The hills are quiet and snow dusted, and a winding dirt drive leads to a home half-built into the hillside. This home, built and owned by James Moore, is sustainably designed and features many reclaimed finds from EcoBuilding Bargains, the largest reclaimed building materials store in New England.
As a regular visitor to the store, Moore likes to use his great finds in his building projects. “I pay attention, and if I see something coming through the doors there in Springfield,” Moore notes, “I pick it up and put it in storage and use them in my projects.” For this home build, Moore used a number of finds from EcoBuilding Bargains. These include all the windows, including specialty windows, a clawfoot bathtub, a cabinet set, and more. He was also able to upcycle a reclaimed door for an awesome creative reuse project!
The reclaimed cabinet set he found had enough cabinets to supply Moore with sufficient storage space for both his kitchen and enough to make an additional workbench in his garage. Another cabinet set provides extra storage space just outside the kitchen area.
In the bathroom, Moore installed a clawfoot tub that he purchased from EcoBuilding Bargains. It fits perfectly beneath the picture window, allowing sunlight to stream in and illuminate the room, giving the space a relaxing atmosphere.
All the windows in the house also came from EcoBuilding Bargains, including specialty triangle windows and the row of windows along the front of the house. Moore acknowledged the challenges of working with reclaimed materials, noting that each product may have different coding or framing requirements. “You need to have the product in your hand and work with it,” Moore said, “but I think the feeling you get afterward seems to be worth it.”
However, Moore doesn’t find these challenges a deterrent to using reclaimed materials.
“I try to use reused building materials for a number of reasons,” Moore explained. “Aside from the fact that we throw too much away and it’s of great service if we can put them back to use, the cost is very often affordable, I enjoy the challenge of working with recycled materials, and I like the feeling. It leaves me with a good feeling environmentally that I’ve done something good.”
In addition to using reclaimed building materials, Moore was able to upcycle an old door, giving it a new life by converting it into a wine rack! Isn’t that a great idea?
Reusing building materials, the way Moore has, is a great way to reduce waste. In 2017, construction and demolition debris accounted for more than twice the amount of generated municipal solid waste in the U.S. You can make a difference by donating your used building materials and shopping for reclaimed items to use in your new projects.
Hear more from James Moore on using reclaimed materials in his home by checking out our video!
