What We Do
Turning Waste into Raw Materials
URBAN TREE SALVAGE® owns and operates sawmills, dry kilns, a woodshop and a metal shop, all housed on a few acres of land. Each log we salvage is hand selected for quality and uniqueness. As urban trees are under stress due to the environment they have been growing in, many of our logs have beautiful figures or characters, such as curls, spalting, birdseye and quilting, to name a few. All our material is salvaged from locally-felled permit-removed urban trees, so as not to encourage or create a market for logging or unnecessary removals. Species we commonly carry include ash, basswood, black walnut, elm, maple, oak, poplar and willow.
With the use of our multiple sawmills, we cut all our own material, taking care to mill each slab to best showcase the beauty and character of each log. We specialize in 2”-thick book-matched sets, which are consecutively cut slabs that create a mirror image effect. For those looking for a truly distinctive table, we also carry thick single-width slabs.
Kiln Dry Lumber For Use
Proper kiln drying is essential to reduce moisture and kill insects as well as relieve stress in the wood. Wood that is not properly dried, stored and acclimatized, whether local or from overseas, over time can incur devastating cracks, warps and cupping. To prevent these issues, all our material is stored indoors, where it properly equalizes prior to production.
Previously certified by the CFIA(Canada Food and Inspection Agency), UTS was the only municipal log salvaging operation in Ontario certified to ship worldwide. Our slabs pass strict government audits, ensuring they are properly kiln dried and heat treated.
Customizing you pieces is easy
URBAN TREE SALVAGE® owns a fully equipped and climate-controlled shop where we handcraft each piece using traditional woodworking techniques. We also fabricate all our own metal bases, offering a variety of design and finish options. Each base is custom built to accompany the top, to ensure proper seating locations and stability.
We would love you to visit our showroom, which has the largest selection of custom options in Toronto. You will be able to select your material, size, finish and design, and we will build to your specifications. No need to travel for hours: our showroom is conveniently located just 20 minutes east of downtown Toronto, with plenty of parking. Coming by TTC, we are right beside the Warden subway station. Not able to visit our showroom? All our options are photographed for easy selection via email.
You are able to personally select the actual material we will use to create your piece, ensuring no hidden surprises from sight unseen purchases, as no two pieces are the same.
Check our our ready to ship pieces
We offer a selection of finish options, such as hand-rubbed oils, water-based urethanes and oil-based stains. We walk you through the selection process, so you can be confident with your design and material selections. If you are unsure what color best suits your space, samples are custom-made for you to bring home and compare in your living space.
We also carry a great selection of fully finished pieces at our showroom that are ready to go. From contemporary to organic, products include straight edge or live edge slab dining tables, kitchen tables, console tables, coffee tables, boardroom tables, conference tables, desks, live edge slab and reclaimed timber benches, island tops and counter tops for residential, commercial, hospitality and institutional applications.
You can view a list of some of our corporate clients at the bottom of this page that we have had the pleasure to work with over the years.
URBAN TREE SALVAGE® is one of a few companies handling all areas of wood reclamation, from salvage, sawing, drying and manufacturing. Overseeing all parts of the process and not outsourcing allows for higher quality standards and lower prices.
What we create in the end are environmentally friendly functional art pieces for the home, cottage or office, exclusively from salvaged and reclaimed wood.
