**NOTE: THIS BLOG POST WAS UPDATED ON 22 APR 2021 WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION—PLEASE CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE NEWER POST WITH UPDATED INFORMATION/LINKS.**
By some counts, half of all the waste in landfills comes from buildings. Most of that trash could have been recycled or reused. You may not have heard about your options to buy and sell salvaged building materials in Colorado Springs yet, so LGA Studios is here to enlighten you! Whether you are trying to be more eco-friendly, aiming for an authentically antique appearance in your new house or remodel, or trying to get rid of some building materials in your garage, you've got options now.
▱ Use Again Building Materials ▱
506 W Cucharras St, Colorado Springs, CO 80905
(719) 473-2150
9am-4:30pm Mon-Fri / 9am-2pm Sat
▱ This mom-and-pop shop has stood its ground in the Springs for 20 years and earned its A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. They buy and sell every kind of building material from windows, to lumber, to vanities, to sinks, tubs & toilets. If you are purchasing here, make sure to bring cash or check.
▱ Habitat For Humanity Restore ▱
411 S Wahsatch Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
(719) 667-0840
9am-5pm Tue-Sat
▱ The Restore is a nation-wide non-profit resource; the proceeds of donated items raise money towards Habitat For Humanity's projects. Their donation guidelines and sale items are listed on their website, but visit or volunteer at the store to see the wide range of materials available.
▱ Colorado Springs Craigslist ▱
▱ Every day, dozens of people list building materials they want to sell on Colorado Spring's Craiglist, under the "materials" or "appliances" sub-titles of the "for sale" section. You can find some great deals and keep someone else from having to throw away perfectly good items! As always with the "Want" Ads, take precautions when buying from folks you don't know, like examining and testing the item(s) carefully before committing and bringing someone else with you when you meet up.
▱ Drive to Denver ▱
▱ Compared to Colorado Springs, the Denver metropolitan area has a lot more salvage resources spurred on by its larger population and (let's admit it) its more developed eco-consciousness. Check out Architectural Salvage, Inc, Eron Johnson Antiques, and Queen City Salvage in Denver. The first two places have fantastic online catalogs and ordering. In addition to their salvage yard, Queen City Salvage provides restoration and consultation services, and will even sell large items like entire barns or hunt down specific items for you.
▱ For more Reclaimed/Salvage locations in Colorado State, the Green Eco Services website has a great list including a lot more locations in the Denver area. Note that "Architectural Salvage" in Colorado Springs is closed. Sources for the paragraph above found in Colorado Homes and Lifestyle's article "Recycled Beauty".
▱ Order Online ▱
▱ This option is listed last because it takes extra fuel to deliver building parts from one part of the country to another, making your re-used item's footprint just a bit bigger. However, if you were going to buy something new it would probably be delivered from another part of the country or world anyway. It's not too hard to find gorgeous reclaimed lumber or brick online. Look for the FSC's certification on reclaimed lumber.