Most woodworkers I know hoard wood for future projects. They see the beauty in each board and won’t let them go as waste. I, too, am guilty of this crime. However, I take time to clean out my shop after ever finished project; sorting through the newly accumulated “waste”. If it is something I think I can use later I store it but if not I declare it as waste. But waste to me is not necessarily waste to another woodworker. I am fortunate in that I have a couple of friends that live close to me that can use my offcuts to heat their shops. I hope they sort through the material I give them and utilize what they can in their shop prior to fueling their stoves. Also, the sawdust I collect in my cyclone is used as animal bedding, mulch around the flowers or to fill in some low spots in the pasture. And I send some cutoffs to some friends that like to turn small objects on their lathes. It gives me great pleasure to see their skills turn my “waste” into objects of art. I am gathering some small materials from my shop now for a cutting board I am starting. So I guess most woodworkers are “green” and don’t really create waste but utilize their leftovers in different ways. How do you deal with your woodworking “waste”?
Enjoy your shop time,
Jerill
I find my to grandsons like to get the little pieces out and make something like a truck or a car or a house, etc. Sometimes we glue and sometimes we’ll use small nails. We can also practice using the small driver/drill to me starter holes for screws. They have great imaginations and seem to really like working with wood. I can’t wait until they are big enough to use a scroll saw! 🙂
I scroll a lot of cedar, it amazes me how many people want the shaving in a sandwich bag. For the smell , Also my wife uses these little wax cubes to make the house smell like baked goods or spring flowers, after the smell of the wax is gone, instead of throwing it out we use it to mix with my wood shavings from the shop to make fire starters for the fire place , campfires, and such, it works like a charm and beats buying those expensive fire starters at the store…