Guides

Pallet guides, in plain words

Pallet dimensions, grades, heat treatment, storage and what a load is worth, in plain words. Each guide answers one question a dock lead asks, and each ends at a request.

Where to start

If you are buying, begin with grade A versus grade B and the GMA dimensions. If you are selling, begin with what a load is worth. If the pile is just in the way, begin with how to get rid of pallets. If anything is leaving the country, read the stamp guide before you order.

Combo Pallets vs New Pallets

A combo pallet is remanufactured with a mix of recycled and new lumber for greater strength and consistency. Pick it over new when the load is moderate and cost matters; pick new when the pallet is part of the product.

	Combo pallet	New
Lumber	Recycled and new mixed	All new
Strength	Stronger and more even than used	Built to spec
Cost	Cheaper than new	Higher
Best for	Moderate loads, recurring supply	Heavy loads, customer specifications

Look at the weight, the customer and the trip count. A beverage line that cannot tolerate mixed grades, or an HVAC unit that rides on one pallet from plant to site, is a new-pallet case; a recurring load of dry goods to a distribution building is usually a combo case. Combos cost less because recycled boards replace some of the new ones, and they perform well when the remanufacturer replaces the parts that carry stress. If you cannot decide, a combo is a safe starting point; move to new if loads fail. Plants down I-35 in Moore and Norman are the natural users of built pallets, while distribution buildings along I-44 more often buy used or combo. See combo pallets and new pallets.

Grade A vs Grade B Pallets

Grade A pallets have had no repairs and need none. Grade B pallets have been repaired with replaced boards, plates or plugs and are sound. Choose A when a customer inspects the pallet and B for most other freight.

	Grade A	Grade B
Repairs	None, none needed	Replaced deck boards, plates or plugs
Appearance	Clean and square	Mixed boards, visible repairs
Also called	Grade 1	Grade 2
Typical use	Inspected outbound loads	Most dry freight and internal moves
Cost	Higher	Lower

Ask for Grade A when the pallet is seen by someone outside your company, when the product is food-adjacent or when a customer's rules say so; retailers often reject anything below it at the receiving door. Ask for Grade B when the pallet is a carrier and appearance is secondary, as in factories that use it all day. If you cannot decide, mix: Grade A for the outbound stack and Grade B for internal moves. See Grade A, Grade B and used pallets.

Exporting from Oklahoma

Pallets leaving Oklahoma for another country must be ISPM 15 compliant, which in practice means heat treated and stamped. A pallet that stays in the United States can be ordinary lumber.

The rule covers wood packaging in international trade, even under a domestic product, and border inspectors examine the pallet, not the product, for the stamp; reading the HT stamp explains the mark. Foreign-Trade Zone 106 beside Will Rogers airport serves a 22-county area, and aerospace suppliers around Tinker Air Force Base and equipment manufacturers down I-35 are the kind of Oklahoma shippers whose freight leaves the country.

Wood packaging entering Canada from the continental United States is currently exempt under CFIA policy D-98-08, pending a phased move to full ISPM 15, though a customer may still demand a stamp. For Mexico and other destinations, confirm the current rule with your customs broker; this is not legal advice. Order treated pallets before the freight is ready, keep the stamp visible, and keep the supplier's invoices and photographs of the marks in case a port questions a shipment.

Reading the HT stamp

The ISPM 15 stamp has up to four parts: the IPPC symbol, a country code, a producer number and a treatment code. HT means heat treated. If any part is missing or unreadable, the pallet is not compliant.

Part	Example	What it tells you
IPPC symbol	The wheat-ear mark	The pallet is under the international standard
Country code	US	Where the treatment happened
Producer number	A registered number	Who treated or built it
Treatment code	HT	Heat treated (MB, fumigation with methyl bromide, is now restricted)

The stamp must be clear, permanent and legible, on two opposite sides of the pallet and on a surface not painted over; it should not be hand-drawn or applied with ink that wipes off. HT means the wood core was heated to at least 56 °C (133 °F) for a minimum of 30 minutes after debarking, with any bark left under 3 cm wide, or under 50 square centimetres if wider.

The mark does not prove the pallet is clean, dry or strong, and it does not cover boards added after treatment: a newer board with no stamp on a used pallet suggests an untreated repair. A doubtful mark is faint, smeared, applied after the fact or missing the country code. Treat that pallet as unmarked and do not ship it overseas, because a rejected pallet can delay a whole container. Some destinations also ask for a phytosanitary certificate, so keep the supplier's treatment records for each batch. To buy, see heat-treated pallets.

GMA pallet dimensions

The GMA pallet is 48 by 40 inches (1,219 x 1,016 mm), about 5.5 to 6 inches tall, with four-way entry. It carries roughly 2,000 to 2,800 pounds dynamically and 2,500 to 4,600 pounds statically.

Weight, empty: Typically 33 to 49 pounds; reinforced versions 55 to 66 pounds.
Deck area: About 13.3 square feet (1.23 m²).

The Grocery Manufacturers Association's pallet of the 1960s set the size, and ISO accepts the CBA's 48 x 40 specification as the North American standard, but the GMA no longer governs pallet specifications: 'GMA pallet' is a name for the size and a way of building it, not a certificate. Dimensions are written length by width, with length along the stringers. A real pallet may measure a quarter inch over or under; one far outside that, bent or trimmed, should not be counted as standard. A near neighbour such as 48 x 42 hides easily in a mixed stack, so measure three pallets rather than trust a label. See 48 x 40 pallets and the size chart.

In this section

Keeping pallets sound through storm seasonCentral Oklahoma gets most of its rain from April to June. How to keep a yard of pallets dry, sound and off bare ground through it.
Moisture, mould and what to do about bothWood under 20% moisture will not grow mould. What that means for a pallet yard, a hot heat-treated load and a food dock.
What a load of pallets is worthWhat makes a load of used pallets worth more or less to a buyer: size, grade, count, how it is stacked and how easy the dock is to reach.
Pallets per 53-foot trailerFloor-load counts for 48x40 pallets in a 53-foot van, loaded straight or turned, and what changes with 48x45 and 48x48.
Block or stringer?Block pallets stand on blocks and take forks from four sides; stringer pallets ride on long timbers. When each one suits a load.
Two-way or four-way?A two-way pallet takes forks from two ends; a four-way from all four sides. What that means on a crowded Oklahoma City dock.
How to get rid of palletsWays an Oklahoma City business can clear pallets: sell a sorted load, have a mixed pile picked up, or recycle broken cores.
Plugs, plates and repairsHow pallets get repaired: plugs beside cracked stringers, metal plates, replaced deck boards, and how repairs set a pallet's grade.