I’m looking into building some lumber stack base levelers like those Matt Cremona built in this link:
https://mattcremona.com/urban-logging/sawing/lumber-stack-levelers
I have a lot of nice hardwoods on my property that’ll be cleared prior to building our home & workshop that I’d like to have milled up. I did a quick search online for steel but would like your local perspective as well. I’ve never bought steel for a project.
Questions
Any idea where around Winston Salem, Greensboro or High Point I should look to find c-channel and tube steel to make a bunch of these levelers ?
Is there a lower cost online option instead ?
Hi Jeremy,
D.H. Griffin Scrap Yard ... 4700 Hilltop Rd, Greensboro. You'll have to wander the yard and haul your finds to the scale building. You'll pay approximately 2X current scrap steel price (at least that's what it was the last time I went there).
Alro Metals Outlet ... 110 Industrial Ave, Greensboro. They have drops as well as full length material available. They also had (haven't been there in a while) precut forms such as gusset plates in various sizes, and can perform some shearing/cutting services for you on-site.
While there are other steel "Service Centers", they tend to inventory material and cut parts for big customers ... and don't deal much, if at all, with retail customers.
Blue Ridge Tool ... 505 Lakedale Rd, Colfax. They are a machine shop that "may" have what you are looking for in their scrap bins. There are other machine shops in the area, but I'm most familiar with BRT.
Omnisource Corporation ... 3415 Glenn Ave NE, Winston-Salem, 1426 W Mountain St, Kernersville. These are metal recycling facilities much as D.H. Griffin. The Kernersville site typically only takes in bulk steel (stripped and flattened cars, metal-cased appliances), Winston Salem takes pretty much anything. Not sure if they allow you to wander the yard looking for usable scrap, but it doesn't hurt to ask.
If you want to work outside the box, TP Supply in Mt Airy sells used warehouse racks and totes. You might find it easier to buy some rack beams and cut them to length rather than building Matt's solution. If nothing else, there are a LOT of used warehouse racks available around the area.
In any case, make sure you have a cut list for what you're looking for ... in most cases these places don't have the time or interest in helping you figure out suitable materials.
Not sure how much material you want, but remember steel is full of those darn kilograms * (and they're HEAVY). Plan on appropriate transportation beforehand.
Regards,
Rick
* Twice now, I've looked at the weight listed on a box and overlooked the units ... and was sure glad to have an extra hand to move these things from the driveway around back to the basement door. Yes, kilograms are heavy indeed.