Reclaimed Wood
Goosebay stocks a wide variety of reclaimed wood. Wood from the exterior of barns is weathered and gray, the wood from the interior of the barns is brown in appearance. Reclaimed wood is aged and as a result, even if you plane the wood to reveal the interior, it will be aged and darker in color than new, freshly milled lumber.
The lumber is sold by the square foot (SQFT) of the face of the board. Most boards are about one inch thick, but thickness can vary by the nature of the wood. Wood in old barns was usually sawn in small local mills. The accuracy of the period equipment in these mills would have varied.
Some people prefer to have their reclaimed lumber kiln dried (KD). The heat of the kiln will help to ensure that any insects that may have been present in the original structure would be eliminated. Other people prefer to use the wood “as is” directly as it was taken from the building. Often there are no insects in the wood.
We also have several sizes of reclaimed beams available. They range in length from 8 feet to 16 feet, but we often have beams that are up to 40 feet in length. Sizes range from 4 to 10 inches square. Beams are sold by the Board Foot. There is a simple formula in our Glossary that will help you calculate board footage.
Reclaimed hand hewn beams are those beams that were sized with an adze. They retain the markings of the adze, which are small “scoops” along the faces of the beam.
Reclaimed Chestnut
Reclaimed Chestnut Lumber is American Chestnut wood from disassembled barns. It has been kiln dried (to kill any insects), de-nailed, and scanned for metal.
Chestnut wood is easily worked by hand or machine and it stains, glues, and finishes well. The heartwood is coarse-grained and susceptible to splitting, so care must be taken if you are nailing it. It is not a first choice for turning because of the coarse grain.
| Measure | Grade | Finish | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4/4 | CHESTNUT | $12.00 | |
| 8/4 | CHESTNUT | $15.00 | |
| 4/4 | KD SOFTWOOD DENAILED | DENAILED | $6.95 |
| MIXED | AIR DRIED | $5.00 | |
| Beams | AIR DRIED | W/ NAILS | $5.00 |
What Happened to the American Chestnut Trees?
American Chestnut has been functionally extinct for decades. It used to have a range that stretched from Maine to Michigan and south to Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. A blight was inadvertently introduced in the early 1900’s and in about 50 years the entire species was wiped out.
American Chestnut is “functionally extinct” because the blight can’t destroy the root systems. You may see young American Chestnut trees growing from old stumps. As soon as the saplings reach the size of a small tree, the blight kills them. This usually happens within 5 yrs. The tallest the tree will grow is about 20 feet.
