Jose Davila IV
The Toledo Blade
Aug 8, 2020

Local contractors are facing high demand for decks and a treated wood shortage during this coronavirus summer.

The wood shortage first emerged after lockdowns in the spring when lumber companies had to halt cutting and treating operations. Since then, high demand for decks and other home improvement projects has extended the shortage and the resulting growth in prices for wood. So, contractors have made a host of changes to their businesses in order to keep up with their call volume. Now, other materials are becoming harder to find and some businesses will struggle to finish all of their orders this year for decks and other projects.

“There was a little dip initially at the start of COVID,” Joe Blythe, owner of CRD Construction, said. “But after a rough month or so, business has picked up as people are staring at stuff in their homes that they had been ignoring while they were at work.”

CRD, which serves all of Ohio, is the largest construction company The Blade talked to for this story. With a staff of 20 employees, CRD specializes in custom decks and interior custom projects, as well.
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Mr. Blythe says he has been able to rely on his relationship with Carter Lumber, a lumber company based in Akron, to get decking products set aside for CRD, but he noted that the big box home improvement stores are struggling with their stocks….

Read the entire Toledo Blade article here.

CRD Construction is a remodeling contractor in Toledo and the surrounding area.