Construction Junction - Building Material Reuse

Mary Lynn -- We get this question often... someone looking for a very specific type or size of door.  Because so many doors (thousands) rotate through our inventory on a regular basis and we currently lack an inventory tracking system, it is really difficult for us to zero in on ones with certain specifications.  We know that being able to "zero in" would be of great value and we're working to make that option a reality.  For the time being however, the best option is to come to the store and we'll do our best to help you find the door you're looking for.  -- Cozmo

CJ mistakenly accepted a pallet of non-organic garden products and although they’re brand new we can’t sell them. That would make our blood flow backwards. So instead we’d like to find a business that could use the products and give them away. The pallet consist of about ten (10) various chemical-based products such as Bug Beater. Please call Mike Gable at 412-841-2343 if you’re interested.

Nonprofits can e-mail requests to Nic and/or Nat (we can't guarantee to include all events).

Hi Becky.  We don't really ever get swingset swings... the kind one person sits on.  But we do, on occassion, get porch swings.  Usually they're made out of wood.  In fact, we have one in the store now, or at least we did as of yesterday (May 22, 2008) when I was in taking pictures for this very Blast.  Best of luck.  -- Cozmo

Hank --  You are so right and we have made that correction on our website.  Thanks for letting us know. -- Cozmo

We are considering using it to support a pilot deconstruction project and should know within the next few weeks if this will be the case.  If so... we'll be sure to tell you all about it.  --Cozmo

We are in the process of refining our automated email system to make it more manageable.  Since launching our newly revised website, we're receiving hundreds of emails weekly.  Most are from folks who are simply signing up for the Blast and we're figuring out how to weed those out so we can focus on the "real" emails.  Rest assured... our goal is to answer every email and to do so within one week of receiving them.  --- Cozmo  

Hi Jody.  This is a good question and one we get often.  While it seems like it would make sense for us to do so, we steer clear of making any contractor recommendations.  Having said that however... we have talked about the idea of a community-based section of our website where folks could post business information, projects desired and highlights of projects completed.  It is likely that something along these lines will develop and we'll use the e-Blast to share any relevant news.  -- Cozmo

Hi Karen.  We're dreaming of the day when we can notify customers that an item they've wished for has come in, but alas we can't do it yet.  We do our best to keep a log of what people ask for and then include said items in the weekly e-Blast if they do in fact come in.  So the best thing to do is to sign up for our e-Blast or watch our website regularly.  In general, new inventory arrivals are posted every Friday.

In regards to your second question... we don't really have a membership program, but rather only a membership button on our website.  Although we're in the process of considering a membership program, our store will always and forever be, open to the public... member or not.  Hope this helps.  -- Cozmo

Hi Velma...  As of right now there is only one "Construction Junction", BUT lucky for you... there are many many nonprofit and for profit reuse centers across the country that are just like CJ.  We know, we've been to many of them.  The Building Materials Reuse Association has a great national directory that we always refer people to.  On their site you'll find 17 reuse centers in South Carolina, 55 in North Carolina and 180 in California!  Best of luck to you.  -- Cozmo

Hi Kristen -- The city of Pittsburgh has a really great recycling page (http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/pw/html/recycling.html) on its website.  Click the link for Drop-off Recycling to learn more about what is and isn't accepted at the city recycling drop-off center in our parking lot.  Everything you mentioned is accepted.

That's Buster the Recycling Racoon to the right.  He salutes you for joining the recycling revolution! -- Cozmo

When I first read this question I thought I quickly found a whole bunch of recycling options for fluorescent bulbs but I neglected to make the important distinction between compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) and fluorescent tubes.  Recycling CFLs has become pretty easy these days but fluorescent tubes remain a challenge.  We searched the internet and talked with experts.  The table below outlines what we found. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to identify any specific options for recycling neon tubing.

Thank you Michael Stepaniak of PRC for your help.  We also found the resources listed below to be of value. -- Cozmo

http://www.epa.gov/bulbrecycling/

http://earth911.org/

http://www.depweb.state.pa.us/news/cwp/view.asp?a=3&q=536686

http://www.achd.net/waste/pubs/pdf/RRD.pdf

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/24/business/24recycling.html

No... but our neighbor, AgRecycle, right around the corner is.  Their address is 335 North Braddock Ave and their phone number is 412-242-7645.  They have regular business hours and charge a small fee to drop off yard debris.  They do a great job recycling landscaping debris into beautiful organic compost and mulches. 

Also, the City of Pittsburgh accepts yard debris at their Public Works drop-off centers.  More information can be found on the City's recycling website.  Proof of residency is required.  -- Cozmo

Christine -- Mike Gable, our green guru in residence (aka executive director), knew the answer to this question.  Steinberger Floors in Heidelberg reclaims carpeting ensuring 100% is diverted from landfills.  You can drop your carpet off or have them come pick it up, even remove it.  Please contact Amie Piz at apiz@steinbergerfloors.com or 412-276-2076 for a quote and more info.  Steinberger Floors evens provides a Certificate of Reclamation which, from a commercial perspective, is helpful with LEED certification.  Thanks for writing -- Cozmo 

Elizabeth --  Unfortunately, we don't know of any local palces to recycle drywall and our online research uncovered nothing as well.  So we'd like to throw this out to the CJ community at large.  Anyone out there know anything about local drywall recycling options?  -- Cozmo

Ryan and Alexis  --  Construction Junction has started a new collaboration with an E-Waste recycling company called eLoop and as such the answer to your questions is YES.  See the announcement above for more great information about eLoop and how this new program works.  This is a fee based service and the cost for recycling a computer monitor is $10.  Floppy disks and/or CD media costs $0.10 each (that's ten cents each).  --  Cozmo

Nicole --  We get hot water boilers on occassion, but it really is a rare event.  If any do come in... you can be sure that we'd include a photo in our weekly e-Blast.  --  Cozmo

Molly --  That is a great question and no, we don't, so we're throwing this question out to the CJ community.  How about it... anyone know of a green dry cleaner in Pittsburgh?

• Martinizing Dry Cleaning in Wexford offers the new GreenEarth cleaning system.  Located at 12023 Perry Highway in the Pinetree Shoppes - 724-940-2494.  Thanks Cozmo!
• Dry Cleaning Station in McMurray and Greensburg also uses the GreenEarth cleaning system.  Check out their website (http://www.drycleaningstation.com/) for more information.  Thanks Katie!