Top 10 Materials to Recycle at Your Construction Site

Like many cities, Akron, Ohio faces the challenge of vacant buildings. In the past, the solution was often to demolish these structures with a wrecking ball. But things have changed. In 2010, the city partnered with the local Habitat for Humanity to carefully deconstruct four vacant buildings piece by piece instead of demolishing them.

While dismantling a house, one board or shingle at a time, might seem like a slow and laborious task, it is. A typical demolition crew can take down a single-family home in two days, but Akron's Habitat workers took 20 days to deconstruct one. Usually, a contractor charges the city around $3,484 to demolish a home, but Akron paid Habitat $7,500 to "deconstruct" a single home [source: Breckenridge].

Deconstruction, which involves carefully taking apart a house while salvaging and recycling materials, may take more time and money than a simple demolition, but it's much better for the environment. By deconstructing a building, workers save and repurpose any materials they can, preventing them from ending up in landfills. In fact, Habitat intends to sell the materials they recover so others can reuse them.

The Construction Materials Recycling Association reports that construction and demolition waste is the largest contributor to trash in the United States. It estimates that 325 million tons of recoverable construction debris are generated annually in the U.S. [source: Construction Materials Recycling Association]. In the past, materials like metal, concrete, wood, block, and asphalt would have been sent to landfills. The success of a deconstruction project lies in reusing as much as possible and recycling what remains.

Not all construction and demolition debris can be recycled, nor should it be, but a significant portion of materials from a house can be reused. Turn to the next page to learn about the construction materials that can be easily recycled at your worksite.

10: Wood and Lumber

Each year, contractors build around 1 million new single-family homes in the United States, costing nearly $100 billion [source: Falk]. This total jumps to nearly $200 billion when including the construction of multi-family and manufactured homes, along with the repair and renovation of existing properties [source: Falk]. A significant portion of this cost is spent on wood for framing, sheathing, doors, floors, and windows, with much of it sourced from virgin timber [source: Falk].

The U.S. government estimates that nearly 1 billion board-feet of lumber can be salvaged annually [source: U.S. Department of Agriculture]. Much of this wood is of high quality, including large timber frames. If builders recycled or reused all the wood from a 2,000-square-foot home, it could generate up to 6,000 board-feet of reusable lumber, which would save 33 trees. Additionally, recycling could prevent at least 8,420 cubic feet (238 cubic meters) of wood from occupying landfill space [source: Deconstruction Institute].

There are numerous ways workers can reuse wood. By re-milling old lumber and timber, contractors can craft new floors, paneling, doors, and windows. Builders can also repurpose wood for constructing barns and fences. Furthermore, waste wood can be ground into particles and used to make particleboard.

9: Drywall

Imagine a building without drywall – it would be quite cold inside during the winter due to the lack of interior walls. Drywall, composed of gypsum sandwiched between two sheets of paper, is the primary material used for interior construction and home renovation. The United States produces approximately 15 million tons of new drywall annually [source: CA.gov]. Simultaneously, drywall accounts for about 25 percent of all construction waste [source: Ohio State University].

Fortunately, drywall is easy to recycle and repurpose. Builders can use scraps to seal openings in walls, and workers can also turn pieces of it into forms to support wet concrete. Drywall can even be transformed into agricultural products, as it contains boron. Although boron serves as a fire retardant, it is also a vital nutrient for plants. Landscapers can mix it with soil to enrich it with plant nutrients [source: CA.gov]. Additionally, the paper around the gypsum can be used in soil, recycled into paperboard or new wallboard, or composted for use as fertilizer [source: CA.gov].

8: Steel

Steel is often used by developers to construct the superstructures of skyscrapers, high-rise apartments, bridges, and other structures. In the U.S., more than 65 million tons of scrap steel are recycled every year. Recycled steel retains its strength and durability, and all steel framing includes at least 28 percent recycled steel. To build a standard 2,000-square-foot house, workers use an amount of steel equivalent to the metal from about six junked cars [source: Recycle Steel]. Steel girders, trusses, and pilings can all be recycled from construction sites.

7: Roofing Shingles

Believe it or not, the United States generates nearly 11 million tons of roofing shingle waste each year. Of that, 10 million tons come from the shingles of old homes [source: CA.gov]. Unlike many other construction materials, roofing shingles are incredibly durable. They can last for nearly 20 to 30 years before needing to be replaced.

Most shingles are made from a felt mat saturated with asphalt (derived from crude oil) and small bits of rock. These shingles are tough, capable of withstanding both intense heat and freezing cold. However, once removed from a roof, they can be ground down and repurposed for pavement projects or pothole repairs. Additionally, shingles can be recycled into new ones or even processed into fuel [source: CA.gov].

6: Glass and Windows

If you're able to reuse your old windows in any construction or renovation project, it's worth considering. While recycling windows and other glass items may sound beneficial, it's rarely done by builders. Why? First, glass is inexpensive to produce with a virtually limitless supply of its main component: sand. Secondly, glass manufacturers have very specific standards, and recycled glass often doesn't meet the precise requirements needed for their products. While all glass is fundamentally the same, there are subtle differences depending on its intended use.

Moreover, window glass contains many other materials such as aluminum, vinyl, insulating spacers, and layers of lamination that must be removed before the glass can be recycled. This process is usually both time-consuming and costly [source: American Architectural Manufacturers Association].

5: Landscaping Waste

When you're clearing brush, removing trees, or making space for a new house, recycling landscaping waste should be a key aspect of your construction plan. Many localities and states now prohibit dumping landscaping waste in landfills, so contractors are typically obligated to recycle or repurpose it. Yard waste can be transformed into mulch, used for landscaping enhancements, and to prevent weed growth. Homeowners can also compost much of the landscaping debris or relocate plants such as hydrangeas, hostas, and rosebushes to other areas of the yard.

4: Appliances

Appliances often get a second life, especially when they are replaced during a major kitchen renovation. If your project involves replacing old appliances, you have several options for recycling or reusing them, including donating, selling, or repurposing them for other uses.

3: Concrete and Masonry

Once dismissed as just waste, concrete debris is now commonly recycled, saving construction companies significant costs and helping reduce landfill space. Every year, U.S. construction firms recycle 140 million tons of concrete [source: Concrete Materials Recycling Association].

After concrete and masonry waste is cleared from a construction site, it's typically transported to a crushing facility for a fee. These centers accept only clean concrete, free from contaminants like wood or trash, where it's crushed and screened to remove dirt. Concrete can also be processed on-site [source: Concrete Materials Recycling Association]. Once crushed, the material can be used for paving roads or driveways, or as a solid base for pipes and utilities. Large concrete chunks are often repurposed by landscapers for various projects.

2: Asphalt

Every year, a significant amount of road resurfacing and replacement takes place. Asphalt isn't only used for building residential roads, but also for highways, airport runways, and parking lots. The Federal Highway Administration reports that about 90 million tons of asphalt are removed from American roadways annually. An impressive 90 percent of this asphalt is recycled and put back into paving and reconstruction efforts [source: Brown].

1: Copper

Copper is a highly valuable metal, and the average house contains roughly 400 pounds of copper wiring and piping [source: DIY Network]. In some areas, copper can fetch as much as $3 per pound. The market for recycled copper is so profitable that some criminals target construction sites to steal copper pipes and wires. Much like steel, recycled copper retains its strength and durability. However, local building codes often require the use of new materials, meaning copper pipes and wires aren't typically reused in plumbing or electrical work. Instead, they're usually salvaged and sold to scrap-metal dealers or junkyards for other uses [source: Zeller].