The thing underneath everything

Pallets

Recycled GMA, heat-treated export, plastic and presswood pallets, matched to the box riding on top and supplied through partner suppliers.

General distributionExport loadsWashdown areasCold storage

At a glance

Quote request: Free, no obligation
Fulfilled by: Partner suppliers
Requests from: Across the US
Pricing: By written quote

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Quantity, footprint, height, weight inside and how many trips you need. That is enough for a partner supplier to quote.

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A perfect gaylord on a broken pallet is a broken load. That is why it makes sense to source pallets and containers together.

Recycled GMA 48×40 is the workhorse: #1 grade with no plugs, #2 grade with some repaired boards. ISPM 15 heat-treated pallets are used for export, nestable plastic pallets suit washdown environments, and presswood pallets suit light, one-way loads where nesting matters.

Tell us the box and the pallet can be matched to it. Mismatched footprints are one of the most common and most preventable causes of corner crush in bulk shipping.

What to ask for

Nails should be flush to protect liners and film
Check moisture content on export stock
Match the footprint to the box
Damaged timber can be recycled rather than landfilled

Pricing: By quote from a partner supplier; grade, size and quantity move the number.

Outdoor storage area with banded pallets of flattened gaylord boxes under a blue sky — Flattened containers on pallets outdoors. Corrugated has little wet strength, so cover it quickly.

Best fit

Where this product earns its place

General distributionExport loadsWashdown areasCold storageLight nesting freight

Industries using it

Textiles & Apparel

High-volume, low-density sorting where height and reuse count matter more than crush rating.

E-commerce & 3PL

Returns processing, bulk consolidation and reverse logistics on a predictable replenishment cycle.

Manufacturing & Industrial

Dense parts, sharp edges and work-in-process staging that punish ordinary packaging.

Reference

Everything you need to specify it

Grades, construction limits, load weights and stacking guidance, as general reference for your request.

The four grades, attribute by attribute
Attribute	Grade A	Grade B	Grade C	Grade D
Vertical corners	Square, no repair	Sound, light scuffing	Repaired or trimmed	Failed
Bottom flaps	Full strength	Sound, minor wear	One replacement allowed	Dead scores
Interior	Clean, no film	Light dust	Visible use	Residue or staining
Print	No conflicting marks	Old labels present	Multiple marks	Irrelevant
Squareness	Within 1/8"	Within 3/8"	Visible rack	Out of square
Moisture / odour	None	None	None	Disqualifying at any grade
Typical use	Food-adjacent, customer-facing	General bulk, reusable pools	Internal staging, scrap	Pads, dividers, OCC

Construction, thickness and typical working capacity
Construction	Thickness	Typical max weight	Stacking	Typical use
Single wall C	5/32" (4.0 mm)	65 lb	Not for bulk	Lids, layer pads, dividers
Double wall BC	9/32" (7.1 mm)	900 – 1,200 lb	1 high loaded	General bulk under 1,200 lb
Double wall CC	5/16" (7.9 mm)	1,000 – 1,300 lb	1 high loaded	Slightly better cushioning than BC
Triple wall BCC	7/16" (11.1 mm)	2,200 – 2,500 lb	2 high loaded	The bulk workhorse
Triple wall ACC	1/2" (12.7 mm)	2,400 – 2,700 lb	2 high loaded	Dense product with cushioning need
Five wall AAC	5/8" (15.9 mm)	3,000 lb+	3 high, matched pallets	Castings, stampings, export

What a 48 × 40 × 36 inch container weighs when filled — by product
Product	Bulk density	Loaded weight	Construction	Notes
Mixed apparel, unbaled	6 – 9 lb/ft³	200 – 300 lb	Double wall	Volume-limited. Buy tall, not strong.
Loose foam / film	2 – 5 lb/ft³	70 – 170 lb	Double wall	44 inch bodies pay for themselves here.
Cardboard offcuts	7 – 12 lb/ft³	230 – 400 lb	Double wall	Keep dry or the weight is water.
Plastic regrind flake	20 – 30 lb/ft³	660 – 1,000 lb	Double / triple	Static — specify antistatic liner.
Resin pellets (PE, PP)	32 – 38 lb/ft³	1,050 – 1,250 lb	Triple wall	Octabin preferred above 1,200 lb.
PET flake	22 – 28 lb/ft³	730 – 930 lb	Double wall	Abrasive — 5 mil liner minimum.
Apples / citrus	30 – 35 lb/ft³	1,000 – 1,150 lb	Triple wall	Field heat and condensation; 40 inch is the produce default.
Potatoes / root crops	38 – 45 lb/ft³	1,250 – 1,500 lb	Triple wall	Bottom-layer bruising — use a layer pad.
Frozen fruit / vegetable	35 – 42 lb/ft³	1,150 – 1,400 lb	Triple wall	Manage the freezer-to-dock transition before stacking.
Grain / seed	42 – 50 lb/ft³	1,400 – 1,650 lb	Triple wall	Octabin or bin — hoop stress matters.
Mineral powder	55 – 75 lb/ft³	1,800 – 2,480 lb	Triple / five wall	At the top of what fiber should carry. Check the pallet.
Glass cullet	80 – 95 lb/ft³	2,650 lb+	Five wall	Fill to weight, not to height. Never fill to the top.
Metal stampings	90 – 140 lb/ft³	Fill by weight	Five wall + V-board	Sharp edges: burst strength and corner protection both matter.
Electronic returns, mixed	10 – 16 lb/ft³	330 – 530 lb	Double wall	Mixed-height pools work best here.
Books / paper records	35 – 45 lb/ft³	1,150 – 1,500 lb	Triple wall	Dense and deceptive — people routinely overfill.
Nuts / dried goods	28 – 34 lb/ft³	930 – 1,120 lb	Triple wall	Gusseted liner, plus eight inches of height.

Safe stacking by construction and storage duration
Construction	First week	After 30 days	After 90 days	Notes
Double wall BC	2 high	1 high	1 high, inspect weekly	Never stack a partly filled unit.
Triple wall BCC	3 high	2 high	2 high, inspect weekly	Two high loaded is a common working figure that already allows for storage.
Five wall AAC	4 high	3 high	2 – 3 high	Matched pallets only; check deck boards each move.
Empty, nested	8 high	6 high	6 high	Above that the bottom scores compress and will not re-erect square.
Knocked down, flat	To 60 inches	To 60 inches	To 48 inches	Scores aligned, off the floor, indoors.

Humidity and dwell-time derating — apply before you decide a stack height
Relative humidity	Duration under load	Strength factor	What to do
Below 50%	Under 30 days	1.00	Published stacking limits apply as stated.
Below 50%	Over 30 days	0.25 – 0.30	Divide laboratory compression by about four.
50 – 70%	Under 30 days	0.85	Reduce stack height by one unit on marginal loads.
50 – 70%	Over 30 days	0.22	Two high loaded becomes one high for double wall.
70 – 85%	Under 30 days	0.65 – 0.75	Specify one construction up, or stop stacking.
70 – 85%	Over 30 days	0.15 – 0.18	Do not stack loaded containers. Shorten dwell time.
Above 85%	Any	0.10 – 0.14	Fiber is the wrong container unless dwell is measured in hours.

Before you order

Twelve things to have in front of you

Loaded weight at your real fill level

Sets the construction. The single most common mis-specification.

Clear height under the lowest rack beam

Sets the maximum container height, minus pallet and clearance.

Reach height of whoever loads by hand

Frequently lower than the rack, and the real constraint.

Settled product height at target weight

Stops you buying cube you will never fill.

Footprint of anything rigid going inside

Inside dimensions, not outside, decide whether it fits.

Trips you need from each unit

Decides grade and corner protection.

Warehouse humidity and dwell time

Drives the derating, and sometimes a construction step.

Dock hours, equipment and trailer limits

Keeps accessorials off your invoice.

Liner requirement and food-contact status

Gauge, gusset, grade and length.

Pallet grade and footprint

Buy it on the same quote or expect corner failures.

Your real deadline

A date gets a date. 'ASAP' gets a question and loses a day.

What happens to the empties

Usually the largest single saving in the whole exercise.

Quality control

The twelve-point inspection, in order

What a careful supplier checks on every used unit, and what you can check at receiving. The cheapest rejection happens first, which is why odor and moisture come before anything cosmetic.

Odor

Thirty seconds in open air, nose at the opening.

Any persistent smell — instant rejection.

Moisture

Hand and meter at the bottom score line where it hides.

Staining above the bottom score, or any delamination.

Vertical corners

Thumb pressure at knee, waist and shoulder height.

Hollow give, shear, or crush longer than four inches.

Bottom flaps

Fold test on each flap; the score must hold.

Two or more dead scores sends the unit to cutting.

Squareness

Diagonal measurement across the open top.

Over 3/8 inch of rack drops the grade.

Interior cleanliness

Visual plus a wipe for residue and dust film.

Grease strike-through, product residue, staining.

Pest evidence

Corners, flutes and under the bottom flaps.

Frass, gnaw marks or webbing — rejected outright.

Wall thickness

Caliper at two points on a cut edge.

Mislabelled construction should be re-specified before it is quoted.

Print & labels

Check for conflicting brands and old spec marks.

Covered, or graded down if legibility matters.

Top edge

Fray, crush and compression over the perimeter.

Over a quarter of the perimeter → trim candidate.

Previous repair

Tape, V-board inserts, replaced flaps from another life.

Should be declared on the quote, not presented as original.

Origin lane

Where the unit came from and what was in it.

Industrial origins never enter the food-adjacent lane.

Diagnostics

Eight ways bulk packaging fails

Damage is evidence. Where it appears tells you whether the problem is the container, the pallet, the aisle or the weather.

Failure modes, causes and the fix
Failure	What it looks like	Cause	Prevention
Strap cut	Crushed line across a vertical corner, half an inch wide.	Polyester strap tensioned over an unprotected edge.	A V-board corner protector under every strap.
Forklift shear	Scuff outside, hollow feel inside over a six-inch band.	Lateral contact delaminating liner from medium.	Floor guides at pinch points; operator training.
Overhang crush	Failure at the bottom score, two corners only.	Container footprint larger than the pallet deck.	Buy pallet and container on the same quote.
Humidity creep	Bulging walls, leaning stack after weeks of storage.	Compression loss above 70% RH compounding under load.	Reduce stack height; one construction up; shorter dwell.
Condensation cycling	Soft outer liner after a freezer-to-dock move.	Surface below dew point for twenty minutes.	No stacking for 24 hours after a temperature transition.
Liner bridge	Uneven settle, container out of square after filling.	Flat liner bridging the corners under free-flowing product.	Gusseted liner sized to the footprint.
Dead score	Bottom flap will not hold its fold.	Repeated knock-down and re-erection, or wrong fold line.	Collapse along original scores only; train receiving.
Tine puncture	Paired holes about four inches above the base.	Tines entering at the wrong height on a stacked position.	Position signage and double-stack rules.

Pallet grades and capacities
Type	Size	Capacity	Notes
Recycled GMA #1	48 × 40	2,800 lb rack / 4,600 lb floor	No plugs, no companion stringers. Use under stacked loads.
Recycled GMA #2	48 × 40	2,500 lb rack / 4,000 lb floor	Up to three repaired boards. Floor-level staging.
Remanufactured	48 × 40 and custom	2,200 lb rack	Built from salvaged components. Heavier, variable deck gap.
ISPM-15 export	48 × 40, 48 × 48	2,800 lb rack	Heat-treated, stamped, moisture checked below 19%.
Nestable plastic	48 × 40	2,200 lb rack	Washdown and food environments; nests for return freight.
Presswood	48 × 40, 45 × 45	1,500 lb floor	Light, nestable, effectively one-way.

Bulk container styles, with the code to put on a drawing
Style	Code	Description	Bottom	Used for
Full-flap bulk box	FEFCO 0201 scaled	Four-panel body with top and bottom flaps meeting at the centre.	Full overlap	The strongest common bottom. Heavy and dense loads.
Partial-overlap bulk box	FEFCO 0203 scaled	Flaps overlap partially rather than fully.	Partial overlap	Lighter loads; slightly less material, meaningfully less bottom strength.
Open-bottom sleeve on tray	FEFCO 0300 series	Body sleeve sitting on a separate die-cut tray or pallet-top sheet.	Separate tray	Reusable pools — the body can be replaced without the tray.
Octagonal body (octabin)	Custom scored	Eight-sided body, usually with top and bottom frames.	Frame or tray	Free-flowing solids: resin, grain, powders, nuts.
Telescoping lid	FEFCO 0301 cap	Cap sliding over the outside of the body.	n/a	Protects contents and enables stacking. Order matched to body footprint.
Pallet cap	Die-cut cover	Flat cap sitting over a loaded pallet or container.	n/a	Dust and light protection where a full lid is unnecessary.
Bulk bin with discharge chute	Custom die-cut	Body with a die-cut chute panel for gravity discharge.	Flat or frame	Powder and pellet handling lines.
Layer pad / tier sheet	Flat blank	Flat board between product layers.	n/a	Load stability and crush distribution inside the container.
Slotted divider set	FEFCO 0900 series	Interlocking slotted boards forming cells.	n/a	Parts separation — from two to twenty-four cells.
Trim-to-height body	Cut from stock	A taller stock body knife-cut down to a true score line.	Original	When the height you need is not the height the market has.

Quick conversions for bulk packaging
Measure	Imperial	Metric	Notes
Standard footprint	48 × 40 in	1,219 × 1,016 mm	The GMA pallet that standardised US distribution.
Triple wall thickness	7/16 in	11.1 mm	Takes about 7/8 in off interior width across both walls.
Typical capacity	2,200 lb	998 kg	Triple wall BCC, evenly distributed, matched pallet.
Container cube at 36"	33.3 ft³	0.943 m³	Outside dimensions, before board thickness.
OCC bale	1,000 – 1,400 lb	454 – 635 kg	Typical bale from a horizontal baler.
Trailer capacity, knocked down	400 – 600 units	—	53-foot dry van; cube limited, never weight limited.
Moisture ceiling for OCC	12%	12%	Above this you are selling water at a penalty.

FAQ

Common questions on this subject

Short answers to common questions. If yours is not covered, ask it on the form and a partner supplier in our network can answer it with your quote.

All 33 answers

Can I get pallets and liners too?

Yes. Recycled, export, plastic and presswood pallets, plus lids, caps, liners, corner boards, slip sheets and strapping, can be requested on the same form so they arrive with your boxes.

Can you take old wooden crates or plastic totes?

Wooden crates and pallets can often go through a pallet recycler. Plastic totes are usually better sold to a plastics recycler. Describe what you have on the form and we will try to match it.

What exactly is a gaylord box?

A bulk corrugated container sized to a pallet footprint, usually 48×40 inches, built from two to five layers of corrugated board and handled by forklift. The name comes from the Gaylord Container Company; it is now a generic industry term.

Are used gaylord boxes strong enough?

For most applications, yes, provided they are graded properly. Corrugated loses much of its strength on its first compression cycle and much less on later trips. Ask the supplier to state wall count, flute and grade on the quote so you can check it against your load.

How much do used gaylords cost?

Pricing is set by the partner supplier who quotes your request. Grade, wall count, height, quantity and freight all move the number, and freight is usually the biggest variable, so ask for it as a separate line.

What is the minimum order?

It depends on the partner supplier. Used gaylords are usually sold by the banded bundle or the truckload. Put the quantity you need on the form and the supplier will tell you what they can do.

Also in the catalog

Often ordered on the same pallet

All products

The core of the reuse loop

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