Recycling & Processing Reclaimed Lumber
We transform salvaged wood from rough, nail-filled boards into premium building materials through our six-step processing pipeline. Every piece gets the attention it deserves.
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From Salvage to Showroom
Our processing pipeline is designed to maximize the quality and usability of every board while minimizing waste at every stage.
Intake & Sorting
Incoming lumber is inventoried by species, dimensions, and condition. We separate structural-grade wood from cosmetic-grade stock and identify specialty pieces like old-growth cypress and heart pine.
Every board is tagged and tracked through our entire processing pipeline.
De-Nailing & Metal Detection
Skilled workers hand-remove every nail, screw, bolt, and staple. After manual de-nailing, every board passes through an industrial metal detector to catch embedded fasteners invisible to the eye.
This protects your saw blades and ensures clean, safe wood.
Cleaning & Inspection
Boards are pressure-washed or dry-brushed depending on the species and end use. We inspect for structural defects, insect damage, rot, and chemical contamination.
Any compromised material is culled and diverted to appropriate recycling streams.
Kiln Drying
Lumber is loaded into our dehumidification kiln and dried to 8-12% moisture content over 7-14 days depending on species and thickness. This kills any remaining insects and stabilizes the wood dimensionally.
Kiln schedules are calibrated per species to prevent checking and case hardening.
Planing & Milling
Dried lumber is planed to consistent thickness and width on our industrial moulder. We can surface one, two, or all four sides, and mill tongue-and-groove, shiplap, or custom profiles.
Available rough-sawn for rustic applications or S4S for precision work.
Grading & Inventory
Finished lumber is visually graded for both structural and aesthetic quality. Each piece is labeled with species, grade, dimensions, and moisture content before entering our sales inventory.
We use clear, consistent grading standards so you know exactly what you are buying.
The Sustainability Difference
Recycling lumber isn't just good business — it's essential for the environment. Here's the measurable impact of our operation.
Tons of CO2 Prevented
Every ton of reclaimed lumber prevents approximately 1.5 tons of CO2 emissions compared to harvesting and milling new timber.
Board Feet Processed Annually
Our facility processes over half a million board feet of reclaimed lumber each year, keeping massive volumes of wood out of landfills.
Trees Saved Annually
By reclaiming and processing used lumber, we reduce demand for newly harvested timber, preserving forests across the South.
Material Recovery Rate
Of all lumber that enters our facility, 95% is processed into usable product. The remaining 5% is chipped for mulch or biomass.
Before & After Processing
See what our processing pipeline does to reclaimed wood. The transformation is dramatic — but the character is preserved.
Nail-riddled, rough boards from a demolished warehouse
Clean, kiln-dried, S4S dimensional lumber ready for fine woodworking
Dirty heart pine flooring pulled from a 150-year-old home
Resurfaced T&G flooring with rich, warm patina and tight grain exposed
Massive, bark-covered beams from an industrial building
Hand-hewn beams cleaned and sealed for exposed ceiling installation
Weathered cypress siding with peeling paint and surface rot
Planed shiplap paneling revealing the stunning silver-gray heartwood beneath
Capacity & Turnaround Times
Our Michoud Blvd facility is equipped to handle projects of every scale, from a single mantel beam to a full commercial renovation.
Our 8-Point Inspection Process
Every board that leaves our facility passes through an 8-point quality control inspection. This rigorous process ensures that our reclaimed lumber meets or exceeds professional building standards.
Species Verification
Each board is positively identified by species through grain pattern analysis, density testing, and when necessary, microscopic examination of cellular structure. Mislabeled species are the most common quality issue in the reclaimed lumber industry — we eliminate it.
Moisture Content Testing
We use pin-type and pinless moisture meters to verify every board has reached 8-12% moisture content after kiln drying. Boards outside this range are returned to the kiln. We log moisture readings for every batch and can provide documentation on request.
Metal Detection Scan
After hand de-nailing, every board passes through an industrial metal detector that identifies embedded nails, screws, staples, and wire fragments as small as 1/16 inch. Any detected metal is removed before the board advances. This protects your tools and ensures clean material.
Structural Integrity Assessment
We evaluate each board for splits, checks, wane, twist, bow, and crook. Structural lumber is tested for load-bearing capacity when dimensions warrant it. Boards with critical structural defects are downgraded to cosmetic-only use or culled entirely.
Insect & Decay Inspection
Every board is visually inspected for signs of active or historic insect damage (termite galleries, powder post beetle exit holes, carpenter bee tunnels) and fungal decay (soft rot, brown rot, white rot). Kiln drying kills active insects, but structural damage is assessed independently.
Dimensional Accuracy
Planed lumber is measured with digital calipers at multiple points to verify consistent thickness and width within 1/32-inch tolerance. Length is measured and labeled. Random-width boards are sorted into width categories for consistent inventory management.
Surface Quality Review
We check for planer snipe, tear-out, machine marks, and surface contamination (paint residue, adhesive, mineral deposits). Boards with surface defects are re-planed or hand-sanded before advancing. The goal is a surface that is ready to finish without additional client-side preparation.
Final Grading & Labeling
Each board receives a final visual grade (Select, #1 Common, #2 Common, or Rustic) based on the cumulative results of all previous inspection points. Species, grade, dimensions, and moisture content are stamped or tagged on every piece entering inventory.
Environmental Metrics Per 1,000 Board Feet Processed
We track the environmental impact of our recycling operation in detail. Here is how reclaiming 1,000 board feet of lumber compares to the environmental cost of harvesting and milling the equivalent volume of new timber.
Methodology Note
These figures are based on EPA lifecycle analysis data for softwood lumber production, adjusted for our specific processing operations (dehumidification kiln energy consumption, planer energy use, and fleet fuel consumption). Water savings reflect the difference between sawmill operations (log washing, cooling, and dust suppression) and our dry processing methods. Carbon calculations include both avoided emissions from landfill decomposition and avoided manufacturing emissions from virgin timber production. We update these metrics annually with audited operational data.
From Demolition Site to Finished Product
These detailed before-and-after descriptions show the full scope of transformation our processing achieves on real salvage projects.
Cotton Warehouse Cypress Beams
Twelve massive bald cypress beams, 10x12 and 18 to 24 feet long, pulled from an 1880s cotton warehouse on Tchoupitoulas Street. Covered in decades of grime, industrial dust, and residual cotton fiber. Multiple beam pockets contained rusted iron bolts and bearing plates. Surface was dark black-brown with no visible grain.
After pressure washing, hand de-nailing (47 fasteners removed per beam on average), and light surface planing to reveal the grain, these beams were transformed into architectural showpieces. The heartwood underneath was a rich honey-gold with tight, uniform growth rings at 14 rings per inch. Each beam was sealed with a penetrating oil finish and now serves as exposed ceiling beams in a Warehouse District loft conversion.
Victorian Heart Pine Flooring
Approximately 2,200 square feet of tongue-and-groove heart pine flooring removed from a double-gallery house in the Garden District during renovation. Boards were 3/4" x 3-1/4" with original cut nails. Surface was stained, gouged, and covered with multiple layers of polyurethane dating back decades. Several boards had water staining from a roof leak.
Each board was de-nailed by hand (cut nails require special extraction to prevent splitting). Water-damaged boards were culled (approximately 8% loss). Remaining flooring was kiln-dried to 10% MC, then run through our moulder to remove 1/16" from the face, revealing the original tight-grain surface in warm amber tones. Re-milled tongue-and-groove profiles ensure a snug fit. The finished flooring was purchased by a homeowner in Covington for a whole-house installation.
Industrial White Oak Joists
A set of 86 white oak floor joists (2x10 and 2x12) salvaged from a 1930s industrial building in Gretna. Boards were heavily surface-soiled with decades of industrial grime, each containing 6-12 wire nails and occasional lag bolts from equipment mounting. Some joists had notches cut for conduit runs.
After de-nailing and metal detection (3 embedded fasteners caught by detector that were invisible on surface), joists were kiln-dried and planed to reveal clean quartersawn and rift-sawn faces. The white oak grain was tight and consistent with beautiful ray fleck patterns. Notched boards were cut to shorter usable lengths. The finished stock was resold as premium millwork blanks to a cabinetmaker in Covington.
Schoolhouse Bead Board Ceiling
Over 3,500 board feet of 1x6 bead board ceiling paneling removed from a 1910 schoolhouse in Houma. Panels had multiple layers of institutional paint (tested lead-free), some boards were split along the bead profile from crude removal, and all edges had dried adhesive residue from old acoustic tile installation.
Paint was removed by planing 1/8" from the face, which also eliminated the adhesive residue. Split boards were re-edged on the table saw and re-profiled. The cypress underneath was in exceptional condition — pale cream to light gold color with remarkably consistent grain. Final yield was approximately 2,900 BF of reinstallable bead board. Sold to a designer for a restaurant ceiling installation in the French Quarter.
Need Custom Processing?
We offer custom milling, profiling, and finishing services for your own reclaimed lumber. Bring us your raw salvage and we'll return finished product.