Feature, V1I3

True Green

There are lots of ways in which shed builders can claim their products promote green properties: the use of local labor and locally sourced materials; stains and paints that are free of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), those solvents that are released into the air as coatings dry; and reduced waste during the construction process. The use of wood over metal and plastic outbuildings that come from a petroleum-based manufacturing process can be better for the environment, when done appropriately.

And while these buildings can have a more positive impact on the environment than non-renewable competitors, they can also have a positive impact on builders’ bottom-line, since many consumers are happy to pay for these green attributes.

Many of the shed builders taking a dramatic stance on green are finding a large customer base hungry for small structures that make an even smaller impact on the environment.

Sustainable Materials

One of the simplest ways for a shed builder to go green is to use a natural wood product that comes from sustainable forestry practices. For LP Building Products, that means using aspen in all of its products.

“Aspen is an extremely fast-growing tree,” explains Leigh Smith, associate segment marketing manager for LP Building Products with responsibility for LP Outdoor Building Solutions. “What’s unique about an aspen tree is that when you cut it down, about five or six new saplings grow in its place without any type of reseeding or replanting. It’s almost like a weed-type tree so for every one that we harvest about six more grow in its place.”

Several certification standards are available in North America to help consumers select wood products that come from “healthy” forests. These include the American Tree Farm System, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Canadian Standards Association.

GreenShed

Green sheds can be made out of reused lumber.

While LP’s products are SFI-certified, ECO Garden Sheds in Willowbrook, Illinois, is among those builders using only FSCcertified lumber. But owner Andrius Slizius notes that using FSC wood isn’t just about reducing the company’s carbon footprint— it’s also about keeping chemicals out of these outbuildings.

“Many other [sheds] are made from plywood, which is basically shredded, engineered wood and glue—and most of the time it is glue that is not environmentally friendly, and even toxic as it contains formaldehyde.” says Slizius.

For consumers using this storage space for storing their own chemical products, formaldehyde outgassing may not be their biggest concern. But given the big trend in recent years toward the shed-turned-office/man cave/spa retreat and more (see June/ July 2015 Shed Builder, page 10), this push toward VOC-free building products is steadily moving from the house to the yard.

Smith agrees that formaldehyde off-gassing is the “really big buzzword” among consumers today.

“With the wood we use, we don’t add any extra formaldehyde,” she says. “There is formaldehyde naturally occurring in wood because that’s just where it exists. The things that we add include borate—which is found in toothpaste, in laundry detergent, and things of nature.”

GreenShedphoto2

Rescued materials sometimes serve as components of green sheds.

Suppliers committed to sustainability are finding alternatives to chemicals to offer fungal, decay, and termite resistance.

“Our straight competitor would be a pressure-treated T1-11 siding, which is infused with all kinds of chemicals to make it insect-resistant, etc.,” Smith says. “With pressure-treated lumber, they recommend that you wear gloves to handle it. No one does, but that’s what they say. With our product, you just handle it like a regular piece of wood.”

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