Tuscarora Wood Midwest, LLC Takes a Customized Approach to Wood Reclamation

Tuscarora is featured this month in the special Lumber Drying issue of Timberline Magazine! Last year we shared news of our new kiln upgrade and the reasons kiln drying is an important part of the reclaimed lumber process (read the original post here). Timberline Magazine reached out to us wanting to share a little more for their special Lumber Drying issue. The article turned out great and here are a few excerpts from that piece:

“The home base for Tuscarora Wood Midwest is Covington, Ohio, a town of approximately 2,600 in Miami County. Covington is part of the metropolitan Dayton area. All grading of wood is done visually. And all wood is sold unfinished. Oak predominates among the wood species coming from barns. “We are heavy on oak,” said Rod. But hickory, beech, elm and maple are also in the mix. “We work with hardwoods.”

“A custom project often begins with a prospective customer visiting the company’s showroom. That’s where someone considering custom flooring – or another building component – made from repurposed wood can get a firsthand and three-dimensional view of the possibilities. “We are not a production shop,” said Rod. “Our focus is not on production as much as custom.” Making the most of wood fiber extends to remnants. “Every product and byproduct has a home,” said Rod. Sawdust, for instance, is sold to a local farm retailer that then sells it for livestock bedding. And scraps are used to fuel a boiler that heats the under-roof facility in winter.”

“In the summer of 2017, the company made an important addition to his equipment roster, a 9000 bf kiln from Kiln-direct headquartered in Burgaw, NC. The Kiln-direct small standard lumber kiln has a bi-fold door. The Kiln-direct small standard kiln is used to dry all 4/4 and 8/4 lumber to between six and eight percent moisture. It is also used to heat-treat wood to kill insects. The kiln from Kiln-direct uses propane as a fuel source. “We would use natural gas, but we are in a rural setting,” explained Rod.”

You can read the full article on the Timberline website.