Homeowners spend lots of hard-earned cash when they’re forced to replace rotten wood in their homes, including pricey doors, windows and columns.
But Preservan Birmingham offers a unique, eco-friendly wood repair method that uses epoxy resins to preserve building materials instead of replacing them. Developed by Preservan Franchising in 2016, the method saves homeowners millions of dollars annually by eliminating many wasteful, expensive renovation projects.
Hillary Edwards, who began operating the Preservan Birmingham franchise in October, wants to spread the good news.
“No one else is doing what Preservan does,” Edwards says. “It’s important to let people know that they don't necessarily have to replace their damaged wood windows or other building elements.”
The Epoxy Techs at Preservan can repair those elements for a fraction of the price.
“One of our customers in the Highland Lakes community was looking at spending about $100,000 to replace all the windows in his house, but we fixed the windows that had rot for less than $6,000,” Edwards said.
Not only that, Preservan did more than save that customer over $90,000.
“We saved him the time and hassle of having all his windows replaced,” Edwards said. “This is so much more convenient and focused.”
Preservan techs complete most projects in less than 36 hours, saving clients the stress and delays of major renovations.
Edwards is also proud of Preservan’s positive environmental impact.
“It feels good to know that we are keeping huge amounts of construction waste out of our landfills,” she says.
For example, if that homeowner replaced all of his windows, the originals would have been discarded.
“Imagine what a pile of 30 large windows in a landfill would look like; and all the energy, time and resources used to create, transport, install, remove and then discard them,” Edwards said. “When researching Preservan as a franchise option, I came across the statement that really resonates with me: The most sustainable approach is to repair what we already have.”
Edwards’ love of restoration began when she was a child and watched her parents restore a 1912 vintage farmhouse. She later worked with nonprofits, including a year serving with Americorps at Habitat for Humanity.
“I became enamored with homes and renovation,” Edwards said.
From 2006 to 2016, Edwards and her husband lived in Greece and where she was inspired by European artisans and craftsmanship. She moved to Birmingham in 2019 with her husband and four children. Edwards learned about Preservan while studying small-business and franchise opportunities.
She and her family live in Vestavia Hills, and they like living and doing business in the Birmingham area.
“Birmingham has a small-town feel with a lot of community, and we enjoy that aspect of it,” Edwards said.
