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Reclaimed timber — provenance, documentation, and how to tell real from faked
Straight answers on documenting, dating, and verifying reclaimed structural timber. Written for dealers, restorers, architects, and appraisers.
What documentation do LEED reclaimed-material credits require?
LEED credits for reused and salvaged materials require documentation of each material's source, prior use, and quantity: proof it was genuinely reclai…
Reclaimed wood certificate of authenticity — what should it contain?
A reclaimed-wood certificate of authenticity should identify the specific piece, its source structure, species, and dimensions, and carry a custody tr…
How can you tell if barn wood is really antique?
Tell antique barn wood from faked "barn wood" by reading the tool marks (hand-hewn faces and straight up-and-down sash-saw kerfs are pre-1900; circula…
How do you verify reclaimed lumber provenance?
You verify reclaimed lumber provenance by checking the record rather than trusting the seller's word. The strongest form is a per-piece tag linked to …
FSC chain-of-custody vs. per-member provenance — what's the difference?
FSC chain-of-custody certifies an operation (a mill or supplier) through periodic paid third-party audits and is built for volume and forestry sustain…
What is chain of custody for reclaimed building materials?
Chain of custody for reclaimed building materials is the traceable, ordered record of a material from its salvage source through every handoff to its …
What were log marks and stamp hammers?
Log marks were registered ownership symbols struck into a log's end grain with a stamp hammer during the 19th-century river-drive era, so that logs fr…
What documentation do insurers want for reclaimed structural timber?
Insurers and appraisers evaluating reclaimed structural timber generally want defensible, member-level documentation — species, dimensions, source str…
Does documentation make reclaimed wood worth more?
Documentation does not change reclaimed wood itself, but it changes what a buyer can trust and defend, which is where reclaimed premiums come from. A …
Reclaimed-timber glossary
The trade vocabulary — hand-hewn, sash saw, sinker log, chain of custody — defined plainly.