The majority of the non-structural wood used for the UGarden’s Tiny House is coming from the most sustainable place imaginable: its own back yard. In the winter of 2015-2016 a large storm blew over several trees, and the faculty and staff were quick to find a great use for these downed trees. The oak, tulip poplar and hickory trees have since become the beautiful finishes on our Tiny House. The next few posts will discuss the transformation of each of each of these trees from a vital part of the ecosystem, to the interior details of the house.
Knowing that the Tiny House could use the wood that literally fell into their hands, the UGarden staff worked to harvest as much of the wood as possible for use in the house. Due to the nature of building codes, it is nearly impossible to re-use wood, and even timber that you have harvested yourself for the structural components of your home. Luckily for our class, our instructors were able to contact someone to inspect the oak beams that are now supporting our roof. The rest of the wood, however, could not be used structurally, and has since become the floor and paneling. The wood was taken to a local business, Water’s Edge Woods, for kiln drying.
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