Green Tip from Bob Margulis of Seattle, Washington

Bob Margulis“When it comes to green cabinetry, I’m frequently asked what makes cabinetry green. Well, there’s the sustainable wood (i.e. FSC--Forest Stewardship Council and reclaimed), non-added urea-formaldehyde sheet goods, and low/no VOC (volatile organic compounds) finishes—but there’s also the opportunity to support a greener lifestyle.

For example, at Ravenworks, we have designed an island butcher block countertop made of reclaimed end-grain fir that had a removable 6” circular inset that allowed the owners to deposit compostable scraps in the cutout. The hole sat over a stack of drawers—the top most one having a plastic liner insert (the drawer was sized to fit a readily available size plastic bin), which could accumulate scraps until they were emptied into the compost bin. We frequently try to find a place in a base cabinet to include a couple of pull-out waste containers to be used as recycling bins.

We have found that clients, once they are introduced to these green lifestyle ‘options,’ often request them…and it’s a lot of fun helping our clients to achieve their goals of living a greener life.”

Bob Margulis is the Founder of Ravenworks, LLC. Ravenworks is an exclusively green design-and-build studio producing eco-friendly custom cabinets, furniture and built-ins in the Greater Seattle area.