Cover the Hole in Your Soul

There was a time in our society when our man-made things were maintained, patched, repaired, improved upon, handed down and—only when there was absolutely no life left in them—discarded. I remember seeing photos of men using cardboard or paper inside their shoes to cover the hole at the sole. A restoration of sorts; patching the affected area, knowing that the rest of the shoe was still in good condition and would last a little while longer. The point of this thought is that there was a mindset to use something to its full useful life, then make repairs to restore it for another lifespan before discarding said item to the waste stream. I believe this mindset was born of necessity and, when times improved and man prospered, it was forgotten about, giving way to consumerism frenzy. This new trend of “What’s new? I want it,” is also evidenced in our built environment. Think of the Las Vegas Strip, where buildings are literally blown-up and the next new structure is erected.

In March of this year, W&C published my article “Strip Away Your Perception of EIFS,” where I was telling of the sheer number of buildings in the U.S. (it’s 111 million) and how recladding them instead of blowing them up is a good way to use and reuse a building. You know, a piece of cardboard to cover the hole in the sole. However, recladding the exterior isn’t the only avenue to a good renovation/remodeling. So come with me as I walk you through the renovation potential that is the cardboard-over-the-hole of buildings: reduce/reuse/recycle.