Recycling is for the birds

Guests were greeted with this sign resting on the front lawn to lead them to the treehouse in the backyard

Guests were greeted with this sign resting on the front lawn to lead them to the tree house in the backyard

San Diego’s own, Ryan Arnold, opened up his home in Pacific Beach on Saturday to celebrate his largest creation made from recycled materials after three years of learning wood working and constructive skills in his spare time.  Using recycled wood that he found in the alleys behind his house and around the community, he collected enough material to design and construct a full sized tree house, standing 15 feet off the ground.

The tree house measures at a little more than 9 feet tall from floor to ceiling and about seven feet wide. Amenities include two window sills, a partially open ceiling, sleeper space, main entrance and an emergency exit over his garage.

Guests were invited to walk through the space and enjoy the elevated view as local alternative band, Sun Chased, serenaded the crowd.

“Locally grown…locally sourced materials…sustainably harvested; all trendy expressions that have become part of our lexicon these days… Using reclaimed and recycled materials in contraction, art and other projects is nothing novel.  People have been doing this for years.  There are several videos on YouTube with some really amazing work.  We have alleys littered with unwanted couches, broken Ikea bed frames, lamps, palettes, pictures, dishes, appliances and the list goes on.  Construction site dumpsters are a gold mine.

Local man working to help make a difference in our beautiful city

Local man working to help make a difference in our beautiful city

Nearly all the times you see in my home and in the tree house itself are what I like to call “true local” projects.  What this means to me is that I gathered all the material directly from my community.  Some things were simply cleaned up and used in their current form, others were modified to serve an alternate purpose, and finally, others were chopped and hacked into something completely different.

Take a look around your neighborhood.  I’ll bet you can find something truly local and give it a second life.  I just enjoy making things and want to share how I’ve been occupying my free time,” expressed Ryan Arnold, a senior quality analyst during the day and begetter at night.

Other materials collected have been given a new life as tables, coffee table, desks, bed boards, as well as household decor.

Coffee Table Bed Board

All samples of work created by Ryan Arnold

All samples of work created by Ryan Arnold

“I’m currently working on expanding and adding features to the tree house itself,” said Arnold.

Re-purposing materials is a great way to help the environment as our local refuse facilities are estimated to be at full capacity at the rate our community is producing garbage within the year of 2022.

San Diego’s population of 1.2 million occupants creates more than 910,000 tons of garbage yearly, according to the city of San Diego (www.sandiego.gov/environmental-services/miramar/).  The 2006 recycling program established a present 67% diversion of the garbage created by our communities.  Yet, millions of wasted products are thrown away that can still be used to support daily lives.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#sent/14e2c6fd5729f202?projector=1

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