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I'm buried in scraps!

3K views 38 replies 30 participants last post by  DavePolaschek 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I've culled my scrap bins a few times over the years. Right now I want to do a cleanout. I'm sort of a scrap hoarder but have gotten better at it over the years. I no longer save every small cutoff I make. I actually produce a 30 gallon barrel of scraps to toss out three or four times a year, no problem there.
The other stuff is the hard to throw away Foot long piece of oak that's 6" wide. Harder still to part with maple, cherry, and especially mahogany and walnut. Walnut… at $12/bd ft I save small pieces of that. I've got a lot of this stuff. in a modestly sized shop.
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This is an overhead shelf area. I've culled this a lot already.
Wood Natural material Wood stain Hardwood Lumber

Yes junk wood on the top as that's where I often throw it but mostly hardwoods below the surface.
Wood Motor vehicle Hood Gas Automotive exterior

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It's not a ton of stuff but a lot for my space. And it just keeps on coming.

Rarely do I make something small. No bird houses, pens, or jewelry boxes. It's larger furniture, cabinets, etc. Actually, going over my forty eight projects on my projects page, there is nothing small at all. not even that many small pieces in any of the projects.

So, I'm left with few choices if I want to cull most of it. One, is put it on craigslist. Someone will surely come to get it but probably only for fireplace kindling. I do a fair amount of camping. I could bring it to burn like I do the truly trash ends I have in my refuse barrel. I could simply haul it to the dump. They have a wood dumpster there. Other than that, I'm not sure what to do about it. When I do get rid of it I'll be closing my eyes and biting my tongue and cringing.

Anyone have any quick easy ideas? The only criteria is I need it gone, not just stored. And I need it to be done fairly quickly… all at once, not here and there over time. What do you do besides keeping it. I've already gone down that route for long enough.
 

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#5 ·
I can t help you with your problem. I have my own problem that is exactly the same. Just rolled out a 40 gal. trash can to the "Real" trash can. Can t believe the space it creates in a one car garage. Good luck with your problem.

- ocean
Oh great… I guess I'm part of a club here. We could start a new reality show "Scrapwood hoarders" and have mentors come in and cull it for us! I just wish I knew of someone who does build birdhouses who would say, "I'll take it off your hands and build bird condos. That would be the best thing for my peace of mind.
 
#7 ·
Gift some to a beginning woodworker. :)

- WayneC
Ya, wouldn't mind at all. Just got to find one. I'd pull it, stack it, and help him/her load it. That would be the best solution. Craigslist is a way to announce that but you know that it's someone who wants if for kindling up here in Maine.
 
#8 ·
I started to turn pens so at least now some of the better scraps(mostly Walnut, Teak, Maple) are used up!
I have a rolling garbage can with a lid that comes with us on camping trips for the rest.
Oh ya, and a wood burning fireplace in the house!
 
#9 ·
what about any school woodshops,are there any around,or clubs maybe? im a semi hoarder myself but ive limited myself to nothing under a foot except maybe exotics or nice burl wood which i can use to make pens or such.i do feel your pain craftsman.
 
#10 ·
Haha yeah I do the camping thing. One time We had a fire, and my wife asked "what kind of firewood is that? Theres hardly any smoke!" (We usually have the obligatory campfire problem of smoke following your eyeballs). I answered, "its the most expensive firewood we have used"
 
#11 ·
This isn't going to be any help, but up here in Northern Ontario I use a little bit every morning to start the fire in my wood stove to help with heating during our 6 months of winter. Doesn't hurt much, I am not burning the rich woods you guys work with occasionally some oak or mahogany, white pine but mostly construction grade scraps. Converted my breezeway into a ventilated workshop space and added a front porch a couple of summers ago, lots of scraps produced, but just used the last of it. Nothing under 3' left in the storage area ha ha.
 
#14 ·
Last year I turned most of my scrap pile into toy cars. I also used up all of my partially used rattle cans of spray paint that I had around, pine and plywood were painted, the rest are natural. Anything left after these were made was truely trash

- Davevand
Man… if I did that I could open up a toy store. I just came in from culling it and gave four 30 gallon barrels of wood to a neighbor for his outdoor fires. I've picked out the best stuff. I've still got at least that much left.
 
#15 ·
I don't know how badly you might want to recycle or reduce your inventory, but there is a market for it on Etsy. Some cut it to fit in a USPS Priorty Mail box. You set the price to cover postage and a fee for the wood. There are crafters who will buy it, especially good hardwood. Even Hobby Lobby sells bags of hardwood. It's a lot of work for not much return, but it is a way to reduce your inventory without the tears of throwing it away.
 
#16 ·
Last year I turned most of my scrap pile into toy cars. I also used up all of my partially used rattle cans of spray paint that I had around, pine and plywood were painted, the rest are natural. Anything left after these were made was truely trash

- Davevand

Man… if I did that I could open up a toy store. I just came in from culling it and gave four 30 gallon barrels of wood to a neighbor for his outdoor fires. I ve picked out the best stuff. I ve still got at least that much left.

- Craftsman on the lake
I made over 600 last year and didn't use half of what I had. Our local WW club provided the wheels and axles
 
#17 · (Edited by Moderator)
Last year I turned most of my scrap pile into toy cars. I also used up all of my partially used rattle cans of spray paint that I had around, pine and plywood were painted, the rest are natural. Anything left after these were made was truely trash

- Davevand

Man… if I did that I could open up a toy store. I just came in from culling it and gave four 30 gallon barrels of wood to a neighbor for his outdoor fires. I ve picked out the best stuff. I ve still got at least that much left.

- Craftsman on the lake

I made over 600 last year and didn t use half of what I had. Our local WW club provided the wheels and axles

- Davevand
More patience than I've got!
 
#18 ·
If you put it on craigslist as hobby wood, you could advertise it at some nominal cost - to avoid the firewood hounds. Then if you determine that it will go to some higher purpose than smoke and ash, unload as much as the person wants for free or close to it.

Maybe find someone having a garbage/rubbage sale and see if they'll sell it for you - you don't care about the money, let them keep it.

You could also put it in a box at the end of your driveway with a "FREE" sign on a Thursday or Friday when people are out garbage saling.

If I was close, I'd be happy to take at least some off your hands for boxes and spatulas/spoons - and I'm always in need of hardwood for new jigs.
 
#19 ·
I just came in from culling it and gave four 30 gallon barrels of wood to a neighbor for his outdoor fires. I ve picked out the best stuff. I ve still got at least that much left.

- Craftsman on the lake
Well, now I don't feel so bad only having one 30 gallon trash can full of small scrap….

My 'scrap' problem is plywood. Lot's of long thin pieces of everything from 1/4" up to 3/4". Hate to get rid of them, but I know I should.
 
#20 ·
Oh great… I guess I m part of a club here.
Heh! Me too. Mine is at least limited to four small bins I built for that purpose on the backside of my plywood cart. I've probably used more of my scraps testing dado cut widths and depths than anything. I do find it hard to through away a perfectly good, albeit small, piece of hardwood.
 
#21 ·
LOL, Count me as another person embarrassed he doesn't generate enough scraps!

Have a 30 gal plastic can for 'scraps'. To me that is anything less than 1 ft long, and < 2 " wide when 3/4 thick. 50% always seem to be plywood from cabinet type projects. Have larger scraps stashed away as well for reuse.

These scraps used to get disposed on scout camping trips with my sons. But haven't been camping in a a few years, so ended up putting our cut off 55 gal drum fire pit in back yard as bonfire spot for teenagers. Keeps kids at home,making it easier to watch on weekends.

A few months ago, kids burned a can with massive amount of 8/4 cherry, mahogany, and sapele.
Watching them empty the can, suddenly realized how many pen blanks went up in smoke. :(

Not being someone who likes lathe work, nor one that makes anything smaller than large cereal box sized project; I had no idea the demand for this small stuff until I read this thread. May have to allocate some time to research on how to recycle hardwood scraps better, and maybe even get a few bucks for time spent to recycle.

Thanks for sharing everyone!
 
#22 ·
Have you guys with all the scraps ever considered making your own charcoal? it's pretty easy, especially if you have steel drums with lids. You already have enough fuel for the heat source. Put the drum in the middle of a fire pit, fill it with wood, put the lid on with a small vent hole, light the fire around it - pretty simple and easy - look up the exact process, you may never need to buy charcoal again.

Don't use manufactured lumber…
 
#24 ·
You just have to get over it. You got your use out of the pieces you bought the material for. The scrap is just scrap.
It only hurts for a day or so. You just can't hoard it all, so you're left with giving it up. Some good advise above, otherwise you just have to dump it and get over it.
 
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