Knapp, who wrote "New Old House: Designing with Reclaimed Materials" (Gibbs Smith, 2002), says studies in England have shown decorating with elements of antique wood and other natural materials, such as stone, can reduce stress.

Architects, contractors and interior designers are incorporating vintage wood from plank flooring to hand-hewn beams into home renovations and construction. Decorative elements, such as corbels and columns, are being used as accent pieces or to make an architectural statement.

"If I get a lot of reclaimed wood from an old building, contractors will come in and buy the whole room," says Mark Brogna, manager of the Historic Albany Foundation Architectural Parts Warehouse in Albany. "I like to see all of it reused instead of just sitting here.

"People come in to buy molding, trim, window sashes and old doors. Recycled wood can be used in every room in the house, from floors and walls to ceilings and to make cabinetry and furnishings. Artists also come in to buy molding to use for picture frames."

Reclaimed wood is also valued for its desirable patina, which has a warm color and straight grain, and may include checking (shrink cracks), knotholes and burls. It's also valued for its evidence of handwork, such as from a broad ax or an adz (an ax-like tool for trimming and smoothing wood), slots from use in mortise-and-tenon joints, peg and nail holes. There may even be fossil-insect scarring.

"I've had requests for animal-worn vintage wood," says Knapp. "This could be anything from horses kicking the walls to cribbing (biting) on the tops of wood along their stall or fencing. I did a whole room out of this for one client."

Where to find

A variety of reclaimed woods can be found at architectural salvage dealers including white pine, hemlock, white and red oak, cherry, walnut, maple, heart pine and chestnut. In fact, due to American chestnut blight, which killed millions of trees in the first half of the 20th century, the only American chestnut wood available today is reclaimed.

In addition to being salvaged from old buildings, reclaimable timber can be found in lakes and rivers, usually in a sunken ship or refuse from an old logging operation. And these timbers are often in better condition, because they have been protected by the cold of the water through the years, says Knapp.

Elizabeth Griffen, executive director of the Historic Albany Foundation, said, "Reclaimed wood is far superior to new growth. It's a shame that so many structures have been torn down over the years without salvaging reusable parts."

Structures built in the 19th century were often made from trees that had grown for more than 100 years. In cases where the tree had to compete for space and light, it grew slowly, so the rings are close together. It's not uncommon to find timber with 20 growth rings per inch, a rare find with new wood, said Knapp.

Depending on whether the wood was cut from the inside of the tree or on the exterior, it either darkens or lightens with age. But since it has already weathered, the silver-gray or brown gray patina will not change. Vintage timbers are also dried out, so there is little concern about shrinking or warping.

Mantle mania

When it comes to reclaimed wood, one of the most common requests next to flooring is for ceiling or mantle beams.

"I refer to it as mantle mania," says Knapp, laughing. "A fireplace mantle has become a signature statement. It's an important part of the house. It's like the front door."

They are also popular because mantles can be added or replaced whenever the homeowner desires, and regardless of the type of house.

"Old barn siding looks great on a kitchen wall, even though it's an artistic use rather than a restoration," explains Bill McMillen of Glenmont, a preservation and restoration consultant who was the former director of restoration at the Richmondtown Restoration complex on Staten Island. "It's easier to try and blend old wood up to old wood than new wood to old."

Taking off an inch or two (if the piece is thick enough) will expose a more even color among the boards, and a mix of stain color can help bring them all to a more harmonious hue, says Knapp. But odds are two pieces will never match exactly.

Reclaimed timber is generally cleaned before it is sold. Beams and boards are pressure-washed and then fumigated or kiln-dried to kill bacteria and insects.

Although reclaimed wood costs about 30 percent more than fresh-cut timber, the value of the home will increase if you install reclaimed wood for the flooring or beamed ceilings in two or more rooms, Knapp says.

Planning ahead

Although there is a lot of timber to choose from, it often takes time to find the right piece.

"You have to plan ahead if you want to use reclaimed wood. It can take anywhere from three to five months to find exceptional pieces or lengths," says Knapp, who has supplied vintage wood for historic sites, including the log cabin at the Lincoln historic site in Springfield, Ill., and for the set of "The Clearing," an upcoming Robert Redford movie.

Knapp also suggests finding the wood before you begin designing the project, so you don't throw off your construction sequence or mess up your builder.

"If you find your sources first, it can be worked into the construction plans for your home or designated project, which is a great help to your architect," says Knapp. "It allows you the time to be a little more creative in the design end or how to best utilize the pieces you are using without being too costly."

For instance, hand-hewn timbers come in varying sizes and lengths and may differ as much as 3 inches from one end to the other, which has to be taken into consideration if the ends are to be properly joined.

"When you create absolutely accurate interiors and extensions, the pieces of wood have to be the right dimension, size and shape in the historical context, especially in Georgian architecture," says historic preservation contractor Mike Kelley, owner of J.M. Kelley Ltd. in Guilderland. "There may also be waste. Therefore, you might not always get the same yield out of antique timbers as a freshly cut tree."

Taking care

Care also has to be taken when working with reclaimed beams and timbers.

Kelly, who specializes in renovation, extension and refurbishment of period and country homes, said that sometimes a piece will be so dried out and brittle it will split like cornflakes when you drive a nail into it.

"You can also be working by hand and come across a nail or nail part that's still embedded in the wood, which can take a pretty nice nick out of a hand plane or razor blade," said Kelley, "It can take hours to put another edge on your tool."

Older wood, like people, is also less flexible.

"You have to take flexibility into consideration and know the wood you are working with," says Knapp. "For instance, fir has more give than oak. To relieve stress on a horizontal beam, you may want to oversize it, but that's basically an engineering issue, as it should be with each species of timber used."

Knapp stresses that, as much as the architects and contractors, homeowners have a responsibility to build with quality whenever and wherever they can.

"I travel all around the world on business and can see that universally we are falling into cookie-cutter styles, which is not what we were built on," says Knapp.

"We are becoming so predictable with what's being built up around us, from chain stores to subdivisions. Getting rid of old and putting up new.

"It's important to everybody that we think of what we can pass along to future generations. Using reclaimed lumber and timbers is a way of incorporating a material link with our past."

Frances Ingraham Heins can be reached at 454-5502, or at fingraham@timesunion.com.

ARCHITECTURAL SALVAGE RESOURCES

Here are several places where reclaimed building materials are available:

Architectural Antiquities, Harborside, Maine. (207) 326-4938 or http:/www.archantiquities.com

Country Road Associates Ltd., 63 Front St., Millbrook, Dutchess County. (845) 677-6041 or http:/www.countryroadassociates.com

Historic Albany Foundation Architectural Parts Warehouse, 89 Lexington Ave., Albany. (518) 465-2987 or http://www.historic-albany.org

Historic Home Supply Center, 215 River St., Troy. (518) 266-0675

Nor'East Architectural Antiques, 5 Market Square, Amesbury, Mass. (978) 834-9088 or http:/www.noreast1.com

Old House Parts, 24 Blue Wave Mall, Kennebunk, Maine. (207) 985-1999 or http:/www.oldhouseparts.com

Vintage Beams & Timbers, P.O. Box 548, Sylva, N.C. (828) 586-0755 or http:/www.vintagebeamsandtimbers.com.

Frances Ingraham Heins

TIMBER TERMS

Circular-sawed lumber is characteristically sawed with a 4-to-5-foot circular-saw blade, which leaves heavy-edged marks in the wood.

Hand-hewn materials have a specific texture that comes as a result of chopping with either a broad ax or an adz.

Pit-sawed lumber was produced by one man standing above a pit and two men standing in the pit with a log suspended over them. Straight, vertical saw marks resulted from the push-pull strokes as the men used a large hand saw.