27 sites that will green your DIY and woodworking projects

Canadian Wood Recycling Directory
Looking for salvaged building materials for your next project? This site offers listings of retailers by province.

FSC Canada Certified Lumber
Build projects using wood harvested from sustainable forests certified by the Canadian Forest Stewardship Council. This site also offers links to retailers who carry FSC building materials.

Old Woodworking Tools
Just because a tool is old doesn’t mean it’s useless. Many old, antique tools still perform well, and that’s what this site is about: providing details-including tool manuals-for old woodworking machines and hand tools.

Old House Parts
Salvaged antique hardware and other house fixtures make smart additions to any woodworking project. This site focuses on hardware that ranges from the 18th century through to the early 20th century, including old doors, windows and other construction equipment.

Battery Buyer
Buying a new cordless-tool battery tends to be as expensive as buying a whole new tool, which is why this site is so great: it trades in replacement rechargeable batteries and allows you to search by tool brand and battery size.

Eco-House Natural Products
This New Brunswick—based company sells wood finishes made from natural sources, such as tree resin and beeswax.

Homestead House Paint Co.
Finding VOC-free latex paint is easy these days, but why not go one step further and finish your projects with authentic, all-natural milk paint?

Cariboo Blades Handmade Tools and Knifes
Don’t just build with reclaimed materials, build using them, too. This B.C.-based site sells hand-forged woodworking tools made from salvaged materials and high-quality carbon steel.

Canadian Model Forest Network
Canada is home to more than 425,000 privately owned woodlots, many of which provide home-grown, sustainable lumber for woodworkers. This site helps you by providing listings of woodlot owners across Canada.

Paperstone
Made from more than 50 per cent post-consumer waste (the FSC-certified version is 100 per cent post-consumer waste), this paper-based building material is impervious to water, scratch resistant and hard enough to build furniture with.

Kirei Board
Made from reclaimed sorghum plant stalks, this engineered product is heat-pressed with a non-toxic adhesive to form lightweight, strong, surprisingly beautiful boards suitable for fine furnituremaking.

CMHC’s Indoor Air Quality Page
Is your shop polluted? If you’re housing old paints and finishes or engineered wood products, the chances are you’re inhaling more than dust. CMHC gives the lowdown on indoor air on this informative site.

Blueridge Premium Wood Products
This Vancouver company provides useful information on building with bamboo veneer and panels. Why bamboo? It looks great, has similar building properties to hardwood, and is sustainable (bamboo regenerates itself in months).