Salvaging
The Origins of Our Wood
HTK Timberworks is proud to be part of the urban wood movement in Indiana. The term urban wood describes wood products produced from trees found in local municipalities that were removed for a reason other than to harvest their lumber. Reasons for removal can include death, storm damage, disease, and urban development. We salvage our wood from local tree removal services, landowners, and neighbors to help prevent this valuable resource from being sent to the landfill. The logs we source are typically between 20" and 54" in diameter. Our mission at HTK Timberworks is to recycle these local trees into quality slabs and lumber for woodworkers around the state of Indiana.
Why Urban Wood?
Removing trees in urban areas has traditionally been considered a waste problem for many municipalities. Often times the entire tree is taken to the landfill or parts of the tree are chipped up for mulch, which then decomposes.
An important feature of trees is their ability to store carbon, which is why planting trees is good for the environment. However, trees release their carbon in the form of carbon dioxide during decomposition, which then creates an environmental concern.
This is where urban wood provides the solution.
Studies have demonstrated that wood continues to store its carbon after being manufactured into solid wood products. This research suggests reusing wood from urban trees to make new products could contribute to long-term carbon sequestration, which helps mitigate the build-up of greenhouse gases. That's why we choose urban.
