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Economics · June 10, 2025

Is a free pallet ever free?

Free pallets on a classified ad, free removal from a contractor, free stock from a customer. Three kinds of free, and only one of them usually is.

Published
June 10, 2025
Reading time
7 minutes
Written by
Yard desk
Sections
7 passages

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7 min
Reading time
7
Passages
Economics
Category
June 10
Published
94%
Intake reused
11.6 kg
CO₂e per reuse

Free pallets are genuinely available, and sometimes taking them is the right call. But the three common varieties of free carry very different hidden costs, and it is worth knowing which one you are being offered.

Free variety one: somebody else's problem

A site with a pile of broken decks offers them free to anyone who will take them. This is not a gift; it is disposal cost transfer. You will sort them, you will find that most are unrepairable, and you will then pay to remove what is left — at which point the free pallets cost more than bought ones.

Worth taking only if you can grade on site before loading, and only if you have a route for the fraction that is dead.

Free variety two: free removal

A contractor offers to take your pallets away at no charge. Sometimes this is legitimate — sound cores have value and a yard can afford to collect them for nothing. Often it means the sound cores are being cherry-picked and sold while you forgo their value, which is a perfectly reasonable trade as long as you know you are making it.

Ask for the offer in writing with the piles priced separately. If sound cores are worth money, you should be getting some of it.

Free variety three: whatever came in under the delivery

This is the genuinely free one. Pallets that arrive under your inbound freight are yours, they cost nothing, and if they match your footprint they are the cheapest stock you will ever own. The only discipline required is grading them on arrival rather than mixing them into a general pile.

  • Grade before you load, not after you unload.
  • Know your exit route for the dead fraction before you accept anything.
  • Get free-removal offers in writing with each pile priced.
  • Inbound pallets are free money if — and only if — they match your footprint.
  • Never accept painted, stained or chemically treated wood for free. It is pure liability.

The arithmetic we use

A load of mixed free pallets typically yields 40 to 60 percent repairable or better. If sorting labour plus disposal of the remainder is less than the market price of the usable fraction, take it. If you cannot estimate either number, you are not being offered a bargain — you are being offered a surprise.

Written at the Meeks Blvd yard, St. Louis, and published on June 10, 2025. Markets and specifications move; if a figure here no longer matches what you are seeing, tell us and we will update it. Our model constants live on the Carbon Ledger.

How this was written

Drafted at the grading line from our own weighbridge records, line notes and customer correspondence. Figures quoted as ours are measured; figures quoted from the wider industry are labelled as estimates. Nothing here was written to rank for a search term, and we correct articles rather than quietly deleting them.

Author
Yard desk
Published
June 10, 2025
Category
Economics
Reviewed
Annually, with the model constants
Corrections to
sales@repalletshop.com

What to do with this

  • Check the figures against your own invoices before acting on them.
  • Ask us for the underlying scale tickets if you need audit evidence.
  • Send the article to whoever owns your pallet spec — most of this is their decision.
  • Disagree in writing. Several of these pieces exist because a customer corrected us.

How to cite

Yard desk, “Is a free pallet ever free?”, Repallet Shop, June 10, 2025. repalletshop.com/blog/is-a-free-pallet-ever-free

Related reading

Three more on the same shelf

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

Load figures are observed operating capacities for a 48×40 footprint under a uniformly distributed load. Apply your own safety factor — 1.5 for dynamic handling, 2.0 for long-term racked storage. Price index: 100 = new hardwood.
GradeTop / bottom boardsRepairs allowedStaticDynamicRackedPrice index
A / Premium7 / 5None visible4,600 lb2,800 lb1,800 lb42–52
#1 Grade6–7 / 4–5Full-length companions4,000 lb2,500 lb1,500 lb30–40
#2 Grade5–6 / 3–4Plugs and companions3,200 lb1,800 lbNot advised20–28
Core / MixedAs arrivedUnsortedUnratedUnratedNo12–20
New hardwood7 / 5n/a5,000+ lb3,000 lb2,200 lb100
Heat-treated #16–7 / 4–5Companions, re-treated4,000 lb2,500 lb1,500 lb38–48

Footprints we stock or build

48×40 is roughly 72% of our intake. Odd sizes arrive as they arrive — ask before planning around them.
FootprintMetricKnown asTypical use
48" × 40"1219 × 1016 mmGMA / grocery standardGeneral distribution, grocery
42" × 42"1067 × 1067 mmSquare 42Drums, paint, telecom
48" × 48"1219 × 1219 mmDrum pallet55-gallon drums
40" × 48"1016 × 1219 mmRotated GMAMilitary, construction
48" × 42"1219 × 1067 mmChemical / produceChemicals, produce
40" × 40"1016 × 1016 mmDairy squareDairy, beverage
36" × 36"914 × 914 mmBeverageDSD, retail display
48" × 20"1219 × 508 mmRetail halfAisle-end displays
1200 × 800 mm47.2" × 31.5"EUR / EPAL 1European export
1200 × 1000 mm47.2" × 39.4"ISO / EPAL 2ISO export lanes

Per-layer fit

Interior widths vary by trailer build; confirm with your carrier before committing to a pattern.
EquipmentInterior widthPatternPer layer
53 ft dry van100–102"48×40 straight26 pallets
53 ft dry van100–102"48×40 pinwheel28 pallets
48 ft dry van98–100"48×40 straight24 pallets
20 ft container92.5"1200×800 EUR11 pallets
40 ft container92.5"1200×800 EUR24 pallets
40 ft HC container92.5"1200×1000 ISO20 pallets

Carbon model constants

Sources: industry LCA literature plus our own weighbridge and fuel records. Substitute your own figures — the Carbon Ledger shows the arithmetic.
FactorValueBasis
New hardwood pallet, embodied12.6 kg CO₂eCradle-to-gate, regional oak
Recycled deck, processed1.0 kg CO₂eRepair, handling, yard energy
Net credit per reuse cycle11.6 kg CO₂eDifference of the two above
Heat treatment, per deck0.9 kg CO₂eOur chamber, measured
Average pallet mass15 kg / 33 lb12-month weighted mean
Road freight0.11 kg CO₂e / ton-mileOwn fleet fuel records
Landfill volume, broken deck0.12 yd³Uncompacted, measured
Mature tree sequestration21.8 kg CO₂e / yrIllustration only
Break-even haul distance≈ 950 milesBeyond this, reuse credit is cancelled
Run the numbers on your own volumes →

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

Beyond roughly 950 miles, freight emissions cancel the carbon benefit of reuse. We will say so and recommend a nearer yard.
RingDistanceExample marketsDelivery windowPickup window
One0–60 miSt. Louis, St. Charles, Metro EastNext business day48 business hours
Two60–180 miColumbia, Springfield IL, Cape Girardeau2–4 business daysWithin the week
Three180–300 miKansas City, Memphis, IndianapolisWeekly scheduled runBy arrangement
Beyond300+ miQuoted case by caseBy arrangementFull trailers only

Species in our intake, and how they behave

Densities and Janka figures are published wood-science values; the behaviour column is sixteen years of our own grading notes. Our intake is oak-dominant mixed hardwood.
SpeciesGroupDensity (lb/ft³)Janka hardnessBehaviour in a pallet
White oakHardwood471,350 lbfOur backbone: holds fasteners superbly, heavy, very durable
Red oakHardwood441,290 lbfSlightly more porous than white; excellent deck boards
HickoryHardwood511,820 lbfHardest of our intake; superb stringers, splits if nailed dry
MapleHardwood441,450 lbfClean, pale, dimensionally stable; good for upcycled tops
AshHardwood411,320 lbfTough and flexible; forgiving under impact
PoplarHardwood29540 lbfLight hardwood, weaker fastener grip, fine for one-way
Southern yellow pineSoftwood35690 lbfCommon in new softwood builds; resinous, holds nails well
Spruce / firSoftwood27510 lbfLightest option; loosens soonest under repeated handling

Moisture targets by application

Dryness is the single biggest determinant of recycled pallet quality — more than grade, species or board count.
ApplicationTarget moistureWhy
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 dispatchCondensation cycling through the dew point
Export, heat-treated≤ 19%Post-chamber typical; bark-free is the hard rule
Upcycled furniture stock8–12%Conditioned indoors two weeks before machining
Field and agricultural useNo targetWeather governs; buy #2 and expect it

Fasteners — two percent of the cost, most of the service life

Specify the fastener and the count per board-stringer intersection, not just the board count.
FastenerLengthShankWithdrawal resistanceWhere we use it
Helical-thread nail2½"Twisted, thread-cuttingHigh, survives moisture cyclingStandard on every new build and repair
Annular-ring nail2¼"–2½"Barbed ringsHighestLead boards and heavy racked specifications
Smooth-shank nail2"–2½"PlainLow, drops as wood driesNot used — the reason old pallets loosen
Screw-shank nail2½"Coarse helixHighBlock pallets and thick stringers
Staple1¾"Crown wireLow in hardwoodNot used here; acceptable in softwood one-way pallets

Standards that actually govern a pallet

Only ISPM-15 is legally mandatory, and only for export. Everything else is a specification you can choose to be held to.
StandardIssued byCoversWhy it matters to you
ISPM-15IPPC / FAOPhytosanitary treatment of wood packagingMandatory for export; 56 °C core for 30 minutes, marked
ISO 6780ISOPrincipal pallet footprintsDefines the six international sizes, including 1200×800
ISO 8611ISOPallet test methods and performanceThe basis of static, dynamic and racked load figures
ASTM D1185ASTMTest methods for pallets and skidsNorth American equivalent test battery
GMA specificationGrocery Manufacturers Assoc.48×40 four-way notched stringer palletWhat 'GMA' means when stated properly
EPAL / UIC 435EPALLicensed European block palletExchange-pool eligibility, marks and licensed repair
MH1ANSI / MHIPallet terminology and dimensionsThe vocabulary used on our build sheets
NWPCA uniform standardNWPCARecycled pallet grading practiceThe nearest thing the recycled market has to a rulebook

Handling and rack dimensions

Measure your own equipment before specifying a pallet. These are the values that decide whether a footprint works in your building.
DimensionTypical valueNote
Fork length42"–48"Must not protrude beyond the far side of a 48" pallet
Fork width4"–6"Wider forks spread load across deck boards
Fork thickness1½"–2"Determines minimum pallet entry height
Fork spread, GMA entry24"–27" centresBetween the stringers of a three-stringer pallet
Pallet-jack wheel path6½" clearWhy notched stringers do not admit jacks
Minimum entry height3½"A crushed bottom deck blocks the forks entirely
Rack beam span, two pallets≥ 96" clearFor 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

Durations are medians from our line records and the Passport programme; the population is survivor-biased and we say so.
StageTypical durationWhat happensCarbon position
Timber to palletWeeksSawn, nailed, often shipped wet12.6 kg CO₂e embodied
First life2–4 yearsHardest service; lead board usually failsCredit begins at reuse
First repair2 minutesLead board replaced with salvaged stock+1.8 further lives on average
Second to fifth life6–12 yearsGrading, companions, re-nailing, re-grading11.6 kg CO₂e avoided per cycle
Structural retirement—Stringers rotted or deck beyond rebuildStored carbon still retained
RepurposedDecadesCollars, crates, table tops, claddingCarbon stays in the material
Fiber1–3 yearsMulch or bedding, then soilReleased slowly
ThermalImmediateBoiler-grade chipReleased at once — last resort

Total cost of a pallet programme, indexed

Index 100 = reactive spot buying. Observed across our managed accounts; your mix will differ, and we will model it against your own invoices for free.
Cost lineSpot buyingManaged programmeComment
Pallet purchase priceIndex 10078–86Grade matched to the job, not to panic
Emergency purchases6–11% of spend≈ 0%Reserved stock removes the Friday scramble
Disposal and haulageIndex 1000–20Cores are bought, not binned
Internal labour on woodIndex 10045–60Sorting at source, scheduled collection
Product damage from palletsIndex 10060–80Fewer failures from under-specified decks
Admin and reconciliationIndex 10030One netted invoice a month
Reporting effortIndex 10010Diversion and CO₂e arrive automatically
Net first-year change—−18% to −34%Observed across our managed accounts

End-of-line fiber products

Two percent of intake, screened rather than dumped.
Fiber productScreen sizeMade fromSold to
Landscape mulch, coarse1"–2"Ground hardwood pallet stockLandscapers, garden centres
Landscape mulch, fine⅜"–1"Screened second passRetail bagging, municipal beds
Animal bedding⅛"–⅜"Fine screen, metal-freeLivestock and poultry operations
Boiler-grade chipMixedMaterial failing every screen aboveIndustrial thermal users
Recovered steeln/aMagnetically separated fastenersLocal scrap processor

Conversions we use daily

Inches to millimetres is exact. Rounding 1219 mm to 1200 mm is how container plans fail.
FromToMultiply by
InchesMillimetres25.4 exactly
PoundsKilograms0.4536
Short tonsMetric tonnes0.9072
Cubic yardsCubic metres0.7646
Ton-milesTonne-kilometres1.4594
°F to °C—(°F − 32) × 5⁄9
Board feetCubic metres0.00236
lb/ft³kg/m³16.018

The thirteen named defects on our grading wall

  1. 01Cracked stringer through a nail line
  2. 02Stringer break longer than one board width
  3. 03Soft rot or fungal staining
  4. 04Missing deck board
  5. 05Split lead board
  6. 06Plug or scab repair
  7. 07Protruding or missing fastener
  8. 08Board thinner than specification
  9. 09Mixed board widths on one deck
  10. 10Pallet will not sit flat on a jig
  11. 11Visible chemical residue or paint
  12. 12Moisture above threshold
  13. 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

What is your minimum order?
100 pallets for metro delivery, 50 for a pickup of material you are selling us, a full trailer for out-of-region freight, and no minimum at all if you collect from the yard.
How quickly can you deliver?
Recycled stock in standard grades is usually same or next business day inside the metro. New builds run 3–7 business days; heat-treated 2–5.
Do you pay for used pallets?
Yes, for sound cores and most odd sizes. Genuinely scrap or contaminated wood carries a removal fee instead, and the offer always separates the two.
Can recycled pallets be used for export?
Only with a valid ISPM-15 heat-treatment mark. We re-treat and re-stamp recycled decks in our own registered chamber wherever the regulation allows it.
Are pallet grades standardised?
No. There is no enforced national standard, which is why we publish thirteen named defects and put the grade definition in writing before any contract.
Why is there no phone number?
The yard is loud and pallet enquiries are specific — counts, sizes, grades, postal codes. Written requests get accurate answers, usually the same business day.
Do you serve my area?
Routinely within 300 miles of St. Louis. Past roughly 950 miles the freight cancels the carbon benefit of reuse, and we will say so rather than quote it.
What happens if a load disappoints?
Tell us the same day. We re-grade, replace or credit, and we examine the lane that produced it. Grade disputes are information, not arguments.

Next step

The yard is open and the kettle is on

Visitors are welcome during business hours. Watch a stack get graded and argue with a grader in person.

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