Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?

"peter" wrote in message
news:mF4Ag.7381$jt.1182@trnddc04...
Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?

Sometimes. Depends where you are located and how much you want to buy.
Some will only sell full bundles. Most will have a better quality also.
Price is not everything if it takes you longer to build due to the twists
and turns of the wood.

"peter" wrote in message
news:mF4Ag.7381$jt.1182@trnddc04...
Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?

first, where i live, home depot and menards ARE NOT the cheapest source
of lumber. people assume this, but there are actually several
lumberyards that are lower. the company i work for puts out materials
on bid and home depot has never, ever won a bid even though they always
try.

it used to be that you could go to small mills and buy lumber, but
those days are over as far as i know. still might be the case in some
timber producing areas, but good sawtimber has gotten so scarce and
expensive that the small operators can't produce much.

and then, like edwin says, the cheap stuff is usually cheap for a
reason. i've seen people find deals on lumber and then find out is a
pile of garbage.

On Wed, 02 Aug 2006 16:46:10 GMT, "peter" wrote:

Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?

=============
Yes....most of "my" regular Lumber Yards come close or beat the price
HD or Lowes charge for construction lumber..with the added benifit
that the lumber is better...lack of warp, etc...

When it comes to hardwoods like Walnut ...opps bad example ..try
finding Walnut in HD...lets say red oak ...you will find that HD and
Lowes prices are 2-3 times more then regular lumber yards..and
5-6 times more expensive then saw mills (but my closest "good" saw
mill is 100 miles away....still worth the trip...

Bob G.

"Bob G." wrote in message
news
On Wed, 02 Aug 2006 16:46:10 GMT, "peter" wrote:

Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?

=============
Yes....most of "my" regular Lumber Yards come close or beat the price
HD or Lowes charge for construction lumber..with the added benifit
that the lumber is better...lack of warp, etc...

When it comes to hardwoods like Walnut ...opps bad example ..try
finding Walnut in HD...lets say red oak ...you will find that HD and
Lowes prices are 2-3 times more then regular lumber yards..and
5-6 times more expensive then saw mills (but my closest "good" saw
mill is 100 miles away....still worth the trip...

Anybody knows any good lumber yard or saw mill in Seattle?
BTW, what is the difference between a lumber yard and a saw mill?

On Thu, 03 Aug 2006 11:18:12 -0400, Bob G.
wrote:

On Wed, 02 Aug 2006 16:46:10 GMT, "peter" wrote:

Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?

=============
Yes....most of "my" regular Lumber Yards come close or beat the price
HD or Lowes charge for construction lumber..with the added benifit
that the lumber is better...lack of warp, etc...

When it comes to hardwoods like Walnut ...opps bad example ..try
finding Walnut in HD...lets say red oak ...you will find that HD and
Lowes prices are 2-3 times more then regular lumber yards..and
5-6 times more expensive then saw mills (but my closest "good" saw
mill is 100 miles away....still worth the trip...

When I wanted cedar, to repair a neighbor's fence, I used the web to
find some place in Balt. that sold it. Only found one thta way, and
when I went to order it, it turned out he was ordering it from some
place else in Baltimore, closer to me even (and closer to downtown
fwiw). He was going to have me pick it up there, but something went
wrong, he said, and it was delived to his store before I had a chance
to pick it up. (I would sort of like to have known where it was, but
I doubt it matters much.)

Bob G.

"peter" wrote in message
news:mF4Ag.7381$jt.1182@trnddc04...
Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?



I go to the local lumber yard. The selection is better, the service is
better, and the prices are generally a little cheaper.

peter wrote:
Is it generally possible to buy lumber from lumber mills directly that
(hopefully) cost less than from home depot or lowes?


Yes