One day at work I was heading down the elevator when the doors opened up on another tenant’s floor. I could not help but notice a leather desk chair in perfect condition (at least to the naked eye). It had two neon orange tags on it to signify that it was in the freight area for disposal and not just for storage.
Seeing the item as free game for the taking — any piece of furniture headed for the dumpster essentially is up for grabs — I wheeled it onto the elevator and put it into storage until I could arrange for it to be taken home (I don’t own a vehicle).
A few weeks passed before I both had a vehicle in town (borrowed from my girlfriend’s parents) and had a pass to remove the piece from the building. This rule is in place because although the item was being thrown away, the orange tags are very easy to acquire and so many items could be taken out illegitimately in that manner. So, I had to get a pass in order for security to allow the item to leave the building. The pass serves as a validation of legitimacy.
What was wrong with the item? The chair had sustained some damage to the seat board right where the post leading to the chair’s wheels connected. The weak wood was splitting and splintering and as a result, the chair was not safe to sit in.
The fix? I knew I could fix the item by using half-inch thick planks which were screwed into the parts of the wood that were still strong. I had to attach the planks front-to-back, as the original seat board was curved side-to-side. I could not replace the seat board completely because the leather is stapled to it and I am hardly an expert at upholstery.
The planks also had to have new bolt holes, which I had never seen before in a store. I found them easily at my local hardware store. They are essentially a specially made “nut” for the bolt which has teeth that dig into the opposing side of the wood. Hammered onto the backside of the planks, with a hole drilled through the wood, they hold the bolts tight.
The leather on the chair is in nearly mint condition. Yes, someone has sat on it and managed to strip the bolt holes from the wood, but the leather itself is wonderfully intact and looks beautiful.
How much did this save the environment? Well, as with anything, it’s hard to quantify that. In the end, less usable product will be sent to be buried in a landfill by my use of this chair than if I had allowed it to go to the landfill and bought a new chair, something that I was about to do because of the amount of time I spend at my desk.
The chair is made of leather, which covers the seat, back, and armrests, synthetic foam for padding, metal for support and fasteners, plastic wheels and arms, and a wooden seat board. All of these products would have been used in a similar amount to manufacture a chair for which I would have supplied the demand.
Yes, I may need a new chair someday, but I take good care of my property and this chair may last many years. The point is that instead of going through ten newly produced home office chairs in my lifetime, perhaps I will only go through eight. If everyone were able (and I know not everyone can go home with a thrown out chair) to do that, there would be much less waste sent to landfills and less need for newly manufactured goods. This concept applies to other products, too.
Leather is a by-product of the meat industry, which has an overall negative impact on the environment. Production of plastics, wood, foam, and metal products pollute the environment. Reducing demand for these materials, even in small ways, is overall better than increasing demand. Buying a wooden plank used some wood, but less than a seat board on a new chair.
How much time and money was saved? I found chairs similar to the one I fixed and am now sitting in for prices ranging from $150 to $300 online. Most of the variable involved there is the brand name for the chair. I spent about $10 on the plank of wood, screws, and bolt holes, while I spent under two hours on bringing it home, partial disassembly, cutting the wood, and putting it together correctly. However, a new chair would have cost me similar and required me to pick it out, bring it home, and assemble it. I would say I broke even for time and saved close to $200 (I would have found a cheaper chair though).
What did this replace? I had a wooden chair I had been using that was rather uncomfortable for someone who blogs, runs a business, reads, and pays bills online as much as I do. Actually, the rickety wooden chair was missing a spindle, needed paint, and nearly was thrown out at my house about a decade ago. I asked my parents to save it for me for when I had my own place, and they hesitantly allowed me to store it in the basement until then, despite seeing it as clutter. I later tightened the screws for its supports and stained the chair. It’ll go to my bedroom for hanging clothes over and sitting, to be used as an extra chair where needed.
The leather chair needed a quick wipe down and you can’t see the wooden planks that allowed the fix unless you literally bend down to look under the chair.
I am so much more comfortable at my desk than I was before and have a new chair, “saved” from the landfill, improving my envirohuman impact.
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