How To Spot a Good Pallet

Pallets come in a number of standard sizes and an infinite number of irregular custom sizes. In America the most common pallet measures 40″ by 48″. The thickness varies but is about 5.5 inches. If you can’t find perfect standard pallets you can still build with them it just takes longer and you end up cobbling them together. This is what I’ve begun doing with my tiny free house and it take a lot of extra work.

When hunting pallets be on the lookout for standard pallets with unbroken boards. Also watch out for stains. Often stains are oils or other undesirable substances. They may even be a clue that something nasty was once carried by the pallet. I even ran across some pallets that had been saturated with pee and found out a little too late.

Heavier pallets tend to be hardwood which is much harder to work with than pine of fir pallets. They are also harder to dismantle. Even the nails in hardwood pallets seem harder to cut through. I suspect that people who build hardwood pallets fund that they have to use stronger nails and staples simple to get them into the wood.

Hardwood is much denser than pine and fir and after a little while you’ll be able to spot it quickly. Start by simply looking at the wood grain. Hardwood is tight and dense. You can also try poking your fingernail into to wood. If its easy to leave a mark it’s probably not a hardwood pallet. Try the same on a pine pallet and you’ll probably leave an impression. If you have a choice use soft wood pallets. If you have a mix use the hardwood pallets lower in the structure to keep the center of gravity lower.

Also keep an eye out for oversize pallets. They are great for their long 2x4s which you’ll want for top plates, window bucks and door bucks. They can also be very helpful in making a roof or floor stronger.

Here’s the clincher… if you have access to lumber and don’t need to use free building materials use normal lumber. You’re little house will go up much much faster! If lumber is unavailable and pallets are plentiful then the information on this website will be very useful.