It all started a century or two ago. Trees were cut down manually – with axes. Then from the timbers the hefty beams and boards were cut.
It was a similar process for all the buildings on the homestead: house, barns and sheds or outbuildings. Everything was hand cut and structured using the tried and true mortise and tenon system. Many of the buildings stood for a century or more.
Today, with less farming and as these buildings continue to age some are restored close to their original state and others are felled or disassembled piece by piece, so that as much as possible, the precious natural resource – the wood, can be reclaimed.
After the structure is disassembled, the lumber is hauled to the lumber handling yard where it undergoes a cleaning and drying process. All the lumber is run under a metal detector twice where the nails are marked and removed, then stacked for drying.
It is then kiln-dried to 7% moisture and also to exterminate all the bugs and insects as the lumber moves closer to being useable for handcrafted reclaimed barnwood furniture.
The barnwood process is an excellent green way to preserve the old and vintage and give the precious natural resource – wood – a second life.