Safety tips for upcycling wooden pallets in home projects

The humble wooden pallet has become a bit of a celebrity in the world of design, thanks to creative whizzes posting their upcycled masterpieces on sites like Pinterest.

We’ve seen our basic pallets turned into garden furniture, wine racks, bedside tables, outdoor benches, bike racks, signage, and much more.
It’s a delight to see pallets being reused in such fun and interesting ways. And it’s so much more satisfying than sending them to landfill. We’re all on board with these projects!

Without being a spoil sport, there are a few safety issues with pallets. We mention it only to make sure that your home projects are a roaring success.
These are the safety tips that you need to know about your pallets before you begin your project.

Check the marking on the pallet

If the pallets have been used in international transport, they’ll have certain markings on them. Once you know how to de-code these markings, you know if you’ve found pallets that are safe to use.

What you’re looking for is a heat-treated pallet. Wood that is treated with heat is less susceptible to moisture, and has less chance of developing rot or mould.
But even more important than that, it hasn’t been treated with a toxic pesticide called methyl bromide. Back in the day, pallets were treated with methyl bromide to cleanse them from bugs and pests. But the pesticide is harmful to humans and it has not been used since 2010. So any pallet which has the marking for methyl bromide (MB) is not only toxic, but also very old. Not ideal for your home projects!

Heat-treated pallets will be marked with ‘HT’. They should also have the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) logo on it somewhere. These pallets are a good choice for your project.

Below is a table of other markings that you might come across, together with an indication of whether or not they are safe to use:

Pallet treatment codes
Code	Meaning	Safe to use?
DB	Debarked	Yes
HT	Heat treated	Yes
KD	Kiln dried	Yes
EPAL	European Pallet Association Logo	Yes
EUR	Old European Pallet Association Logo	No, unless it is EPAL approved
MB	Methyl Bromide	No
Coloured pallets		No

You might find a pallet that has no markings on it whatsoever. That means that it has been transported within the UK and has not crossed borders. These should be safe to use, but there is no guarantee that they have been treated with heat. If possible, ask your supplier.

Find out what the pallet was used for

See if you can find out what your chosen pallet was used for. Ideally you’re looking for pallets that were used to transport dry cargo.

Steer clear of pallets that have been used to transport food or chemicals. These pallets are often contaminated with traces of their loads. Pallets that have carried food are known to be vulnerable to E.Coli and other bacteria that can soak into the wood. Similarly, harmful chemicals can end up in the pallet wood from their loads.

How to spot mould

Rotten or mouldy pallets should be avoided at all costs. But it’s not always obvious that the pallet is rotting inside. Things to look for are: evidence of splitting in the wood, or areas of wood that are flaking off.

Safeguard against bugs

Bugs are usually attracted to moisture in the wood, so if you have damp wood you could run the risk of an infestation. As we said earlier, heat-treated pallets are less likely to absorb moisture, so you should be on safe ground with a pallet treated by heat.

The other things you can do are protect your wood with paint, stain or sealant to deter any unwanted guests.

Best projects for wood pallets

The best projects for wooden pallets are those that you will keep outdoors, such as a bike rack, compost bin, or signage. That minimises the risk of any contamination in your home.

Just be careful if you’re using them to grow food in though. Make sure you know the background to your pallets if you’re doing this.

If you’re using pallets indoors, then it’s wise to get them from a trusted source, so that you know how they’ve been treated, and what they’ve been used for.

Looking for pallets?

If you’d like pallets for your home projects, please give us a call. We’d be happy to arrange some pallets for you, which will be safe and suitable for your project.

How do you get wooden pallets collected?

A surplus of wooden pallets at your facility can take up valuable space, and create an additional health & safety burden that you could probably do without.

How do you get your pallets collected in the most efficient and environmentally-friendly way?

At Robinsons Pallet Services, we offer three simple services for pallet collection:

• One-off pallet collection
  We collect pallets in a one-off clearance, so long as there are at least 100 pallets on your site. If you’re local, we can often do a collection for fewer than 100 pallets.
• Regular pallet clearance
  We can visit your site at a regular time and date to keep your site free of surplus pallets.
• Pallet purchasing
  We partner with pallet suppliers and offer exceptional rates for good quality stock that has already been graded.

How do you get rid of wooden pallets?

There are a variety of options to get rid of your surplus wooden pallets, and it probably depends on how many pallets you have spare, and how convenient each option will be for you.

• Arrange for them to be collected by a supplier, like us
  As a business, we estimate that we need over 50,000 pallets a week, so we’re always on the lookout for spare pallets. And we pay highly-competitive rates for them.
  
  This way, you’re contributing to the circular economy, and you’ll be remunerated for your pallets. There’s minimal hassle for you – you just give us a call and we’ll arrange collection.
• Take them to a recycle centre
  Most industrial recycle centres will take used wooden pallets. Again, they’re unlikely to pay you for them. And some of your pallets may end up in landfill.
  
  If your pallets are still in a usable condition, this may be the least environmentally-friendly option.
• Sell or giveaway on online marketplaces
  There are plenty of people in the market for wooden pallets online. However, there’s no guarantee that you’ll get a competitive price for them, and it could be logistically complex if you have multiple buyers for your pallets. Equally, it’s quite a time-consuming process for you to go through.
• Donate to local groups
  Local community groups like Scouts or allotment groups may be interested in taking the pallets off your hands. They can repurpose the pallets for furniture, garden beds, or compost bins.
  
  The benefit of this is that you’re minimising your waste as a business and supporting local groups, which contributes to the ‘feel good’ factor of your business. The downside is that you’re unlikely to receive any money for your pallets, and there’s a bit of legwork to do in ringing around to gauge interest.
  
  You’ll probably only get rid of a few pallets this way, so if you have hundreds in excess, then this won’t be viable.

The do’s and don’ts of pallet collection

We often get questions about the condition of pallets, and how to store them while they await collection. Here’s a short list of do’s and don’ts when it comes to pallet collection.

Do:

• Make money from your used pallets.
  You don’t have to give them away. We’ll pay you for them.
• Create a partnership for regular clearance
  This takes away all the hassle on larger sites. We pick them up at regular intervals so your site stays clear of surplus pallets.
• Store pallets properly before collection
  Keep them in a dry area that’s well ventilated. Stack them evenly on a level surface, otherwise the wood can warp, compromising the structural integrity.
• Be ready for the collection
  Be on site and organised and this will save time and money.

Don’t:

• Throw away pallets in bad condition
  We can recondition pallets to make something new out of the old ones. Or we can use them as woodchip. There are plenty of ways to reuse and recycle pallets that are in bad condition. They don’t need to go to landfill.
• Let pallets become overwhelming on your site
  Pallets take up a lot of space on a site. And they can become a health & safety hazard if you have too many and restricted storage space. Get them collected before they become a problem.

How we can help

We buy pallets all year round and we have our own fleet of purpose-built vehicles to come and collect them from you. Get in touch with us at collections@robinsonspalletservices.com to arrange collection. We’ll give you a competitive price and organise a time to visit your premises.

New vs. used pallets for sale: which is the better option?

When you’re looking to buy or hire pallets for your business, you’ll see that there are more options out there than you might have first thought!

A good place to start is to decide whether you want to buy new or used pallets.

Why buy new pallets?

The reason you might buy your pallets new is if you’re transporting hygiene-sensitive products. That’s usually things like food or pharmaceuticals.

With those sort of products, you want to reduce any risk of contamination as far as possible. While used pallets are generally clean and hygienic, we cannot completely eradicate the risk of contamination, and so new pallets are usually the right choice for transporting these goods.

You may also choose new pallets if you need an unusual size and shape. Used pallets are usually standard shapes and sizes that work with UK and European logistics. In the vast majority of cases, this is exactly what you need. But for unusual loads, you might require bespoke pallets. We’re able to prepare new pallets in bulk if you need them.

In a similar vein, if your load is particularly heavy then you may opt for new pallets. Reconditioned pallets are checked for vulnerabilities and regularly fortified, but new pallets will generally have a higher structural integrity to carry very heavy loads.

Additionally, pallet standards and quality control are essential in logistics, and organizations like the European Pallet Association (EPAL) ensure compliance with strict quality guidelines for pallet manufacturing and safety.

Why you would choose used pallets

The main reason to choose used pallets is for cost reasons. Used pallets are around 60% of the cost of new pallets, so it saves you a lot of money.

Reused pallets are repaired regularly to prolong their lifespan and to make sure that they are always fit for purpose. They come in the standard sizes and reliably ‘do the job’ for most business purposes

We can guarantee that they’re always available too. We always have stock in for reconditioned pallets so you have access to affordable, reused pallets whenever you need them, even if it’s at short notice.

The environmental considerations

There are arguments on both sides for the environmental reasons for choosing new or used pallets.

The majority of our pallets are reconditioned, which means that they are made from recycled wood. The wood that may have been thrown away or otherwise discarded ends up in our pallets. Equally, there’s no need to fell more trees, because we only use the wood that’s in circulation. We estimate that we usually recycle around 2 million pallets per year, which saves around 50,000 trees.

On the other hand, new pallets are now made from sustainably-sourced timber these days. That means that the forests they come from are managed responsibly and they balance the needs of the environment, wildlife, and forest communities. So new pallets are made with sustainability in mind.

We understand that lots of businesses are now looking to achieve or maintain B Corp© status, or you need to report your environmental impact in an ESG report.

Whether you choose new or used pallets, you can justify your decision with reference to the considerations you’ve given to your environmental performance. Investing in reused pallets shows your commitment to the circular economy. But if the load you’re carrying means that new pallets are the best option for you, then you can say that you only buy pallets that are made from sustainably-sourced timber.

How we can help

If you’d like to chat to an expert about which pallets are most suitable for the load you want to carry, please get in touch. We’re happy to talk you through the options and make a suggestion for you, with an estimate of the projected costs.