Big Reuse Queens

Category:	Building Materials Store
Address:	317 26th Ave, Astoria, NY 11102, USA
Phone:	+1 718-777-0132
Site:	bigreuse.org
Rating:	3.6
Working:	10AM–6PM 10AM–6PM 10AM–6PM 10AM–6PM 10AM–6PM 10AM–6PM 10AM–6PM

Location

Photos 28

Reviews 9

Daniel

Im not one to typically write reviews, but I felt compelled to after how dissapointing this experience was. I had high hopes for this place, as it appeared to be exactly what I was looking for, but it was a huge letdown. They have some great products, but overpriced doesnt even begin to explain it. As others have mentioned, the staff seemed pretty clueless and werent helpful, and two were actually outright rude. In addition, It really bothers me that this place acts as if they are out for a noble cause, when this is clearly just a gimmick to get deeper into peoples pockets. When I first arrived there, I had problems before I even stepped into the store. The parking situation is atrocious and one of the employees yelled at me for temporarily pulling over slightly to let a large truck pass on the opposite side of the street. I was there for less than 10 seconds total. When I finally did park and get into the store, the first employee near the door was talking on his phone and completely ignored me. I went ahead and started browsing the store and immediately realized the products were priced higher than brand new, better quality products. My main interest was to pick up some reclaimed wood and possibly some furniture parts so after browsing through the other sections I continued on to lumber. In this section, there were two more employees that were going about their work and completely ignored me, all while continuing on with a foul language conversation that was innapropriate around a customer. The prices in this section were even more outrageous than those in other sections. $8-$12 + per foot of common boards meaning one decent size piece of wood could cost you $60-$100 + easily. You can source high end wood brand new at cheaper priced than this. I continued to wander around to browse the store and apparently wandered into an unmarked "staging area". One employee relatively politely informed me that these items were not processed yet albeit with a dirty look. Before I even got a chance to leave this section, another employee rudely yelled at me that this whole section is off limits and continued to yell at me as I made my way immediately to the nearest exit completely fed up at this point, which was apparently not a way I was supposed to go out. To sum up, this was hands down the worst experience Ive ever had at any place of business. Their "noble cause" is more to get into your pocket than being green and is a gimmick preying on those who are actually interested in helping the environment more than anything else. Prices are far greater than unreasonable, staff is not helpful and rude in some cases, and to top it all off theres no parking. This is 2 hours of time between travel time and the time I was there that I wish I could get back. Big letdown after I had such high hopes for this place.

Kimberly Craven

my beau and i found this place just before a move. a dream come true! we could purchase salvaged materials to build new shelves and add to our furniture collection. one of the store employees helped with our selection of wood for shelving and offered to cut it to our specifications for a negligible fee. alas, when we arrived home, ready to put said same wood on the wall, we discovered a couple extra cuts we definitely did not request. two of the pieces had been cut down the middle about 3/4 of the way through! of course those pieces are unusable now as they will not support the books we planned to put on them. i hope that employee remained blissfully unaware of his mistake - i hope he didnt sell us damaged wood on purpose. apart from that unfortunate finding, our experience was wonderful and we would certainly return for other items... we would just be very careful to re-inspect them before purchase!

Jane Smith

Only shop here if you have an Imagination & dont mind weekend projects cuz there are tons of Treasures jst waiting to be discovered! Yes there are plenty items that are in perfect condition, its just there are many people that wont know what to do with an Item unless they see it displayed in Catalog or copy how a store has it set-up! My only complaint is that there is so much stuff I just wished it was better organized cuz some areas are stacked upto the Ceiling, so its easy to miss things! I also wish that they would place lil tags on the items that described features, benefits & measurements, but hey if ur on a budget this place is worth a look cuz the savings are Amazing! I suggest Visiting both Queens & BK store cuz not everything is on their website.

Al Rawandi

RECLAIMED, by definition, means nature friendly AND COST EFFECTIVE. All their items are being donated from environment activist and charity givers. Their business name Build it GREEN seems to flagrantly contradict with their prices: Nakashima Inspired Table and Bench by Ian Ingersoll $5000! Square Shademaker Astral Umbrella $1500 Chaise Lounge Outdoor Sun Lounger $900 Wolf 24" Countertop Microwave [USED] $440 Are you kidding me? the list goes on and on.. Its on their website! Go and see for yourself.. I wonder if those positive 5 star reviews were left by the Staff who work there. Its quite funny indeed.

Jessica Rivera

Brrr. Ice cold customer service. Place is large but dark. They get some gems every so often. But the focus is lumber... lots of screws, loose furniture. Some appliances. Prices seem sky high for salvaged goods. $200 for a used Toto. $1200 for a used Viking stove. Great brands... but its used!! And not in the greatest condition. Def need to haggle but they are cold... sarcastic. I wish they would toss the clearly broken goods too. Or mark them much lower. Wish there were more finished fixtures too like cabinet handles, lighting, faucets... oh well.

Travis Weiss

First time here today and what an AMAZING experience! Mike was absolutely fantastic and helped me with everything and anything I needed. He gave awesome advice and was patient and caring with me throughout my entire shopping experience. Mike made all the difference and I will most definitely be back because of him! He and Ramone helped me load the truck and made the process easy, quick, and enjoyable. They are amazing! THANK YOU AGAIN!!!!

Marisol Abreu

The purpose and mission of a place like big reuse is fenomenal! However, the staff was very rude and inconsiderate to the consumer. They were very dismissive and sarcastic which made it clear that they are not welcoming to the idea behind big reuse, this caused us to turn away and visit the Brooklyn location where we found a much more welcoming and attentive atmosphere.

Denise Cachoian

Went to Big Reuse in Queens. I agree with others in that there is little help and many items are overpriced. Also many items were not even priced at all. If it werent for the Labor Day sale, I would not have purchased all that I did. However, if you are lucky enough to get Robert to help you, then you are in luck! He was the best sales person there in my opinion!

Salt Earth

It sounds great when you first hear about it and it is in a great location, but the moment you step in you are on your own, the few employees walking around give you wrong information and quotes. Most of the items are way too over price. Looking for a place exactly like this, but I will hardly come back. Too sad.