Sustainability and the homefront

I have to write this blog as a celebration more than anything. For those that have ever visited our website you may know that we are fans of sustainability from a bigger picture view. I am an avid fan of domestic wood species and local sourcing of material. Domestic species have less of a carbon footprint with regards to transport and they have a great dimensionality with regards to potential for appearances. In addition our domestic economy is strengthened from buying in our borders and as everyone knows right now we need that more than ever.

This is the latest news I received today from the National Wood Flooring Association:

"U.S. House Passes Pro-Hardwoods Resolution
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed Resolution 81, non-binding legislation that urges American hardwood products be "given full consideration in any program directed at constructing environmentally preferable commercial, public, or private buildings" because U.S. forests are a legal, abundant and sustainable resource. The resolution passed with unanimous support. Integral to the resolution passage was Rep. Brad Ellsworth of Indiana. "We want to thank everyone who took the time to encourage their Member of Congress to support this resolution," says the Hardwood Federation's Deb Hawkinson. "The resolution needed 50 co-sponsors, and thanks to the industry's efforts there were 52."

Old houses and historically accurate repairs

I was working last week on the home of my friends Patrick Galvin and Ellen Galvin in order to restore a section of flooring in their home that was buried under carpet. As you can see in the following sequence of photos the removal of the carpet revealed a couple of surprises.

After removing the carpet we installed salvaged old growth fir flooring reclaimed from a school in Milton-Freewater. The floors were sanded and finished according to our standard process. As you can see in the next photos the floor maintains an original appearance. This is critical not only for appearance, but for maintaining a historically accurate appearance.