Reference tables
In short
Eight consolidated tables covering everything a specifier normally has to assemble from a dozen places: calculated load ratings by construction including the 90-day creep derate nobody publishes, derating factors with the reason for each, our actual fastener schedule and placement rules, observed ISPM-15 kiln cycle times by species, trailer and container fit by footprint, equipment capacities and apron requirements, the full dimensional table of twenty-two footprints, and our posted grading criteria reproduced verbatim. Print any of it. Adapt any of it.
Need a figure that is not here?
Describe the load, the handling and the environment and we will calculate to it rather than quote you a range. Ratings we publish are ones we have worked out.
Structural
1 — Calculated load ratings by construction
Most rating figures in this industry are quoted for 'a pallet' without saying which one. These are the working figures we design to, with the 90-day creep-derated racked figure alongside — the number that governs long-term storage and is almost never published.
| Construction | Static | Dynamic | Racked | Racked 90+ days | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3-stringer, 7/5 deck, mixed hardwood | 5,000 lb | 2,500 lb | 2,000 lb | 1,500 lb | The standard recycled 48×40. Everything else is measured against it. |
| 3-stringer, 7/5 deck, softwood | 4,000 lb | 2,000 lb | 1,500 lb | 1,125 lb | Lighter by 8–14 lb. Right for one-way and weight-billed freight. |
| 4-stringer, 7/5 deck, mixed hardwood | 6,500 lb | 3,200 lb | 2,600 lb | 1,950 lb | The cheapest safety margin available. Under-specified across the industry. |
| 3-stringer, tight-laid deck, hardwood | 5,500 lb | 2,700 lb | 2,100 lb | 1,575 lb | For drums, bulk bags and small cartons that bridge a 3.5-in gap. |
| 9-block, EPAL pattern | 8,800 lb | 3,300 lb | 2,200 lb | 1,650 lb | True four-way. Consistent in both directions, unlike a notched stringer. |
| Heavy-duty solid deck, 6 runners | 12,000 lb | 6,000 lb | 4,000 lb | 3,000 lb | Machinery, castings, transformers. Built to a drawing every time. |
| Two-way skid, no bottom deck | 4,000 lb | 2,000 lb | Not rated | Not rated | Never racked. No bottom deck means no edge support, at any load. |
2 — Derating factors
Apply these to the racked or dynamic figure above, not to the static one. They compound: an overhanging load on wet wood in long-term racked storage is not three separate small problems.
| Condition | Effect | Why it happens |
|---|---|---|
| Load overhangs the deck edge | −30% unit-load stacking strength | Case corners lose their support and transfer load into the layer below. |
| Moisture content above 25% | −15 to −20% strength | Wet cell walls deflect further under the same load. |
| Racked storage beyond 90 days | −25% (creep allowance) | Permanent, progressive deflection under sustained load. |
| Concentrated point load | −20 to −40% | Depends entirely on whether the point sits over a stringer or over a gap. |
| Companion-repaired stringer | −10 to −20% bending | The crack is bridged, not healed. Fine on a floor; not in a rack. |
| Fork entry through the notches | −30 to −40% in that direction | Material removed at the point of highest bending stress. |
| Unit load not stretch-wrapped | −10 to −25% stack stability | The film is a structural member. Most people do not think of it that way. |
| Storage below freezing | Stiffness up, impact resistance down | Cold wood fractures where warm wood would bruise. |
3 — Fastener schedule
Shank type is the decision that matters most, and it is the one least often specified. Smooth shanks back out under vibration; helically threaded hardened shanks do not.
| Joint | Shank | Length | Count | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lead deck board to stringer | Helically threaded, hardened | 2.25 in | 3 per crossing | Three, not two. Lead boards absorb every fork entry. |
| Interior deck board to stringer | Helically threaded, hardened | 2.25 in | 2 per crossing | Staggered across the stringer width, never in a line. |
| Bottom deck board to stringer | Helically threaded, hardened | 2.25 in | 2 per crossing | Chamfered leading edge so a jack rolls up rather than catching. |
| Stringer plug | Helically threaded + PVA adhesive | 2.5 in | 4 through the plug | Glue first, nail second. A dry plug is a repeat failure. |
| Companion stringer | Helically threaded, hardened | 3.0 in | 6 along the length | Drops the unit to #2 and we say so on the grade sheet. |
| Block pallet block to bearer | Helically threaded, hardened | 3.5 in | 4 per block | Matches EPAL practice; our jig holds the pattern. |
Placement rules
- No fastener within 3/4 inch of a board end — that is where hardwood splits out to the edge.
- Never re-drive into an existing hole from a previous repair. It holds nothing and it reads as a repair on the grade sheet.
- Smooth shanks are used on genuinely single-trip export builds only, and never on anything that will be repaired.
- Plain (unhardened) nails bend in oak, fold over and leave a shiner — which is a rejection in its own right.
- Diameter is a trade-off: thicker holds better and splits hardwood more readily. We step down a gauge for oak lead boards.
Treatment
4 — Observed ISPM-15 kiln cycle times
ISPM-15 requires a 56°C wood core held for 30 continuous minutes. How long the chamber takes to get there depends on species, section, starting moisture and stacking. Probes go in the thickest members of the load, never in the air.
| Species | Section | Starting MC | Typical cycle | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow poplar | 1.5 in stringer | 14% | 4.5 – 5.5 hrs | Fastest common stringer stock we treat. |
| Southern yellow pine | 1.5 in stringer | 15% | 5.0 – 6.5 hrs | Resin can extend hold time in a heavily loaded chamber. |
| Red oak | 1.5 in stringer | 16% | 6.5 – 8.5 hrs | Dense and slow. The species that sets our scheduling. |
| Hard maple | 1.5 in stringer | 15% | 7.0 – 9.0 hrs | Longest routine cycle on our board. |
| Mixed hardwood | 3.5 in block | 17% | 8.5 – 10.5 hrs | Block pallets probe in the block, never the deck. |
| Any | Above 19% MC | 20%+ | +2.0 – 3.5 hrs | Wet stock costs kiln hours. This is why we ship dry. |
Logistics and dimensions
5 — Trailer and container fit by footprint
Floor positions assume straight loading with no overhang. Empty counts assume banded stacks. Actual counts vary with load height, door constraints and how disciplined the loading crew is.
| Footprint | 53-ft van | 48-ft van | 40-ft container | 20-ft container | 45-ft HC | Empty, 53-ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 × 40 | 28 | 24 | 20 | 10 | 24 | ~560 |
| 48 × 48 | 24 | 22 | 18 | 9 | 22 | ~480 |
| 42 × 42 | 26 | 24 | 20 | 10 | 24 | ~600 |
| 36 × 36 | 39 | 33 | 30 | 14 | 34 | ~700 |
| 48 × 45 | 26 | 22 | 18 | 9 | 22 | ~520 |
| 1200 × 800 | 30 | 26 | 25 | 11 | 28 | ~520 |
| 1200 × 1000 | 24 | 22 | 20 | 10 | 24 | ~460 |
6 — Equipment capacity and apron requirements
Retrieval and delivery fail on access far more often than on volume. Measure the clear depth in front of your dock before requesting any quote — it decides the equipment, and the equipment decides the cost.
| Equipment | Empty stacked | Floor positions | Apron needed | Liftgate | Right for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53-ft dry van | ~560 | 28 | 110–130 ft | No | Dock-height volume, dry cores, banded stock |
| 53-ft flatbed + straps | ~480 | 26 | 90–120 ft | No | Outdoor piles, wet stock, mixed loads, oversize |
| 48-ft dry van | ~500 | 24 | 95–115 ft | No | Older sites with shorter aprons |
| 26-ft box truck + liftgate | ~140 | 12 | 45–70 ft | Yes | Urban docks, alleys, retail, no forklift on site |
| Drop trailer (customer loaded) | ~560 | 28 | Parking only ft | No | Irregular accumulation, weather protection, no live load |
| Walking floor | — | — | 100–130 ft | No | Bulk mulch, bedding, hog fuel by the cubic yard |
7 — Twenty-two footprints, imperial and metric
North American and international footprints in both units, with the sector that keeps each one alive. Sizes we do not hold can usually be remanufactured from recovered lumber inside two weeks.
| Inches | Millimetres | Common name | Typical use | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48 × 40 | 1219 × 1016 | GMA / grocery standard | Grocery, retail, beverage, general | North America |
| 42 × 42 | 1067 × 1067 | Drum pallet | Chemical, paint, telecom | North America |
| 48 × 48 | 1219 × 1219 | Square drum pallet | Drums, reels, bulk bags | North America |
| 40 × 48 | 1016 × 1219 | Reversed GMA | Military, specific handling | North America |
| 48 × 42 | 1219 × 1067 | Deep retail | Large-format retail display | North America |
| 40 × 40 | 1016 × 1016 | Dairy / beverage | Dairy, beverage | North America |
| 48 × 45 | 1219 × 1143 | Automotive | Tier-one automotive supply | North America |
| 44 × 44 | 1118 × 1118 | Legacy drum | Chemical, petroleum | North America |
| 36 × 36 | 914 × 914 | Beverage | Brewing, beverage, dairy | North America |
| 48 × 36 | 1219 × 914 | Beverage / packaged goods | Beverage, shipping | North America |
| 35 × 45.5 | 889 × 1156 | Military 463L adjacent | Defence logistics | North America |
| 32 × 30 | 813 × 762 | Quarter display | Retail floor display | North America |
| 24 × 40 | 610 × 1016 | Half pallet | Retail display, DSD | North America |
| 24 × 20 | 610 × 508 | Quarter pallet | Retail display, small format | North America |
| 1200 × 800 | 1200 × 800 | Euro / EPAL 1 | European distribution | Europe |
| 1200 × 1000 | 1200 × 1000 | ISO 2 / industrial | Industrial, Asia-sourced freight | Europe / Asia |
| 1140 × 1140 | 1140 × 1140 | ISO 3 | Australia, Asia | Asia-Pacific |
| 1100 × 1100 | 1100 × 1100 | ISO 4 / Asian standard | Asian distribution | Asia |
| 1067 × 1067 | 1067 × 1067 | ISO 5 | North America export | International |
| 1165 × 1165 | 1165 × 1165 | Australian standard | Australian distribution | Australia |
| 800 × 600 | 800 × 600 | Half Euro / display | European retail display | Europe |
| 600 × 400 | 600 × 400 | Quarter Euro | European display, DSD | Europe |
Grading
8 — Our posted grading criteria, verbatim
Printed and mounted at both grading stations at Evendale since 2011. Customer complaints fell by roughly two thirds inside a quarter of posting them — the criteria did not change, they simply stopped being remembered differently by different people.
Universal — every grade
- No cracked or split stringer longer than 3 in on any load-bearing member.
- No protruding or shiner nails on any deck surface, top or bottom.
- No metal plates. We do not apply them and we do not accept them inbound.
- No mould bloom, chemical staining, odour, pest damage or exit holes.
- Deck gaps within 3.5 in for fork and conveyor compatibility.
- Moisture content below 19% for stock going to indoor storage or export.
- No bark anywhere on stock destined for export.
Additional for A / #1
- No plugged stringers. No companion stringers.
- All seven top deck boards present and full width.
- Five bottom deck boards present, chamfered.
- Uniform colour across the deck — no heavily weathered board against a fresh one.
- No residue, no labels, no staining of any kind.
Additional for B grade
- Plugged stringers permitted. Companion stringers permitted at #2.
- Six or seven top deck boards; mixed widths and colours accepted.
- Light wear and weathering accepted. Structure must be sound.
Additional for automotive and automation stock
- Zero shiners, inspected on both faces as a separate final pass.
- Height sorted to ±1/4 in with a gauge, not by eye.
- Footprint tolerance ±1/4 in — jig-built or remanufactured stock only.
- Build date, jig number and grade recorded per lot and supplied with the shipment.
Using these tables
Every figure here is one we work to rather than one we found. Where a range is given it is because the real answer varies within it, and narrowing it would require knowing your load. Where a figure is absent — the racked rating of a two-way skid, for instance — it is because the correct answer is that the application is wrong, not that the number is small.
Copy them, adapt them, put them in your own specification. Attribution and a link is all we ask. And if a figure here does not match your own experience, write to us — two of our published constants have been revised after customers challenged them, and both revisions made our own numbers less flattering.