Hardwood
deserves a
sixth life.
We buy tired pallets by the trailer-load, grade them board by board, repair what can be saved and send them back out under load. What truly can't be rebuilt becomes collars, crates, furniture, mulch and fiber — never landfill.
Today in the yard
- Graded & ready
- 11,400
- Awaiting repair
- 2,860
- Trailers rolling
- 9
- Diverted this week
- 182 t
Counted 6:30 AM CT · indicative
Quote request
Start with a number, not a phone call
Volume, size and grade are all we need to quote. Tell us where the pallets are and we'll tell you what they're worth — or what a load of graded stock will cost you, delivered.
What we do
Five jobs, one material loop
Most yards pick a lane: either they sell pallets or they haul them away. We run the whole circle, which is why the same trailer that drops graded stock at your dock leaves with your empties.
Buy used pallets
We payPer-pallet pricing on 48×40 cores, odd sizes and mixed loads. Minimum 50 pallets for pickup inside the metro.
ExploreSell graded stock
Ready nowA, #1, #2 and core grades plus new hardwood and heat-treated export decks, inspected before loading.
ExploreRecycle & remove
Zero landfillScheduled or on-call removal of broken decks, skids and crates with documented diversion weights.
ExploreRepair & rebuild
Board levelStringer repair, deck-board swaps, re-nailing and re-grading — usually at a third of new-pallet cost.
ExploreFreight & logistics
Our trailersFlatbed and dry-van runs across a 300-mile radius, backhauls priced honestly.
ExploreManaged programs
ContractOne yard, one invoice, agreed grades and weekly reporting for multi-site operations.
Explore
The ecology of a used pallet
A reclaimed deck is the lowest-carbon pallet on the planet
Not because of an offset, a certificate or a clever accounting trick — because the tree was already felled, the board already milled and the drying already paid for. Reuse is simply the cheapest carbon there is.
- 94%
- of incoming pallets leave as pallets againThe rest become fiber, collars or furniture
- 11.6 kg
- CO₂e avoided per reused deckVersus a comparable new hardwood pallet
- 38,000
- tons of hardwood diverted since 2009Weighbridge-documented at our gate
- 0
- pallets sent to landfill, everA policy, not an aspiration
Reuse before recycling
A pallet repaired is six trips of embodied carbon saved. We only grind wood that has genuinely run out of structural life.
Local loops
Short hauls, dense loads, backhauls filled. The greenest mile is the one a trailer was already driving.
Honest numbers
Every diversion figure on this site traces to a scale ticket. We publish the model behind it.
The Repallet Passport
Every deck we touch
carries its own résumé.
We stencil a six-character code on the stringer of every pallet that passes our grading line. Type it in and you get the whole life story: where it came from, how many times it's been repaired, which boards were replaced, the kilograms of CO₂e its reuse has avoided and how much structural life our graders think is left in it.
- Origin & intake date
- Repair history, board by board
- Lifetime CO₂e avoided
- Remaining trips, estimated
Passport
RPS-4K7Q2M
2019 · Intake
Arrived with a beverage distributor backhaul, Maryland Heights
2021 · Repair
Two deck boards and one lead board replaced, re-nailed
2023 · Regrade
Dropped A → #1 after corner block wear
2025 · In service
Sixth tour of duty, 11 trips logged this year
69.6 kg
CO₂e avoided
6
lives served
~9
trips left
Stock, side by side
Pick a lane and we'll tell you the truth about it
Four kinds of pallet leave this yard. Only one of them involves cutting down a tree, and we'll happily talk you out of it.
The default answer
Structurally sound, lightly weathered, no broken boards and a clean deck. This is what most shippers actually need and it costs a fraction of new. Available in volume every week of the year.
Recycled pallets| Spec | Typical |
|---|---|
| Footprint | 48 × 40 in (GMA) |
| Deck boards | 7 top / 5 bottom, no plugs |
| Static load | 4,000–4,600 lb |
| Carbon vs new | ≈ 92% lower |
| Lead time | Same or next day |
The workhorse
Repaired, plugged or mixed-species decks with honest cosmetic wear. Perfect for one-way shipments, internal moves and static storage where appearance is irrelevant and budget isn't.
Grade definitions| Spec | Typical |
|---|---|
| Footprint | 48 × 40 in, some odd sizes |
| Repairs | Plugs, companions, re-nailed |
| Static load | 2,800–3,600 lb |
| Carbon vs new | ≈ 94% lower |
| Lead time | Same day, large volumes |
For the border
ISPM-15 compliant decks, kiln-heated to core and stamped with our registered mark. Available recycled wherever the regulation allows it — because export compliance and reuse are not mutually exclusive.
Custom & HT pallets| Spec | Typical |
|---|---|
| Treatment | 56 °C core / 30 min |
| Marking | IPPC wheat stamp + ours |
| Sizes | GMA, EUR, custom |
| Moisture | ≤ 19% at dispatch |
| Lead time | 2–5 business days |
Only when reuse can't
Built from regionally sawn oak and mixed hardwood, to your drawing, when a spec genuinely rules out reclaimed material. We will always quote the recycled alternative beside it.
New pallets| Spec | Typical |
|---|---|
| Species | Regional oak / mixed hardwood |
| Fasteners | Helical-thread, 2½ in |
| Static load | 5,000+ lb |
| Sourcing | Within 180 miles of the yard |
| Lead time | 3–7 business days |
How a load moves
From your dock to graded stock in four moves
No discovery calls, no portals to log into. A request, a number, a trailer, a scale ticket.
- 01
You tell us what's there
Rough counts and sizes are fine. Photos help, but a sentence will do.
- 02
We price it in writing
Per pallet, per load or per pickup — with the grade split spelled out.
- 03
Our trailer shows up
Inside the metro, usually within 48 hours. Regionally, within the week.
- 04
You get the paperwork
Scale tickets, diversion weights and an invoice or a cheque.
They quoted our cores on a Tuesday, took 1,900 of them on a Thursday, and brought graded #1s back on the same trailer. Our yard has never been this empty.
Straight answers
The questions we get before lunch
If yours isn't here, the FAQ goes deeper — or just put it in the form and a human will answer it.
The yard at a glance
What we buy, what we sell, what we turn away
Three columns that answer most first emails. If your material is in the third column we will still tell you where it should go — we would rather refuse honestly than pass a problem along.
- 412k
- Pallets handled last year
- 11,400
- Graded & ready today
- 3,000
- Decks repaired weekly
- 9
- Trailers owned
- 100
- Metro order minimum
- 48 h
- Metro pickup window
We buy
- 48×40 GMA cores — best price, every quantity
- Odd sizes: 42×42, 48×48, 36×36, 40×40, block pallets
- Euro and ISO footprints, licensed or plain
- Repairable decks with cracked or missing boards
- Collars, lids, bin boxes and crates, including hinges
- Skids, dunnage and nailed hardwood offcuts
We sell
- A, #1, #2 and core-grade recycled pallets
- New hardwood pallets built to your drawing
- ISPM-15 heat-treated export decks, stamped in house
- Custom and re-cut footprints from 100 units
- Collars, lids, top caps, bin boxes, crates, dunnage
- Screened mulch, animal bedding and boiler-grade fiber
We refuse — and say why
- Chemically treated timberCCA and creosote. Taking it would mean landfilling it.
- Plastic and metal palletsWe are a hardwood yard; a specialist will do better.
- Painted or varnished woodCase by case — it contaminates the mulch stream.
- Wet-rotted materialAccepted with a fee, screened to the lowest fiber grade.
- Bark-bearing componentsFails export inspection regardless of treatment.
Volume bands and what each one gets you
| Volume | Buying from us | Selling to us |
|---|---|---|
| Under 50 | Collect from the yard, no minimum | Walk-in drop-off, no appointment |
| 50–99 | Collect, or add to a scheduled route | Metro pickup, scheduled within 48 h |
| 100–499 | Metro delivery, next business day | Dedicated pickup, priced per grade |
| 500–2,000 | Trailer-load pricing, scheduled day | Dedicated trailer, scale-reconciled |
| 2,000+ monthly | Contract rate, grade split agreed | Standing slot plus contract pricing |
| Out of region | Full trailer, 2–5 business days | Priced with a backhaul where possible |
Hours, windows and response
- Monday – Thursday
- 7:00 AM – 5:00 PM CT
- Friday
- 7:00 AM – 3:30 PM CT
- Saturday
- 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM CT (drop-off only)
- Sunday
- Closed
- Grading line stops
- 4:30 PM weekdays
- Quote desk response
- Same business day before 3:00 PM CT
No telephone line by design — written requests get accurate answers, usually the same business day.
The yard
Wood, in the order it moves
Intake on the apron, grading under cover, loading at the dock, and out again under load. Four pictures, in the sequence a pallet experiences them.
Audit trail
Where every number on this site comes from
We publish a lot of figures. Each one has a source you can ask to see, and three of them are deliberately unflattering.
| Figure | Value | Source | How often it changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pallets handled | 412,000 / yr | Grading line and dispatch counts | Annually |
| Hardwood kept in circulation | 4,780 t / yr | Weighbridge in minus fiber sales out | Annually |
| Diversion from landfill | 100% of intake | Weighbridge reconciliation | Monitored monthly |
| Intake leaving as pallets | 94% | Lane counts at dispatch | Annually |
| Net CO₂e avoided | 3,410 t / yr | Reuse credit minus our own freight | Annually |
| Credit per reuse cycle | 11.6 kg CO₂e | 12.6 kg embodied − 1.0 kg recovery | Reviewed annually |
| Freight factor | 0.11 kg CO₂e / ton-mile | Our own fuel and mileage records | Annually |
| Mean further lives per deck | 4.7 | Line notes plus Passport records | Annually |
| Decks repaired weekly | ≈ 3,000 | Repair bench tallies | Monitored weekly |
| Break-even haul distance | ≈ 950 miles | Freight factor against the reuse credit | With the factor |
| Programme saving | −18% to −34% | Customer invoices, first year | Per account |
| Survivor bias in lifespan data | Acknowledged | We only see decks that return to us | Standing caveat |
Figures that do not flatter us
- Our lifespan data is survivor-biased, and we say so on every page that uses it
- Heat treatment costs 0.9 kg CO₂e per deck — real, and published
- Our own trucks consume 2.6% of the carbon saved on a 180-mile lane
- We quote observed capacities, not certified design values
What we will send on request
- Weighbridge tickets for your own loads
- The grade standard, signed
- A quarterly diversion and CO₂e statement
- A pool-level Passport export as CSV
- The model constants, so you can substitute your own
Things we do not sell
- Carbon offsets
- Not offered
- Circularity certificates
- Not offered
- Rental pool positions
- Not our model
- Plastic or metal pallets
- Referral instead
- Chemically treated timber
- Refused at the gate
- Freight beyond 950 miles
- Declined, with a referral
Yard reference
Every number we publish, in one place
The same appendix appears at the foot of our reference pages so you never have to leave an article to check a figure. All of it is revised annually and matches the constants used by the Carbon Ledger.
Stock specification
- Stock footprint
- 48" × 40" (1219 × 1016 mm)
- Deck height, GMA stringer
- 5½" (140 mm)
- Deck height, block pallet
- 5¾" (146 mm)
- Deck height, EPAL 1
- 144 mm
- Board thickness, nominal
- ⅝" (16 mm)
- Top deck boards, #1 grade
- 6–7
- Bottom deck boards, #1 grade
- 4–5
- Stringers per pallet
- 3, notched or solid
- Species
- Mixed hardwood, oak-dominant
- Mass, recycled 48×40
- 33–42 lb / 15–19 kg
- Mass, new 48×40
- 37–48 lb / 17–22 kg
- Mass, EPAL 1
- 22–25 kg / 49–55 lb
- Moisture ceiling at dispatch
- ≤ 19%
- Fasteners
- Helical-thread 2½"
Typical values for our 48×40 recycled stock. Exact board counts vary by grade and batch.
Order terms
- Metro delivery minimum
- 100 pallets
- Pickup minimum (selling to us)
- 50 pallets
- Drop-off minimum
- None, during yard hours
- Out-of-region freight
- Full trailer
- Quote validity
- 14 days
- Standing-order pricing
- Fixed for the quarter
- First order terms
- Prepaid or card
- Account terms
- Net 30, approved
- Buy-back payment
- Cheque or ACH, 10 business days
- Sample before contract
- 20 pallets, free
- Grade dispute remedy
- Same-day re-grade, replace or credit
- Reserved stock
- Up to 8 weeks against a confirmed order
Standing-order customers get fixed quarterly pricing.
The yard, in facts
- Address
- 9869 Meeks Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63132
- Founded
- 2009
- Zero landfill since
- March 2017
- Grading lanes
- Four, plus new and heat-treated
- Named defects on the wall
- Thirteen
- Covered storage
- Two roofed bays
- Dock doors
- Four at 48 in, plus drive-on
- Weighbridge
- On site, certified
- Trailers owned
- Nine, plus two flatbeds
- Trailer staging spaces
- Twelve
- Pallets handled last year
- 412,000
- Hardwood kept in circulation
- 4,780 tons
- Decks repaired weekly
- ≈ 3,000
- Intake leaving as pallets
- 94%
- Mean further lives per deck
- 4.7
Counted at the weighbridge and the grading line.
Grades, side by side
| Grade | Top / bottom boards | Repairs allowed | Static | Dynamic | Racked | Price index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A / Premium | 7 / 5 | None visible | 4,600 lb | 2,800 lb | 1,800 lb | 42–52 |
| #1 Grade | 6–7 / 4–5 | Full-length companions | 4,000 lb | 2,500 lb | 1,500 lb | 30–40 |
| #2 Grade | 5–6 / 3–4 | Plugs and companions | 3,200 lb | 1,800 lb | Not advised | 20–28 |
| Core / Mixed | As arrived | Unsorted | Unrated | Unrated | No | 12–20 |
| New hardwood | 7 / 5 | n/a | 5,000+ lb | 3,000 lb | 2,200 lb | 100 |
| Heat-treated #1 | 6–7 / 4–5 | Companions, re-treated | 4,000 lb | 2,500 lb | 1,500 lb | 38–48 |
Footprints we stock or build
| Footprint | Metric | Known as | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 48" × 40" | 1219 × 1016 mm | GMA / grocery standard | General distribution, grocery |
| 42" × 42" | 1067 × 1067 mm | Square 42 | Drums, paint, telecom |
| 48" × 48" | 1219 × 1219 mm | Drum pallet | 55-gallon drums |
| 40" × 48" | 1016 × 1219 mm | Rotated GMA | Military, construction |
| 48" × 42" | 1219 × 1067 mm | Chemical / produce | Chemicals, produce |
| 40" × 40" | 1016 × 1016 mm | Dairy square | Dairy, beverage |
| 36" × 36" | 914 × 914 mm | Beverage | DSD, retail display |
| 48" × 20" | 1219 × 508 mm | Retail half | Aisle-end displays |
| 1200 × 800 mm | 47.2" × 31.5" | EUR / EPAL 1 | European export |
| 1200 × 1000 mm | 47.2" × 39.4" | ISO / EPAL 2 | ISO export lanes |
Per-layer fit
| Equipment | Interior width | Pattern | Per layer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 53 ft dry van | 100–102" | 48×40 straight | 26 pallets |
| 53 ft dry van | 100–102" | 48×40 pinwheel | 28 pallets |
| 48 ft dry van | 98–100" | 48×40 straight | 24 pallets |
| 20 ft container | 92.5" | 1200×800 EUR | 11 pallets |
| 40 ft container | 92.5" | 1200×800 EUR | 24 pallets |
| 40 ft HC container | 92.5" | 1200×1000 ISO | 20 pallets |
Carbon model constants
| Factor | Value | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| New hardwood pallet, embodied | 12.6 kg CO₂e | Cradle-to-gate, regional oak |
| Recycled deck, processed | 1.0 kg CO₂e | Repair, handling, yard energy |
| Net credit per reuse cycle | 11.6 kg CO₂e | Difference of the two above |
| Heat treatment, per deck | 0.9 kg CO₂e | Our chamber, measured |
| Average pallet mass | 15 kg / 33 lb | 12-month weighted mean |
| Road freight | 0.11 kg CO₂e / ton-mile | Own fleet fuel records |
| Landfill volume, broken deck | 0.12 yd³ | Uncompacted, measured |
| Mature tree sequestration | 21.8 kg CO₂e / yr | Illustration only |
| Break-even haul distance | ≈ 950 miles | Beyond this, reuse credit is cancelled |
ISPM-15 heat treatment
- Core temperature
- 56 °C minimum
- Hold time
- 30 continuous minutes
- Probe points
- Three per batch, deepest board
- Batch capacity
- ≈ 420 pallets
- Mark elements
- IPPC symbol, country, facility, HT
- Marks required on
- Two opposite sides, legible
- Bark
- Prohibited on every component
- Records retained
- 24 months
- Invalidated by
- Repair with untreated wood
- Dunnage & bracing
- In scope — must also be treated
Batch logs retained 24 months. A treated pallet repaired with untreated wood must be re-treated and re-marked.
Service rings from Meeks Blvd
| Ring | Distance | Example markets | Delivery window | Pickup window |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One | 0–60 mi | St. Louis, St. Charles, Metro East | Next business day | 48 business hours |
| Two | 60–180 mi | Columbia, Springfield IL, Cape Girardeau | 2–4 business days | Within the week |
| Three | 180–300 mi | Kansas City, Memphis, Indianapolis | Weekly scheduled run | By arrangement |
| Beyond | 300+ mi | Quoted case by case | By arrangement | Full trailers only |
Species in our intake, and how they behave
| Species | Group | Density (lb/ft³) | Janka hardness | Behaviour in a pallet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White oak | Hardwood | 47 | 1,350 lbf | Our backbone: holds fasteners superbly, heavy, very durable |
| Red oak | Hardwood | 44 | 1,290 lbf | Slightly more porous than white; excellent deck boards |
| Hickory | Hardwood | 51 | 1,820 lbf | Hardest of our intake; superb stringers, splits if nailed dry |
| Maple | Hardwood | 44 | 1,450 lbf | Clean, pale, dimensionally stable; good for upcycled tops |
| Ash | Hardwood | 41 | 1,320 lbf | Tough and flexible; forgiving under impact |
| Poplar | Hardwood | 29 | 540 lbf | Light hardwood, weaker fastener grip, fine for one-way |
| Southern yellow pine | Softwood | 35 | 690 lbf | Common in new softwood builds; resinous, holds nails well |
| Spruce / fir | Softwood | 27 | 510 lbf | Lightest option; loosens soonest under repeated handling |
Moisture targets by application
| Application | Target moisture | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Food distribution | ≤ 19% | Mould risk, not strength; covered storage mandatory |
| Pharmaceutical / clean areas | ≤ 15% | Documented dryness, often new material |
| General warehouse and racking | ≤ 19% | Fastener grip and creep resistance |
| Cold chain | ≤ 15% at dispatch | Condensation cycling through the dew point |
| Export, heat-treated | ≤ 19% | Post-chamber typical; bark-free is the hard rule |
| Upcycled furniture stock | 8–12% | Conditioned indoors two weeks before machining |
| Field and agricultural use | No target | Weather governs; buy #2 and expect it |
Fasteners — two percent of the cost, most of the service life
| Fastener | Length | Shank | Withdrawal resistance | Where we use it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helical-thread nail | 2½" | Twisted, thread-cutting | High, survives moisture cycling | Standard on every new build and repair |
| Annular-ring nail | 2¼"–2½" | Barbed rings | Highest | Lead boards and heavy racked specifications |
| Smooth-shank nail | 2"–2½" | Plain | Low, drops as wood dries | Not used — the reason old pallets loosen |
| Screw-shank nail | 2½" | Coarse helix | High | Block pallets and thick stringers |
| Staple | 1¾" | Crown wire | Low in hardwood | Not used here; acceptable in softwood one-way pallets |
Standards that actually govern a pallet
| Standard | Issued by | Covers | Why it matters to you |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISPM-15 | IPPC / FAO | Phytosanitary treatment of wood packaging | Mandatory for export; 56 °C core for 30 minutes, marked |
| ISO 6780 | ISO | Principal pallet footprints | Defines the six international sizes, including 1200×800 |
| ISO 8611 | ISO | Pallet test methods and performance | The basis of static, dynamic and racked load figures |
| ASTM D1185 | ASTM | Test methods for pallets and skids | North American equivalent test battery |
| GMA specification | Grocery Manufacturers Assoc. | 48×40 four-way notched stringer pallet | What 'GMA' means when stated properly |
| EPAL / UIC 435 | EPAL | Licensed European block pallet | Exchange-pool eligibility, marks and licensed repair |
| MH1 | ANSI / MHI | Pallet terminology and dimensions | The vocabulary used on our build sheets |
| NWPCA uniform standard | NWPCA | Recycled pallet grading practice | The nearest thing the recycled market has to a rulebook |
Handling and rack dimensions
| Dimension | Typical value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fork length | 42"–48" | Must not protrude beyond the far side of a 48" pallet |
| Fork width | 4"–6" | Wider forks spread load across deck boards |
| Fork thickness | 1½"–2" | Determines minimum pallet entry height |
| Fork spread, GMA entry | 24"–27" centres | Between the stringers of a three-stringer pallet |
| Pallet-jack wheel path | 6½" clear | Why notched stringers do not admit jacks |
| Minimum entry height | 3½" | A crushed bottom deck blocks the forks entirely |
| Rack beam span, two pallets | ≥ 96" clear | For two 48×40 pallets, 40" face out |
| Flue space, back to back | ≥ 6" | Most fire codes; check your jurisdiction |
The life of one deck, stage by stage
| Stage | Typical duration | What happens | Carbon position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timber to pallet | Weeks | Sawn, nailed, often shipped wet | 12.6 kg CO₂e embodied |
| First life | 2–4 years | Hardest service; lead board usually fails | Credit begins at reuse |
| First repair | 2 minutes | Lead board replaced with salvaged stock | +1.8 further lives on average |
| Second to fifth life | 6–12 years | Grading, companions, re-nailing, re-grading | 11.6 kg CO₂e avoided per cycle |
| Structural retirement | — | Stringers rotted or deck beyond rebuild | Stored carbon still retained |
| Repurposed | Decades | Collars, crates, table tops, cladding | Carbon stays in the material |
| Fiber | 1–3 years | Mulch or bedding, then soil | Released slowly |
| Thermal | Immediate | Boiler-grade chip | Released at once — last resort |
Total cost of a pallet programme, indexed
| Cost line | Spot buying | Managed programme | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pallet purchase price | Index 100 | 78–86 | Grade matched to the job, not to panic |
| Emergency purchases | 6–11% of spend | ≈ 0% | Reserved stock removes the Friday scramble |
| Disposal and haulage | Index 100 | 0–20 | Cores are bought, not binned |
| Internal labour on wood | Index 100 | 45–60 | Sorting at source, scheduled collection |
| Product damage from pallets | Index 100 | 60–80 | Fewer failures from under-specified decks |
| Admin and reconciliation | Index 100 | 30 | One netted invoice a month |
| Reporting effort | Index 100 | 10 | Diversion and CO₂e arrive automatically |
| Net first-year change | — | −18% to −34% | Observed across our managed accounts |
End-of-line fiber products
| Fiber product | Screen size | Made from | Sold to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landscape mulch, coarse | 1"–2" | Ground hardwood pallet stock | Landscapers, garden centres |
| Landscape mulch, fine | ⅜"–1" | Screened second pass | Retail bagging, municipal beds |
| Animal bedding | ⅛"–⅜" | Fine screen, metal-free | Livestock and poultry operations |
| Boiler-grade chip | Mixed | Material failing every screen above | Industrial thermal users |
| Recovered steel | n/a | Magnetically separated fasteners | Local scrap processor |
Conversions we use daily
| From | To | Multiply by |
|---|---|---|
| Inches | Millimetres | 25.4 exactly |
| Pounds | Kilograms | 0.4536 |
| Short tons | Metric tonnes | 0.9072 |
| Cubic yards | Cubic metres | 0.7646 |
| Ton-miles | Tonne-kilometres | 1.4594 |
| °F to °C | — | (°F − 32) × 5⁄9 |
| Board feet | Cubic metres | 0.00236 |
| lb/ft³ | kg/m³ | 16.018 |
The thirteen named defects on our grading wall
- 01Cracked stringer through a nail line
- 02Stringer break longer than one board width
- 03Soft rot or fungal staining
- 04Missing deck board
- 05Split lead board
- 06Plug or scab repair
- 07Protruding or missing fastener
- 08Board thinner than specification
- 09Mixed board widths on one deck
- 10Pallet will not sit flat on a jig
- 11Visible chemical residue or paint
- 12Moisture above threshold
- 13Bark present on any component
A pallet is only downgraded for a defect a grader can name out loud. If it is not on this list, it is not a reason to move a pallet between lanes.
Glossary — thirty terms worth knowing
- Core
- A used pallet bought for grading — the currency of the industry.
- Deck board
- Any board on the top or bottom face of a pallet.
- Lead board
- The outermost deck board at each end; absorbs every fork entry.
- Stringer
- The long member running the length of a stringer pallet; usually three.
- Stringer board
- On a block pallet, the board that ties the blocks together.
- Block
- One of the nine supports in a block pallet.
- Notch
- The cut-out in a stringer that creates four-way fork access.
- Chamfer
- A bevel on a lead board's lower edge to ease fork entry.
- Companion
- A full-length board nailed alongside a damaged stringer. A strong repair.
- Plug / scab
- A short piece fixed over a break. A weaker repair; #2 grade here.
- Re-nail
- Restoring the fastener pattern on a loose but intact pallet.
- Regrade
- Moving a pallet between grade lanes after inspection.
- Down-cut
- Re-cutting a larger deck into a smaller footprint.
- Static load
- Capacity at rest on a flat, continuous surface.
- Dynamic load
- Capacity while being lifted and moved.
- Racked load
- Capacity spanning beams with no deck support. Always the smallest figure.
- Unit load
- Pallet, product and wrap considered as one structure.
- Overhang
- Load or deck projecting beyond its support. The leading cause of rack failure.
- Flue space
- The gap between back-to-back rack bays; six inches minimum in most codes.
- GMA
- The Grocery Manufacturers Association 48×40 specification.
- EPAL
- The licensing body for the European 1200×800 block pallet.
- ISPM-15
- The international phytosanitary standard for wood packaging.
- HT
- Heat treatment: 56 °C at core for 30 minutes.
- IPPC mark
- The wheat-sheaf stamp evidencing phytosanitary treatment.
- Collar
- Four hinged timber sides that turn a pallet into a container.
- Top cap
- A lightweight cover protecting the uppermost layer of a stack.
- Dunnage
- Timber used to fill voids, brace loads and spread point loads.
- Fiber
- Ground wood: mulch, animal bedding or boiler-grade chip.
- Diversion rate
- Share of intake kept out of landfill. Ours is 100%.
- Reuse rate
- Share of intake that leaves as a pallet. Ours is 94%.
Still wondering?
Eight questions that arrive most weeks. The full set lives on the FAQ page, and anything missing can go straight into the form at the top of this page.
Asked most weeks
Next step
Tell us what's on your dock
A stack of broken decks, a standing weekly order, an export spec or a loose idea about furniture built from retired boards — it all starts the same way.
Quote request
Let's price your pallets
The same desk, the same people, whatever page you came from. Give us the volume and the grade and we'll come back with availability, price and the next trailer out.
Yard9869 Meeks Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63132
HoursMon–Thu 7:00–5:00 · Fri 7:00–3:30 · Sat 8:00–12:00 CT