinds of Select Exotic hardwood scraps and a 2 foot thick pile of extremely expensive hardwood veneers . It pays off doing clean up , BIGTIME . i also put in scrap passes twice a year at aircraft companies . i ended up with 2 rented storage bldgs slap full of all kinds of exotics to build clocks out of .
Winnipeg Manitoba Palliser furniture so large they produce wood grain printed 11/16 mdf for their furniture production. 1980 $.45 per sq ft 5' x10' sheets . For left over production stock eg 17" x48 " 50 pcs $.15 sq ft. Filled up dads 14 x22 garage piled over 3' high stacks of various sizes for $500 in 1980 11/16 melamine partical core was about $1.30 sq ft
So left over stock can be had for cheap😊
This is very geographical, are lumber yards here that its 2.50 a board foot for kiln dried hard maple, 6 for cherry, 8 for walnut and quarter sawn oak. if u want to build this year, thats the way to go.. finding lumber like you do is a whole hobby on its own.. interesting your outlook and methods, your very frugal lol
ps, im the guy at the cabinet shop throwing out that 8/4 walnut so i have a perception that is influenced by that heavily
yup. I know guys that will spend 300-400 hours pressing and getting the lumber just to save $200 in purchasing it. it is a whole different method.
Futon frames have good useful lumber. I live in a college town and can get them free of charge
now that is a good source!
For Australians i use gumtree, lots of cheap reclaimed hardwood where i live
Cool! I might ahve to add that one to the next list!
@@WoodByWright its like the australian craigslist, only people use it
Thanks everybody for the ideas with so much ingenuity and diversity, along with this great vid as well. I've been trying to find good info on here, but about half the vids are clickbait or "pallets are an excellent source of free wood" 😐
It's not super cheap but if your looking for a sawmill harbor freight has one for $2,000 so like I said not super cheap but I think it goes up to 20" wide and maybe 10-12ft long. And as far as Mills goes the next cheapest is around $8,000
I have a good friend with one of those. he loves it!
Pallets - cruise the industrial areas for old pallets. You can find oak, cherry, walnut, mahogany, teak,
etc, that is in good shape but watch out for nails as these hard wood pallets have seen a lot of use.
I have never seen a pallet made from anything other than cheap pine. I stay away from pallets because they tend to be chemically treated, but also you just never know what nasty shit has been stored on top of them during transportation or in storage
I'm finally getting started with woodworking. I'm finding pine 2x4s ($2) and plywood (~$10) are ok - as long as the knots aren't in way.
You reminded me that there is trucking company down the road that has stacks of free pallets. Maybe I'll check what they have available soon.
There's also a huge lumber mill across the state line that has a massive dump of scraps in back. My father-in-law picks up his winter fire wood there in the fall. We just go into the main office, smile real nice at the lady running the front desk, and ask politely if we can pick through the pile. We haven't been turned down so far. Usually, we can fill up his 12' trailer with nice hickory, redwood and oak - lots of oak. 2 seasons ago he found a nice piece of walnut - 28"x10"x4" - I hope I can find a piece like that this season! Online that would cost over $200 if was available!
Best wishes!
Dave
that sounds like a great place!
Thank you for all the advice I really appreciate it.
Really great info. Especially for a newcomer like me. Also. That joke at the end, while cheesy, still got me to laugh. Good one.
Lol thanks Glad you liked it.
Goodwill. Most of the furniture is fiber board, but occasionally, you'll find solid wood furniture for pennies on the dollar because it's dinged, broken and stained.
I found a great place to get some scrap wood is a moving van place when that take the boxes apart they well give the wood away
I've got a small 4x8 cargo trailer that I had replaced the floor and sides a while back and I stained all of the wood with, what I thought, was a good quality stain. Over time the 4x8 piece of exterior ply started to rot at the rear of the trailer and I have a big whole and delamination going on the rest of the floor. Any ideas for repairing and what woods I will I need to accomplish this calamity?
When it comes to sheet goods it has less to do with the wood and more to do with how you cover them. a high grade exterior paint and calk will do more then the best marine grade plywood.
Wooden beds, great source for hardwood 2x4s / 1x6s, etc.
That people throw away, that is.
You can find a ton of these at the habitat for humanity ReStores. Really really cheap.
I forgot to mention that place!
@@WoodByWright I'm working on an outdoor lumber rack right now. For me the free lumber was taking over my shop. The only disadvantage I can see for free lumber is not having an immediate use.
My main source is a cabinet shop it helps that i know the owner and my brother works there.
Nice!
Outstanding video! Thank you very much for sharing this information with us!
I get pallets from different places in my area , peanut company to fram tractor dealer ships
Keep your eyes open for construction/remodel sites. The lumber that gets thrown away was a big as your sweet walnut slab you showed.
I got 10 beech beams, 2 m long, and around 10 cm wide and 5 cm thick. (It's beautifull wood ^_^ I love beech) for 20 euros further more he basicly gave us a whole load of other wood (including tropical hardwood, square acacia slabs 10cm thick, padouk, ash, oak and something else which I don't know the name of) we got the entire van filled up for 50 euros.. happy days
WOW! that is a great day!
@@WoodByWright being a student has it's perks ;)
I found 8 brand new custom wood doors at the local Habitat store. They came from the local door mill and were mistakes, that is the doors were built wrong for the customer making them worthless to the mill. I paid $150 for all 8, probably less than $1/bf. Next time I will go directly to the door mill and ask them.
I love the restore!
I use a few of these ideas. great stuff.
There's a lot of wood in old box springs.
Yea old furniture is great
Thank youuuuuu🙏🏽💜 wanna make a table or something of the nature oooo
This sounds terrible, but after a particularly bad storm, drive through the area that got hit, and you'll find all kinds of fallen trees and 'ruined' lumber. I'm from NJ, after hurricane Sandy hit the shore, there was all kinds of wood everywhere for months. Trees, pieces of homes, furniture, play sets.. I know, I feel bad profiting off of something like that, but some people are happy to be rid of their storm debris. Also, look up backyard playsets. You know, the big wooden ones the parents love, but the kids grow out of way too fast. Great for out door furniture!
Very true. I know of a few sawyers who got three or four years worth of lumber from a storm like that
Thanks you have given me some ideas on where to look.
my pleasure!
Just so long as you damage your lumbar getting lumber.
Good tips on wood sourcing, Nice to see a well tooled bench, mine looks similar.
Thank you for sharing great information. :)
What do you do when you get a whole lot of mill rejects? I got a whole bunch of undimension pine blocks and miscellaneous pieces and I don't know where to start to make something out of then. I was hopping to make a laminated bench top but the dimensioning seem horrendous. (warpped, bowed twisted... different sizes..)
You can make whatever you want out of them. They just require more work to get them down to a usable shape.
Another idea is to look at thrift stores. They often have cheap furniture and I look for the pieces with good wood that I can salvage.
that is a great oen!
It used to be possible to buy furniture that had seen better days, and recycle the wood - nowadays, furniture made out of "real wood" ( other than new pine ) is thought of as valuable whatever its condition... Some good ideas from you - I will take a look online as you did. Thank you ! You STILL have the Dad's joke book then ! Here's mine - "What do ghosts serve as dessert ? Ice scream !". HA HA ! OK OK I'll shut the door as I leave...
Exactly. I still look for furniture like that in second hand stores. Cheaper pieces of furniture with good wood. But they're indeed becoming harder to find.
@@blokdijkblues It seems to be a universal problem then ! And nowadays some of those older items of furniture can only BE used in new pieces, because modern homes are so much smaller than 50 years ago. Certainly in the UK anyway - how about you ? A wardrobe of mid twentieth century will no longer go into a new home - it will be too tall to fit into the bedrooms ! But it is a joy to rework an old piece into something new, as you say !
@@phildodd9942 you're very right!
A lot of folks heat with wood by me so there is very little in the way of free wood. Although this time of year I may have better luck?
It's got to be interesting to fight with people trying to get more like that lol
@@WoodByWright I have not fought with anyone. There's some places that leave pallets out. But in the winter that goes fast. Right now it is pretty hot so I don't imagine many are running fires to keep warm. But folks that use split wood are already laying it in. The pallet burning crowd is a different social strata you could say. They tend to not plan much in advance.
Made me laugh.! Great video man, great stuff!
GOLD!
thanks!
Always looking for good deals!
Love your channel, but it was the first time I noticed that where your located. I'm here in Louisville ky but grew up in Loves Park , haven't heard anyone from there in along time,by the way I like the free wood suggestions.
thanks John.
i live in rockford!
Very good, thanks
my pleasure!
My wood interest is in power carving (bowls etc.), and I am not fast at it so I just keep my eye open for the occasional DIY tree trimmer that throws his wood in the alley.
Now that's the good stuff. I'm always impressed with what you can find around and piles like that.
Thanks for sharing.
my pleasure!
There’s a dead walnut tree across the street from my house. It makes me nuts that there’s an entire house full of furniture standing there.
Construction, demolition, and remodeling sites offer boatloads of free wood.
Nice.
Is "cheep" lumber like birds-eye maple because it goes "cheep-cheep-cheep" like a bird? Or is it inexpensive lumber which is spelled "cheap"?
Nope. It is Wood By Wright. LOL that is just the kind of fun we have around here.
@@WoodByWright honestly though, there is a website that helps you search for "steals" of that exact variety. If someone misspells their listing as "cheep" lumber, your "cheap" search probably id not going to find that, and those folks tend to lower their prices more often than realizing their spelling mistake. This website helps you by searching several common misspellings of your search, often yielding results in which folks have dropped prices due to no interest.
Anyway it can sometimes be very helpful to search misspellings.
That's funny I'm going to enjoy this one just figured out I need 10 2×6's. As far as free goes your right you always spend something and I prefer to spend time, it's how I built my workshop only spending $85, and that sounds like a horrible shop, but I have a table saw, scroll saw, 3 routers (one attached to a table), a compound sliding miter saw, like 10 hand planes, tons of chisels ECT. Didn't spend a bunch of money but I did spend a lot of time doing things for people and in my opinion tools are a better payment than cash. I get my wood from the woods surrounding my home, but Sawyer's around here are expensive so learning to split and size with hammer, wedges, and planes.
NIce! sounds like a good use of time to me!
Wood in the woods by me rots out so fast I'd have to be there when the tree falls to get it before it goes punky.
@@1pcfred I live in North Florida it's generally pretty hot, by noon my 11,000 gallon pool is 98° and it still feels better than ambient temperature outside. It's generally rather humid but when the trees here die they stay very hard even while they spalt so once it's dead you have a couple years before you have to cut it down or risk it falling, then you have a couple more before it starts to get punky, even during rain season it dries out pretty quick, plus 80% of the trees near me are Live Oak and that stuff is tough
@@drawlele I guess you'd have to see what I am dealing with here to appreciate it? I've never seen anything quite like it myself. I've lived in Florida too. My woods just has its way of dealing with dead wood that is quite efficient. If it isn't pressure treated any wood outside here is not long for this world. Right now the humidity is only 93% So a rather dry spell for this time of year.
@@1pcfred I grew up in northern Indiana and southern Michigan and after the thaw of snow it was wet for awhile sometimes and wood would rot out quickly if not used in one way or another. If you don't mind where are you at? 93% is either muggy like you don't want or super soggy and chilly in my experience.
Your work place looks like Ace Ventura's apt, except there are tools instead of animals. :-)
Lol yeah something like that.
1:36...plane heads... must be a new type of tool! Lol
lol yup! got to love what comes out of your mouth when you are thinking about the next line.
I just took it as it was a plain head to his mallet, nothing super fancy done with crazy woods or anything! I’m a newb so apparently it went over my head lol 😂
I look at 'Flea Market's .
not even done watching and already commenting - thanks for sharing!
GOLD! LOL!
Plane heads. Hmmm. That’s a new one.
Construction sites
Garbage furniture are great.
Whatever your caffeine intake is, you should cut it in half.
But what if it's zero?
i have gotten free solid doors made from hardwoods.
that is a great source!
I can get palettes for free or, it's the timber yard where the choice is expensive pine or don't even think about it, horrendously priced anything else.
I've gotten free sycamore from tree service guys cutting down tree in Los Angels.
that is a good one!
Florida after hurricane Michael.
oh ya. I have a few friends that chase storms for lumber!
You almost got a dislike for that joke, lol.
Lol I will try harder.
🧡💯😎👍👍
Timber not tembler
Welcoem to Wood By Wright. I do something fun with that slide every time.
LOL
erm... it's spelled 'cheap'
Welcome to my right. That's half the fun.
@@WoodByWright really?....ok. just looks like a mistake
@@Ana_crusis I regularly mess up the spelling in the titles and title cards. Makes for a lot of fun.
@@WizardsNews
oh dear, there's always someone isn't there?
"Makes for a lot of fun." ??? really???
each to their own as they say...it's not something i would derive much fun from myself...can't see the hilarity in simply misspelling a word, not unless it involved a very clever pun
they often do have a pun, but most of the time they are just there to drive the profectionist nuts!
That’s kind of a loaded question, Where do you go to find WOOD? I wish my wife asked herself that question more often. lol 😂 I’m just kidding, but I’m actually serious.
Please correct the spelling in your title: cheap, with an 'a'. Thank you.
lol welcome to wood by right. That's half the fun of this channel. I like to put those in from time to time in different places. Especially the title card I usually try to miss something up in there every week.
Dont be condescending it dose not work well for you. We are not in school and we dont care
@@larrymedlin3546 D-O-E-S, you nincompoop
@@larrymedlin3546 No, we're not in school, but we are in a literate and articulate society. That means we should all care about correct spelling, grammar and punctuation. If you don't care, you are in the minority, and the rest of the world laughs at you for being such a bird brain.
@@WoodByWright Might be fun for you, but you have to bear in mind that YT is viewed not only by native speakers with little or no education, but also by non-native speakers who wish to improve their English. It's therefore unfair that you burden them with misspelt words for the rest of their lives.
CHEAP!
nope Cheep! that is half the fun of Wood By Wright.