Earnings per share (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2011	Jun. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2011
Reconciliation of the weighted average shares outstanding for the basic and diluted EPS computations [Abstract]
Income from continuing operations	$ (511)	$ (17,526)	$ 524	$ (16,785)
Basic:
Shares outstanding at beginning of period (in shares)	15,088,000	14,934,000	15,051,000	14,909,000
Weighted average shares issued during the period, net (in shares)	10,000	62,000	40,000	51,000
Weighted average common shares, basic (in shares)	15,098,000	14,996,000	15,091,000	14,960,000
Earnings from continuing operations per common share, basic (in dollars per share)	$ (0.03)	$ (1.17)	$ 0.03	$ (1.12)
Diluted:
Weighted average common shares, basic (in shares)	15,098,000	14,996,000	15,091,000	14,960,000
Dilutive impact of stock options and restricted stock awards (in shares)	0	0	72,000	0
Weighted average common shares, diluted (in shares)	15,098,000	14,996,000	15,163,000	14,960,000
Earnings from continuing operations per common share, diluted (in dollars per share)	$ (0.03)	$ (1.17)	$ 0.03	$ (1.12)
Stock Options [Member]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Anti-dilutive stock options outstanding (in shares)	652,000	648,000	647,000	521,000