Areas · Fairfax County
Reels and spools in Lorton: from prison land to new neighbourhoods
LORTON, Va. — Lorton, ZIP 22079 in southern Fairfax County along I-95, holds warehouses and industrial land, the county's I-95 landfill and recycling complex, and neighbourhoods built on the site of the District's former Lorton prison. The desk collects reels from its yards and building sites and delivers spools.
From the reel desk · Checked 9 November 2026
Schematic line map, not to survey: Lorton marked, with I-95, Route 1 drawn heavier. The Potomac, the Anacostia, the District line and the Beltway are drawn for bearings.
Fact box: Lorton
- ZIP
- 22079
- Main roads
- I-95, Route 1, Lorton Road, Route 123
- Former use
- Lorton Reformatory (closed 2001); now Laurel Hill and the Workhouse Arts Center
- Neighbours
- Woodbridge across the Occoquan; Fort Belvoir
A changed place
For most of the twentieth century Lorton was known for the District of Columbia’s prison complex, the Lorton Reformatory, on land the District owned in Fairfax County. The prison closed in 2001, and the land was rebuilt as Laurel Hill: neighbourhoods, parks, a golf course, and the Workhouse Arts Center in the old prison buildings. Around that, Lorton has warehouses and industrial land along I-95 and Route 1, and the county’s I-95 landfill and recycling complex.
Where reels come from
- Warehouses and industrial work along I-95 and Route 1, which use feeder and branch cable.
- Housing in Laurel Hill and the surrounding area.
- Utility and infrastructure work along the corridor and near Fort Belvoir.
Recycling is a last resort
Lorton is home to the county’s landfill and recycling complex, which is a reminder of where reels go when nobody wants them. A wooden reel is lumber, nails and sometimes a steel hub plate; a broken one can be taken apart and the wood recycled, and the steel goes for scrap. But a sound reel thrown away is a waste. The desk’s order is: reuse as a reel first, then reuse as lumber, then recycling.
The arts centre
The Workhouse Arts Center has studios for artists and makers, and makers are among the people who ask for reels to rebuild into furniture. A damaged nailed wood reel is cheaper and yields the same boards.
Pickups here
Lorton pickups often combine with Springfield to the north and Woodbridge across the Occoquan. Warehouse and contractor yards have room to sort; send counts by flange size and build, set steel reels aside, and say what equipment is on site.
Buyers
Lorton homeowners ask for table reels, and properties near the Occoquan and Mason Neck ask for larger reels for hose and docks.
Getting here
I-95 runs north to Springfield and south across the Occoquan to Woodbridge. Route 1 runs parallel. Lorton Road and Silverbrook Road serve the Laurel Hill area. Route 123 runs northwest toward Fairfax City.
Sending a request from Lorton
- Count and measure. Count the reels and measure the largest flange edge to edge across the face. A photo with the tape in it is better than a guess.
- Check the build. Nailed lumber, plywood sheet, steel or plastic. Look for a stencil or tag naming the maker and the reel number.
- Set aside steel and tagged returnables with their serial numbers. Those go back to the maker, not to the desk.
- Say where they stand: yard, dock, garage level, alley or curb, plus clearance, gate hours, badging or escort a driver needs.
- Say what loads them: forklift, pallet jack, loader, ramp, or only people. Reels over 42 inches weigh more than 100 lb empty.
- Say how often: one time, weekly, monthly or at each job close-out.
- Buying instead? Give the flange and height you want, how many, and how the reel gets from the truck to where it will sit.
- No form handy? Email info@dcwoodenspools.com with the same details and a few photos.
Reels you are likely to have
| Reel | Build | Flange | Traverse | Drum | Lb | Usually carries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C-5 | Nailed wood | 23 | 17 | 12 | 34 | Copper building wire, grounding |
| A-10 | Nailed wood | 30 | 22 | 16 | 66 | Service drop, bare aluminium |
| N-24 | Nailed wood | 36 | 28 | 14 | 83 | Insulated and multiplex cable |
| A-29 | Nailed wood | 42 | 28 | 21 | 154 | Overhead conductor, feeders |
| A-38 | Nailed wood | 48 | 28 | 24 | 212 | Aluminium and ACSR, large feeders |
| A-62 | Nailed wood | 60 | 28 | 28 | 397 | Utility conductor |
| A-76 | Nailed wood | 66 | 28 | 30 | 473 | Heavy conductor |
| S-120 | Steel, returnable | 84 | 36 | 42 | 895 | Transmission and medium voltage |
Other makers' reels differ by an inch or two. All flange sizes · How to measure
Questions the desk gets
Should a broken reel go to the landfill?
Not first. A damaged nailed wood reel can be taken apart for lumber, and the steel parts scrapped.
Does the desk combine Lorton pickups with Woodbridge?
Often. Woodbridge is just across the Occoquan on I-95.
Sources
Each opened and read on 9 November 2026.
- Southwire, Reel Packaging Information (CableTech Support): reel series, wooden reel dimensions and weights, steel reel dimensions and charges, tag contents; cites NEMA WC26
- Virginia DHCD, federal approval of Virginia's BEAD Final Proposal (19 November 2025): over $545 million to 23 providers for more than 133,000 unserved locations