# Recycled wood



## MrStucky (Nov 28, 2015)

Hello.
Has anyone ever built benchwork or their entire layout using wood from pallets? I'm still browsing the Kijiji website in the "free" section & lots of people have free wood, doors, fence boards & pallets for anybody to pick up.. I know that maybe I shouldn't go this route, plus the fact my brother has a car while I have a buspass. I also promise that I will use glue & screws to build my layout, not the handyman's secret weapon "Duct Tape"

Thanks


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## sid (Mar 26, 2018)

i dont know where oyu live but around here behind our lowes and homedepots they throw away pallets that were rigged to hold odd objects . i have found many 1x3 and 1 x 4 boards 8 feet an under all free for the taking (they just bust it all up and dump it ) i have found much wood that way. my other hobby is wood working. built many tables chairs ect for out door use and some indoor use.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Most pallets I've seen are made of a quite heavy
wood. No problem with that if you can handle it.

Yes, use screws and bolts to build your benchwork.
Never nails. That way you can easily take it apart and
reuse the lumber if you change your layout design.

Don


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## MrStucky (Nov 28, 2015)

Hi Sid.
I live in western Canada & there is a Lowes nearby. I hadn't thought about "looking" behind the store for pallets. I guess I can just ask to be on the safe side. I also have a card for Home Depot & I know they cut wood in store for paying customers, Lowes probably does the same but I'm not sure.

Thanks


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## MrStucky (Nov 28, 2015)

Hi Don.
I agree with you about the weight of some pallets. I could handle it, but I also thought of breaking up the pallet &, using rope to "fashion" a handle to carry it home to make it easier hopefully


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## Dennis461 (Jan 5, 2018)

MrStucky said:


> Hello.
> Has anyone ever built benchwork or their entire layout using wood from pallets? ...
> 
> Thanks


Not an entire layout, but a significant amount.
My 18" reversing loop fit nicely on a 40" square pallet. The pallet I found needed sanding before stapling down the plastic road sign underlayment. Used latex caulk to fasten cork roadbed to that.


I'll post some pics later.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Many pallets are built using screw nails or twist nails and are not easy to remove.

By the time many businesses throw away pallets, the wood has seen better days. 

More power to you if you find something usable.


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## Chaostrain (Jan 27, 2015)

My first layout was an 8'X12' N scale with the benchwork built complete from any scrap wood I could find. The formality of pallets would have been a blessing. Does your brother's car have a roof rack? Maybe rent a pickup from U-Haul? A friend with a pickup will do it for gas? Enjoy and good luck.


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## MrStucky (Nov 28, 2015)

Hi Michael.
I noticed some pallets today outside of a liquor store. The first one I noticed was built with nails & was in good shape except for a few splits on some of the top boards. I figured I could cut out the bad parts to make a nice square piece, except I don't have all the tools. A truck would be nice to have for starters or a shrink ray.


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## MrStucky (Nov 28, 2015)

HI Chaos.
My brother has an suv & most of my dad's tools, including a mitre saw I believe. I know the owner of the house where I live has some tools. I'll have to talk to her before I start my wood collection. I posted another thread before this one. Its is the same category, you can put in your two cents if you'd like.


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## sid (Mar 26, 2018)

MrStucky said:


> Hi Sid.
> I live in western Canada & there is a Lowes nearby. I hadn't thought about "looking" behind the store for pallets. I guess I can just ask to be on the safe side. I also have a card for Home Depot & I know they cut wood in store for paying customers, Lowes probably does the same but I'm not sure.
> 
> Thanks


most of the stuff i get is made of cheap pine wood very light wieght an soft wood . it tends to break easy if stressed to much but its not heavy wood like a normal pallet is. im talking about wooden structures that hold other items for shipments ie bath tubs, sinks, lawn mowers ,patio furniture ect .


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Most of the pallets I have seen are made of very cheap wood -- loaded with splits and knots and have seen better days: chipped, dinged and broken. And the raw wood isn't even planed, so they are very rough and loaded with splinters.

My personal opinion is that if you only look at the actual financial expenditure, using old pallets can seem like a good idea, but for me (at least) time is also a scarce resource, and by the time I had salvaged enough good wood from old pallets, I would have long since passed the point where buying new would have been a more cost-effective solution.

Is there a lot of new construction near you? Construction companies, especially those constructing timber-framed homes, throw a lot of wood away. Have a word with the contractor, and he may be more than happy to let you have scraps (they pay tipping fees for disposal by weight and / or volume, so when you take it, they save money). That may be a better source of "used" wood than pallets.


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## Dennis461 (Jan 5, 2018)

*When you are given a lemon...*

To me it makes good sense to reuse a pallet for framework, especially if you are planning a large flat area. I took a 41" square pallet, made legs, sanded the top and stuffed it in a corner of my room. Covered the top with cardboard, plastic signs and raised roadbed. Then put plaster everywhere else.

Quick and easy. Dis-mantling a pallet is a cheap way to get short pieces of lumber, time consuming, and about 50% will be waste (or firewood)


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## BCFx (Jul 22, 2018)

MichaelE said:


> Many pallets are built using screw nails or twist nails and are not easy to remove.
> 
> By the time many businesses throw away pallets, the wood has seen better days.
> 
> More power to you if you find something usable.


This was my problem. By the time I found free pallets the wood was so old and worn that the boards cracked in half when I tried to take it apart. 
It didn't help that I was in that early building stage rush. I did get to use some boards and supplemented them with lumber from the local big box hardware store.


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## Chaostrain (Jan 27, 2015)

Another place to find good used lumber is a Habitat for Humanity Restore or a similar place. That will also give the added bonus of helping a wonderful cause.


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## sid (Mar 26, 2018)

Chaostrain said:


> Another place to find good used lumber is a Habitat for Humanity Restore or a similar place. That will also give the added bonus of helping a wonderful cause.


yes thats another good place too along with paints wires and dont forget to look in there trash bin. ive found dc power from a car track and lots of the wire srip terminal connections the ones with 10 or so screws . i dig in them when ever im close to one. they throw away computers in there to. its trash to them but a gold mine to us. never know what you will find.


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