Recycled building materials can be a great option if you are looking to save money. However, finding and seeing the potential of useable pieces among the junk in most recycled building yards can be time consuming and daunting. That is where Sydney's Second Hand Building Centre stands out. Not only are the materials displayed in an organised and accessible fashion, a 'second hand showroom' has been constructed entirely of recycled materials to show how to use these 'pre-loved' materials.
The showroom was the brainchild of architect John Poole and was built to display the variety and character of second hand materials and their associated finishes. All the materials used for the construction of the showroom were found on site and were put together in a 'design-as-you-build' process. Peter Fisher, manager of The Second Hand Building Centre, says people should visit the showroom with "a measuring tape, an idea of what they are looking for and a spirit of adventure to find something in its raw state and see the possibilities in it". The entrance to the showroom is a showcase for panels of ironbark and yellowbox boards and batterns, horizontal turpentine and ripple iron. The showroom features sandblasted 300x300mm beams, four metre high courtyard doors from Majorca, a range of recycled flooring and lining board, a staircase made from recycled 300 x 75mm mixed hardwood and a concrete block wall punctuated by glass blocks. Bluestone tiles from Goodradigbee Bluestone, an associated company of the Second Hand Building Centre, lead to the timber floor area of the showroom. Recycled hard and soft wood flooring is mixed to show-off the different colours and richness that can be obtained with a timber floor. One section of the flooring area is set aside for new timber flooring, where various samples are on display, to give people a look at the options available. It is not always cheaper to buy recycled products. Peter says the greatest savings are on doors and windows, if you can find what you are looking for. The second hand showroom has 1000 doors and around 400 windows to choose from.
| 
