Remodeling or Renovating?

How Material Recovery Can Save You Money and Reduce Waste.

By Emily Reynolds, BRING Director of Education + Outreach

Home remodeling projects often come with two big challenges: rising costs and piles of waste. From cabinets and countertops to doors and flooring, many usable materials end up in the landfill simply because it feels faster or easier to throw them away. BRING’s Material Recovery Program offers homeowners a smarter and more affordable option.

The program keeps reusable building materials out of the landfill and circulating within the local community. This matters because landfills are a limited resource, and producing new building materials comes with hidden environmental and financial costs. Manufacturing requires raw materials, chemical processing, and long-distance transportation, all of which increase pollution, energy use, and overall expense. Reusing materials that are already in circulation helps avoid these upstream impacts and makes the most of items that are still in good condition.

For homeowners, the biggest benefit is simple: saving money. Reclaimed materials sold through BRING are typically priced 30 to 70 percent below retail. And because these items are reused, they are not subject to tariffs that can increase the cost of new building supplies. Reducing waste also helps ease pressure on local disposal facilities. As landfill space becomes more limited and transportation costs continue to rise, keeping materials out of the waste stream helps stabilize long-term costs for the entire community.

The program also provides clear benefits for contractors, which gives homeowners a good reason to ask about material recovery when planning a project. BRING offers trained staff who help identify which materials can be salvaged, along with on-site trailers that make donating easy during demolition or remodeling. Contractors save time by avoiding extra trips to transfer stations and reducing disposal fees, while keeping resources out of the landfill.

Getting involved as a homeowner is straightforward. If you have materials to donate, you can call BRING to schedule a pickup or drop them off yourself seven days a week. If you are looking for affordable building supplies, you can shop for reclaimed materials at BRING’s store in Glenwood, open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Commonly recovered items include doors, windows, cabinets, fixtures, unused tile, flooring, siding, sheet metal, and more. A full list of accepted materials is available at bringrecycling.org/reclaimed.

Beyond personal savings, donating materials benefits the wider community. Proceeds from reclaimed materials help fund BRING’s education programs for local kids, adults, and businesses, as well as workforce training opportunities for interns and adults facing barriers to employment. The program also supports local jobs and keeps dollars circulating locally rather than sending them out of state for new materials. 

In the end, material recovery proves that saving money and reducing waste don’t have to be separate goals. With a little planning, your next home project can do both. Get more information and connect with our coordinator at bringrecycling.org/materialsrecovery.