Bowerbird - Saved Timbers
Help reduce our reliance on native forests by using only guaranteed - Saved Timbers.
We specialize in ethically collected, kiln dried, solid timbers for fit-out and construction uses.
We design & build unique, finely crafted furniture,kitchens and also supply architectural joinery services for commercial projects.
Find us at 'The Millgrove Sawmill.'
3045 WARBURTON HWY
MILLGROVE.
Upper Yarra Valley
PH: 03 5966 5966
Come & visit our humble little workshop.
Bowerbird Salvaged Timbers is based in the Upper Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia.
Owned and operated by Tim Kennedy, whose past career as an Arborist brought about the idea of producing ethically collected timbers.
Call us on 03 5966 5966
OPENING HOURS -
We will be closed on Sunday Jan 22 and
Monday 23 Jan - 2012
MONDAY -TUESDAY- WEDNESDAY - By appointment only
(these are our busy manufacturing days)
THURSDAY - FRIDAY 9-5
SATURDAY - SUNDAY 10-4 PM
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Find us on Facebook
to see out latest works
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bowerbird-Saved-Timbers/102790923133523
Our article in the Age april 2 /2011
http://news.domain.com.au/domain/design-and-living/craftsman-branches-out-20110405-1d222.html
Lost your house in the 2009 Bushfires?
If so...all our products will be discounted for you.
this includes our furniture/kitchens, decking, flooring,
oils..........everything.
Check with our sales team when you call.
refer to website when calling.
A note from Tim
howdy...
I try only to put useful information on this site, you will find pricing for most of our standard products and services , but for special needs and house lot quotes you will need to contact us directly.
So......
Check out out the slabs page, marvel at our species range, visit our new shop and get a good dose of option paralysis.
See our new range of joined tops in mixed timbers, Grey Ironbark & Spotted Gum, Jarrah and Mountain Ash ... plus heaps more.
Or you can have a bit of a read below in the "Tim's ramblings" area.
TIM'S RAMBLINGS........
14.10.11
I've just spent a week in Tasmania.
Drove around a lot looking at 'the wilderness', I used to think that in Victoria we have been overly heavy handed in destoying our alpine forests, but frankly I'm outraged at what is happening down there. In retrospect I think the value of what Australia has in its forests may now only be left in Tasmania.
I am astounded at how intensively the east coast of Tasmania has been logged/farmed/managed....however you want to label it, I'm left with a sinking feeling of how little untouched forest we really do have left on this ancient continent. I feel like we should immediately reserve all remaining forest on the west coast of Tasmania in perpituity, If for no other reason than to preserve a natural wonder that will be gone forever if we continue to "manage" our forests in the manner that we have been doing.
I have to ask why we have allowed big business like Gunns Ltd, so much seemingly unfettered access to this environment, why are our politicians so afraid of the power wielded in the name of business development and 'jobs'.
Is growth actually good?....and at what cost?
Damn them all to hell for seeking profit over posterity.
We are only the guardians of this land, for our future generations and for the liveability of the planet.
What's left once it's all gone
What does it say about us?
20.1.11
Language... so much of what we do in life revolves around the way we communicate with each other.
I have been horrified to watch over the last 20 years as both government and forestry groups have quietly appropriated the language of 'green' groups and not only distorted but also used as a weapon against thier detractors. (read concerned citizens there)
A fine example of this is the term "sustainability".
I often hear it being bandied about as a catch phrase, and am deeply concerned about peoples acceptance and unquestioning belief in the language they hear in the media.
I would ask one simple question to that example.
What does that word mean?
I think to big business and government, it means ....keeping growing
To me it means .......keeping going. (a fundamental difference)
With that simple distinction lies a world of alternative thought, which I leave for you, to sort between the bull and the simple truth.
I believe that if we do not make clearer choices about how we manage our forests and create viable and new alternatives, we are doomed to create an ever dwindling resource of our water catchments and our potential for agroforestry.
I think we saw an example of an idea getting off the ground in the Southern Plantation saga over the last 5 years, whereby farmland was leased on a massive scale all over Victoria to plant pulp hardwood as an alternative.
Unfortunately the whole concept fell flat on it's arse because (in my mind) the modern concept of selling into the futures market created unrealistic expectations from the idea.
Why are so hooked up on "make big money now" schemes. Investment means just that......investment is defined in the dictionary as
"a devoting, using, or giving of time, talent, emotional energy, etc., as for a purpose or to achieve something"
and there it is...the question, what are we trying to actually achieve here? Long term solutions to problems we created or more of the samr greedy 'me now' approach that got us to this point.
I leave the decision making up to you.
Fire rated timbers - What I know so far......
What are they?
Currently there are seven hardwood species on the approved species list, they are.
(Not all Australian or available ethically)
- Blackbutt
- Jarrah
- Kwila (Merbau)
- Red Ironbark
- Silvertop Ash
- Spotted Gum
- Turpentine
What does fire rated mean?
These timbers have been tested and approved by a number of different groups to withstand varying levels of 'BAL' ratings. The approval is based on the charring rate and density of timbers which withstand radiant heat.
BAL– LOW No special construction requirements
BAL– 12.5 & 19 Bushfire resistant or timber species listed as above
BAL– 29 Bushfire resistant timber & sarking
BAL – 40 & FZ FRL of 30/30/30 required – see fire rated plasterboard/timber systems -( detail to be confirmed)
This issue is quite complex when you look into it and I will be listing links for you to peruse over the next few weeks, but heres one to start you off.
www.timber.org.au/resources/Tech%20Report%204%2072dpi.pdf
How does it affect you? -
Well, I guess it means that if you want to build in a high fire danger area, we need to be looking at different and more appropriate building techniques, like underground.
No doubt it will increase bureaucracy with little development in clarity for the consumer.
(That's my inner cynic coming to the fore )
Availability? - fire rated decking timbers can be found on our decking page.
http://www.bowerbirdtimber.com/construction/decking
Who decides which ones are suitable & how are they tested?
As far as I can see The Warrington Report (2001) and revised in 2009 is the most recent testing done and all other info in some vague way stems from this.
http://www.wfra.com.au/Exova%20Warringtonfire%20AS3959-2009%20Method%202%20Form.pdf
Here's something I found online from The NSW fire service, its not really all that detailed but is at least in more laymans terms
http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/file_system/attachments/State/Attachment_20071213_D1B2B196.pdf
Is the list definitive? (unfortunately no)
At the time of testing in 2001 I am informed that 28 commonly available species were tested. Of those the final list came down to the seven species listed above, however,
- No other species have been tested since 2001.
- in the last decade a broader range of timbers has become available in the industry in general that merit being tested eg: Coastal Grey Box.
- The timber industry has changed and now incorporates the 'Recycled ' industry, which can access a broader range of timbers.
- No testing appears to have been done with regards to the common names & differences of regional species.
For example, Silvertop Ash from Victoria compared to the same species in NSW. (any takers?) - There is no clear definition of sapwood content issues on pole construction buildings.(see Marysville & Kinglake public building constructions currently flaunting this issue)
I can think of a few examples where regionality of species differentiation could have a major impact on building regulation and permits for construction of public buildings and housing.
Thats all I have in me at the moment, more later
16/6/2010
april 2009
So, now the government wants to log our water catchments.
I have to question the validity of this type of operation, it seems to me that the unspoken aspect to all this continual clearfell logging is the pulp contracts some past government has signed us up to.
I read in the paper recently, that we only log tiny portions of catchment areas, and that it represents a tiny portion of total areas logged...
Well if that's the case,it sort of indicates that there's plenty of other available timber elsewhere... why not go there?
I can see why we need forestry, but to be honest, as most sawmillers will tell you, old growth Australian hardwood logs are not appropriate timber for modern machinery or timber products.
For one thing... the logs are too big for modern sawmill set-ups that have been downsizing machines for 20 years to account for the fact that log sizes are getting smaller.
So, that indicates to me that the big volume logs from old growth are really selected to fill pulp quotas, not supply sawlog.
I would love for someone to prove me wrong but I can't see it happening.
Most timber available on the Australian market has its origins in forest based material.
As an arborist I have always had an interest in the huge variety of timber species available from the urban environment. While this idea of collecting trees from peoples back yards is not a new one, the development of this source over the last ten years has resulted in a new recognition that fine timbers can be extracted from suburban trees.
While many of the timbers we collect are familiar to us, as trees growing in gardens, the use of the timber from them is not. I spend a deal of time researching the traditional uses of many of these timber species, mainly for my own creative knowledge, but also to help the development of our range of timbers and their end use.
In Australia we tend to lean towards 'hardwood' , many people are not aware that a great deal of the trees we grow in our gardens (eg; Liquidamber, Poplar, Birch, Maple) have origins as commercial forestry species in other countries. Liquidamber as an example, is used as veneer and ply, it has excellent gluing characteristics and is very durable.
English Elm, which has been extensively planted in Melbourne is traditionally used as a high quality cabinet timber, at Bowerbird it is often available as wide slab section material. With the brilliant grain characters and dark chocolate, colour variations our current range is available but selling fast. (MCG collection,Ponsford stand trees, planted by the 1956 British Olympic running team).
I often find myself questioning peoples hard held beliefs that only 'hardwood' will do.
When you ask for hardwood, consider what is it you are actually asking for?
Is it durability? Density? Hardness?
Often I find that it's easier to talk colours rather than timber species.
There is a belief that only Australian timbers are hardwoods, when you shop with us I hope to not only inspire you to the possible choices, but open your eyes to the potential of timbers from around the world, that we grow in our gardens in Australia.
Our timber species range is diverse due to its source. Each piece has a unique history which we endeavor to collect with each tree we find, this story is yours to keep along with your beautiful new kitchen benches, tables or any timber purchase.
I believe that what we are doing here is at the forefront of an industry change that has no choice but to develop.
Ours is a pioneer business, attempting to turn a waste stream into an industry, unrecognized by governments, unsubsidized due to lack of government foresight and yet, completely unencumbered with the emotive issues that clearfell forestry has.
As the figures below show, if the estimated volume of log available in suburbia was processed simply as firewood then the value of that 912,000 tons of log would be over $45 million dollars at $50 per ton. (firewood value)
NB: (Based on 2500 tree companies removing one ton of timber each per day.)
Not bad for potential landfill waste..............
" I believe we rely too heavily on forestry based resources, I also believe that the 'urban forest' has the potential to yield some amazing timbers in potentially massive volumes."
"I think that as a society we can reduce our reliance on forest timbers, by using what resources we have at our disposal already. No point wasting finite forest resources unnecessarily."
So now you can purchase genuine
the only timber in Australia with a guaranteed ethic.
This is our new product brand, it was created to help you recognize timber that is not only unique, but also gives you the ability to ensure you are helping reduce our reliance on native forest reserves.
All the timber we produce is unique; each piece has its own history, that, where possible, we trace back to its original owner or site of origin.
The timbers collected by Bowerbird are collected, selected, sawn and kiln dried with the care and detail of people who love their work
"Consider the environment, and your place in it"
Sadly, policies ironically called logging "sustainability" measures, have impacted severely on the extent and quality of our native forests. This is due to market pressures, and finite resources. If left unchecked it is obvious that very soon there will be nothing left but what is currently seen as forest 'waste'.
Some interesting statistics
- In Victoria there are currently (@ Nov 2004) 2500 tree removal companies listed in phone books.
- If every day, one of these companies cuts down one suburban tree that weighs one ton, then that means there is a resource of 2500 tons of log material available every day.
- Annual potential log per annum = 912,500 tons (from Victoria alone)
- I estimate that in 2010 the sawmill at Bowerbird is diverting 100 tons of carbon(in log form ) from landfill /firewood or burning as a windrow.
- This material is converted into high quality furniture timber and building products.
- The volume of unrealized material available from this source, could rival some of our heavily subsidized mainstream timber industries.
We started our salvage business because we wanted to show that you don't have to destroy forests to get good timber. Parks and gardens, farms and backyards are providing a continual source of material.
Not only that, we're making available some truly beautiful timbers from a resource that is not going to dry up. We think this approach to collecting and milling is worth pursuing and that it provides the only guarantee, of true sustainability.
SO... When your considering your next building or furniture project, consider the possibilities of utilizing salvaged timbers from a known source, with a guaranteed ethic.
Californian Redwood @ Cloud Hill Nursery, Olinda.
This tree died from a soil born organism. It took three days
to drag up a hill and onto a truck. This is Ken Smith trying to
figure out how to do it. This tree can now be
purchased as kiln dried slabs.
from Bowerbird.
Redwood axe men, with an appreciation of the work it takes to remove just one tree.
Help reduce our reliance on native forests by using only guaranteed - Saved Timbers.