Reclaimed 101


Related Blog Posts

Original Face vs. Smooth Face vs. Skip Planed Flooring

When deciding on reclaimed flooring to use in a space, most people focus on species and finish to determine which flooring will look best. But really, the milling of the flooring plays a large role in how the finished product will look. To better illustrate this, let’s look at Antique Reclaimed Oak Flooring in three different varieties: Original Face, Smooth Face and Skip Planed. See more

The Cost of Reclaimed Flooring

As a manufacturer and distributor of reclaimed building materials, we recognize that there is a lot of misinformation and confusion associated with the cost of reclaimed products. Cost can first be better understood by understanding the difference between a raw, unfinished product and a well-manufactured, ready to install product. Before purchasing reclaimed materials online, it’s a good idea to take time to make sure you are comparing apples to apples and are fully aware of the condition of the product. See more

Bringing Home the Barns

Over a hundred years ago, thousands of barns across America were built with such care and quality craftsmanship that they can still be seen today if you were to take a drive down a rural road in nearly any state. These beautiful barns which were once an integral part of American life, are unfortunately in many cases, no longer needed and are being torn down and discarded. Never one to let history make its way into a landfill, Southend Reclaimed has salvaged millions of board feet of reclaimed barnwood through the years that have ended up in homes, offices and retail spaces across the country. See more


Related Videos

The Journey Of Reclaimed Wood

Southend Reclaimed Introduction

Everything You Want to Know About Reclaimed Products

What is meant by reclaimed building materials?  Reclaimed materials are salvaged from old structures that do not serve a functional purpose anymore. These salvaged, or “reclaimed” materials, can then be used again today for new building projects.  Reclaiming is a great way to preserve history and build Green. [back to top]

How is the process of reclamation done? Reclaiming antique building materials involves a number of detailed and dedicated steps. First, we find obsolete structures that were built using historic woods such as antique heart pine, antique oak, and wormy chestnut, then carefully remove them - saving them from the landfill and extinction. As the timbers are removed we select the finest ones, de-nail them by hand, and send them to the sawmill to be converted into flooring. Our sawmill runs these historic timbers through a tedious and perfected process that includes kiln drying - to safe-guard against shrinking and swelling - and precision tongue and groove molding - to ensure maximum strength and support. The result is a floor with an unmatched beauty, history, and character. [back to top]

What is reclaimed flooring? Southend Reclaimed salvages valuable, unique and formerly used wood resources from obsolete structures. The wood species we find range from antique heart pine to antique oak to wormy chestnut.  Southend then mills this wood into both solid and engineered flooring that adds distinction and rarity to your home or next building project. [back to top]

What is Green flooring?  Green flooring refers to environmentally friendly flooring. [back to top]

What is barn board?  As the name implies, barn board is reclaimed wood from antique barns. [back to top]

What are reclaimed woods?   They are various wood species reclaimed from historic structures. [back to top]

What are textile mills?  Textile mills are manufacturing facilities that provided goods for the apparel and industrial industries.  They sprung up throughout the United States during the Industrial boom in the late1800’s to early 1900’s.  Starting in the late 1900’s as the textile industry began to move overseas, many of these historic mills had to shut their doors.  Southend specializes in finding and extracting the rare materials left inside of them. [back to top]

What is meant by raw materials?  Raw materials refer to material in its unaltered form that has been removed from an antique structure.  Southend surface cleans and palletizes these raw materials and ships them to flooring manufacturers, wood workers, and brick dealers. [back to top]

What is meant by reclaimed timber?  Reclaimed timbers refer to any large piece of salvaged lumber. [back to top]

What is meant by beams?  Beams usually refer to large antique heart pine timbers that were used as structural support in textile mills, manufacturing facilities and warehouses. These beams typically stretch  25+ feet long, 13 inches wide, and 15 inches thick.  It is because of these unusually large timbers that wide plank flooring and custom millwork is possible. [back to top]

What is an obsolete structure?  An obsolete structure no longer serves a functional purpose in today’s world.  Many obsolete structures are torn down so the land may be built on again.  Southend takes great pride is saving these historic structures from the landfill. [back to top]

What is antique heart pine?  Antique heart pine has a history and beauty you will not find in any other wood.  Before North America was settled, longleaf pine trees grew throughout the Southeastern coastal states -- from Florida to Texas and northward to Virginia.  The trees took hundreds of years to mature and grew to upwards of 150 feet tall.  At maturity, longleaf pines were composed almost entirely of "heart" wood, which is the best part of the tree for use in building.  The "heart" of this majestic wood formed through centuries of slow and steady growth when its resin hardened and petrified, leaving unmatched strength and beauty.  It is "heart content" that makes antique heart pine stand apart from other wood.  Since it is formed over hundreds of years as the resin hardens, it infuses the trees with an uncommon amount of strength and stability. In addition, the heart content produces unique colors - rich amber tones with streaks of honey - which add to this majestic wood's beauty. [back to top]

What is reclaimed oak? Southend Reclaimed offers a distinct line of reclaimed antique oak - perhaps the most well-known of all the American wood species- at an affordable price. Reclaimed from country-side barns and other historic structures evoking elements of Americana, reclaimed oak flooring has its own unique story to tell. Understated hues, random nail holes, and other marks from ages past give this floor a universal appeal. Our standard line is comprised of a beautiful blend of red and white oak, just as it was used in the historic barns it came from. [back to top]

What is wormy chestnut? American chestnut trees have been virtually decimated, due to a blight caused by an Asian bark fungus in the early 1900’s.  Before the species was devastated it was one of the most important forest trees growing throughout eastern North America.  Today there are few, if any, mature specimens of the tree remaining. During the slow death of these trees they were often infested with small borers, which chewed pin sized holes in the wood, thus giving it the name “wormy chestnut.”  Southend Reclaimed now reclaims this special wood from old barns throughout the eastern United States.  With its subtle hues, worm holes, and random nail holes, wormy chestnut has its own distinctive appeal admired by many. [back to top]

What is meant by solid plank flooring?   Solid plank flooring refers to standard tongue and groove construction.  “Plank” flooring indicates long lengths and wide widths. [back to top]

What is pre-finished engineered flooring?    Engineered hardwood flooring consists of layers of wood pressed together and glued. In our case the top layer is a veneer slice of a reclaimed species pressed onto a mixed hardwood backing. The benefits of pre-finished engineered flooring are: 1) it helps rare reclaimed species to last longer since you’re using less of it 2) it can be used in applications where standard solid wood flooring is problematic – such as moisture prone areas, concrete slabs, remodeling jobs (saw dust free=less mess) 3) It allows for very wide widths without the necessity of face nailing. This is because engineered flooring provides extra stability.  It arrives to the customer sanded, finished, and ready to install. Also worth noting, is pre-finished engineered wood flooring is estimated to make up half or more of the hardwood flooring industries sales, and it is the fastest growing product line in the industry. [back to top]

What is unfinished engineered flooring? Engineered hardwood flooring consists of layers of wood pressed together and glued.   In our case the top layer is a veneer slice of a reclaimed species pressed onto a mixed hardwood backing. The benefits of unfinished engineered flooring are: 1) it helps rare reclaimed species to last longer since you’re using less of it. 2) it can be used in applications where standard solid wood flooring is problematic – such as moisture prone area, concrete slabs, remodeling jobs 3) It allows for very wide widths without the necessity of face nailing. This is because engineered flooring provides extra stability. 4) This option allows you to pick the stain of your choice. [back to top]

What is a wear-layer?  The wear-layer is the top layer of engineered flooring, i.e., the part that will be seen and walked on once it is installed. [back to top]

What is the substrate?   The substrate is the foundation for the wear layer. [back to top]

What are relief cuts?  Relief cuts are vertical grooves running the length of the bottom-side of flooring.  They add extra stability to the overall structural integrity of the floor. [back to top]

What is de-nailing? Since we reclaim this material from historic structures, there is a high potential for them to contain nails from previous use. We, of course, de-nail the material, but the nails leave their "mark" in the process. Without a doubt, if you are drawn to the uniqueness of reclaimed antique heart pine, you will love the random nail holes which act as "footprints" to help tell its story. [back to top]

What is kiln drying?  Kiln drying is a process of carefully heating wood to release excessive moisture within the wood.  It brings the lumber down to uniform moisture content to ensure that the lumber and/or flooring remains stable for a lifetime.  An added benefit is that it also ensures that any possible dormant insects remaining in the reclaimed wood are eradicated. [back to top]

What is a vertical grain pattern?   Vertical grain is a pinstriped pattern achieved along the full length of the board by using the quarter sawing process. [back to top]

What does heart content mean?  Heartwood is formed when sapwood becomes inactive and is infused with additional resin compounds. It develops slowly in the center of the tree as the tree matures. The older the tree, the higher the heart content. According to the U.S. Forest Service a 200-year-old longleaf pine averages only 65% heart content (all the 200-year-old trees are now protected and cannot be cut). Longleaf heartwood exhibits rich colors when exposed to light and oxygen. As heart content decreases, color tones can vary widely from pale red to yellow. [back to top]

What are grain patterns?  Each tree has its own grain pattern. This is the direction in which the wood cell fibers grow.  There are three distinct grain patterns: plain sawn, vertical (quarter sawn), and curly (marbled). Plain sawn has an arching grain. Vertical has pinstripes with no growth rings over 45 degrees perpendicular to the face. Curly is the rarest. [back to top]

What is meant by rustic?  A rustic grade of lumber or flooring displays heavy character marks with an aged patina.  The more rustic the grade, the more character-filled the wood. [back to top]

What is sapwood?   Sapwood (non-heart) is the lighter colored wood on the outer perimeter of the log. It does not deepen in color and is not as hard as the heartwood. The best grades do not contain any sapwood. Lesser grades can have up to 50% sapwood and may today still be called heart pine. [back to top]

What are blue sap stains?  Blue sap stains are sapwood with a blue tint. [back to top]

What does patina mean? Patina refers to marks of distinction that can only come through decades of oxidation and other exposure to elements from time. [back to top]

What are circle saw marks?  Circle saw marks are marks from the original “circle saw” that was used to cut it.  Circle saws were used before the modern machinery we see today.  Circle saw marks are a great way to test the antique age of a wood. [back to top]

What is meant by distressed?  The term “distressed” refers to the original time-worn faces of our reclaimed timbers.  A distressed wood is textured with natural patina, original circle saw marks, and other century-old characteristics. [back to top]

What does hand-hewn mean?  Hand Hewn timbers are typically cut or shaped with hard blows of a heavy cutting instrument like an ax or chisel.  The result is a rougher and more rustic look. [back to top]

What is meant by original Face?  Original face refers to any reclaimed product that’s surface has not been altered, cut or changed by modern technologies.  The result is a rustic, time-worn appearance. [back to top]

What is meant by rough sawn?  Rough sawn refers to an original face reclaimed wood.  It has a textured- as opposed to smooth-surface. [back to top]

What does re-surfaced on all four sides mean?  This is when the reclaimed wood has been sawn on all 4 sides revealing a fresh face (see original face for an alternative to re-surfaced). Also referred to as S4S. [back to top]

What is meant by turn-key installation?  Southend Reclaimed is a full service company.  We not only can provide you with the product we can also assist you in installing it as well. [back to top]

What is meant by custom pre-finishing?  We are able to offer any of our solid plank or unfinished engineered flooring lines pre-finished to suit any décor or preferences. [back to top]

What is meant by hand-scraping?     As the name implies, this type of flooring is literally scraped by hand to give an old-world, vintage look.  There are many different degrees and styles of hand scraping.  Please ask your Southend representative for more details. [back to top]

Why are there nail holes in your flooring? Since we reclaim this material from historic structures, there is a high potential for them to contain nails from previous use. We, of course, de-nail them, but they leave their "mark" in the process. Without a doubt, if you are drawn to the uniqueness of reclaimed antique heart pine, you will love the random nail holes which act as "footprints" to help tell its story. [back to top]

What does FSC-certified mean?  FSC stands for “Forest Stewardship Council.”  In many forests around the world, logging still contributes to habitat destruction, water pollution, displacement of indigenous peoples, and violence against people who work in the forest and the wildlife that dwells there. Many consumers of wood and paper, and many forest products companies believe that the link between logging and these negative impacts can be broken, and that forests can be managed and protected at the same time. Forest Stewardship Council certification is one way to improve the practice of forestry. [back to top]

What are solid bricks?  Reclaimed solid bricks are the oldest bricks available today. These antique bricks – made from the very soil that the old mills were built upon – comprised the walls of the original structure; therefore they often reflect the land they came from. As a result, reclaimed “solids” tend to be oversized and filled with color variations and other time-worn marks. [back to top]

What are core bricks?  When air-conditioning was invented in the 1930’s, the textile industry decided to brick in the large windows that had provided a natural cooling-system to that point. By this time, brick manufacturing had evolved from the look and feel of the solid bricks that comprised the original walls of the structure. The result came to be known as “core” bricks which introduced the three-hole design we still see today. This allowed the mortar to conjoin the bricks in an even more stable manner as well as reduced weight for shipping purposes. [back to top]

What is meant by antique bricks?  Antique bricks are typically at least 50 years old and have characteristics that cannot be duplicated by new bricks.  Note: Most of our antique bricks are over 100 years old. [back to top]

Do you ship nationwide? Of course! We work with top-notch freight companies that offer us incredible rates due to the frequency with which we ship with them. We pass these savings directly on to you. You just let us know where the material needs to be and we will get it there. [back to top]

What is your typical lead-time for flooring orders? The usual lead-time is four weeks, though we can often rush delivery if needed. [back to top]

What are your payment terms? We require a 50% deposit to begin work and the final 50% when the order is ready to ship. [back to top]