A Detailed Walk Through of Timber Waste Recycling Process

Contributed by Oliva Wilson

It is said that any kind of habitation generates waste. We, humans, are constantly producing waste as well. But, as we are intelligent beings, we are capable of reusing and recycling the waste produced by us. The same concept applies to the timber waste generated by us as well. We have tons and tons of timber waste that we just dispose of without giving it a second thought. But, with these products just being discarded, the waste accumulation on the earth’s surface increases and with increasing demand for timber products, deforestation levels go up as well. All these problems can be reduced if the process of timber waste recycling is taken up actively in every city all over the country. timber waste recycling is now termed as a suitable and a sustainable wood source that provides a consistent supply of timber without the need to fell more trees. Many people do not know how the complete timber waste recycling process works. But with increasing awareness regarding recycling of timber, it has become essential that people get to know more about the complete process. The more knowledge people have about it, the more awareness is spread, thereby making the earth a bit greener.

Here is a detailed walkthrough of the complete process of timber waste recycling:

The collection: Timber is collected from various areas during this step. Recycling plants have timber waste collectors going around the city and collecting all the waste. The construction sites are huge contributors in this process and so are the demolition sites. Timber comes from various areas and places. People with a wood fireplace use this waste as firewood too. The timber collected is mixed with a laminate material, plywood, and even treated timber. All such various kinds of timber waste is accumulated at the collection ground located near the recycling plant. For places which do not have a nearby recycling plant available, the timber waste is disposed of in landfills. The companies dealing with the timber waste recycling redirect those landfills into their plans.

Sorting: After the collection is complete, the next step is sorting. As all the timber waste is collected from various sources, it is a mixture of various types of timber along with other materials. All this has to be sorted and separated. This is a bulky process with a lot of challenges. It is a labor-intensive process and is time-consuming as well. This process involves a lot of time and labor hiring. That is why the complete timber waste recycling process becomes costly. There have been many methods devised to make the complete process more efficient, but nothing has worked out well till date. The timber has laminate, and plywood mixed with it and all those materials cannot be recycled along with timber or the recycled timber would not be pure.

The shredding: After the sorting process, the last step is the shredding. Timber is put into a shredder and then broken into smaller pieces. The shredders are powerful enough to break down large chunks of timber into small chips. The final size of the chips depends on the further use of this timber. All these chips are then compressed and remolded into required shapes. This recycled timber reduces the heavy reliance on the forests to get fresh timber. The materials made by such recycled timber cannot be rated are high-grade in terms of durability. But, the process of recycling defines the quality of the final product.

This complete process of timber waste recycling can be enhanced and done more effectively if there is a quality waste disposal system.