Used black plastic pallets
Used black plastic pallets are common because black takes recycled resin well, so many black pallets carry recycled content. A buyer asking for black is often asking, without saying so, for a pallet that cost less new.
- Standard-duty nestable
- Up to 90 percent recycled content in black
- Heavy-duty nestable
- Up to 30 percent in black, 10 percent in colour
- Rackable
- Up to 15 percent black recycled content
- Composite pallets
- 100 percent recycled polyolefins
Why so many are black
Recycled resin comes in mixed colours that end up dark. Makers offer recycled content in black at higher percentages than in colour: up to 90 percent on one standard-duty nestable, up to 30 percent in black against up to 10 percent in colour on one heavy-duty nestable, up to 15 percent black recycled content on one rackable. A composite export pallet is 100 percent recycled polyolefins, cheaper with a shorter life.
Black and what it hides
| On a black pallet | Easy to see | Hard to see |
|---|---|---|
| Surface scuffs | Pale scratches show clearly | Nothing hidden |
| Cracks | Often visible as a line | Hairline cracks in the dark |
| Stains | Light residue shows | Dark stains vanish |
| Weld beads | A glossy seam shows in raking light | Matched colour repairs |
Used black lots
Black lots are often uniform by colour and mixed by maker. We ask for the maker where it can be read, because maker decides rating. Use raking light and a flashlight on dark decks, and run a hand along every deck rib.
- Use raking light on decks
- Check ribs by touch
- Do not assume recycled content: ask the maker
Why colour tells you something
Black plastic pallets often hold recycled resin, and some makers use black as a standard shade for that reason. Colour is a clue about the resin and the maker, not a rating. Two black pallets from different makers can have very different wear lives. Ask the maker or the seller for the resin and the recycled-content claim in writing, and do not infer food-contact suitability from colour, since a dark pallet can hide stains that a pale one would show.
Black and recycled content
Recycled resin often comes out dark because mixed colours blend toward black when they are melted together. That is why a black pallet is often a recycled-content pallet. The reverse is not true: a black pallet is not always recycled, and a coloured one may be. Stains show less on dark plastic, which is both a convenience and a risk, so use light and a wipe cloth when you check for residue or oil.
Black pallets in a mixed yard
In a yard of several colours, black pallets are the hardest to grade by eye because grime, scuffs and fresh gouges all blend into the same dark surface. Wipe a patch, tilt the deck against a lamp, and look along the runner edge to see real wear before you decide.
Storing a lot properly
- Keep stacks on a flat, dry slab, away from heaters, doorways and loading-bay draughts.
- Limit stack height to what the bottom pallet and the lift truck can safely manage.
- Shield pallets from sunlight with a tarp or a roof, since ultraviolet light chalks and embrittles some resins.
- Separate footprints, makers and grades with floor markings so pickers never guess.
- Leave an aisle wide enough for a fork truck to turn without clipping a corner.
Wear you can measure
- Deck bow: lay the straight edge across and slide a feeler between it and the deck.
- Runner flattening: compare the thickness of a worn runner with an unworn one.
- Corner loss: hold a square against the corner and note any missing plastic.
- Pocket height: measure the opening at both ends of each fork pocket.
- Weight: weigh three pallets on a platform scale and note the spread.
Walk-around checklist
The same four stops for every lot, in order. Tick each as you go.
- 1Deck: raking light along every rib
- 2Corners: edges checked by touch
- 3Runners: runner ends checked by touch
- 4Fork pockets: pocket walls checked with a flashlight
- Maker and recycled content asked of the seller
Words used on this page
- Nestable
- Empty pallets stack inside one another, cutting empty storage space by up to 75 percent.
- Fork pocket
- Opening in the pallet where the forks go.
- Recycled-content pallet
- A pallet moulded partly or wholly from post-industrial or post-consumer resin.
- Welding repair
- Plastic is hard to glue, so cracked parts are normally welded.
- Rackable
- Rated to sit on rack beams, with a stated racking load.
What the sources say
- Advanced composite material pallets are 100 percent recycled polyolefins, cheaper with a shorter life, and suit export where the pallet is not returned. nelsoncompany.com
- Rehrig Pacific's heavy-duty nestable can be made with post-consumer or post-industrial recycled material, up to 30 percent in black and up to 10 percent in colour, and is RFID compatible. rehrigpacific.com
- Rehrig Pacific's rackable pallet has a two-piece snap-lock design for quick repair and options for FDA-approved colours, RFID and up to 15 percent black recycled content. rehrigpacific.com
- Rehrig Pacific offers the standard-duty nestable with recycled content of up to 90 percent in black, and describes it as 100 percent recyclable. rehrigpacific.com
How a request works
- Pick the footprint, then the grade you can live with.
- Say what the pallets will carry and how many you need.
- Read the written lot description that comes back.
- Agree the lot before anything moves.
The four grades, in a line each
- Like new. A few trips only. Clean, no cracks, no missing parts, deck and runners flat.
- Used and clean. Many trips, scuffs and colour variation, but whole and usable for general-purpose or closed-loop work.
- Repaired. A cracked or chipped part welded or swapped. Some designs use snap-lock parts for repair.
- Mixed lot. Mixed makers, colours and sizes sold by the truckload, sorted by footprint.
Questions people ask
Is black weaker?
Colour does not set strength. The resin and design do.
Is black cheaper?
This site states no prices.
Are black pallets food safe?
Not by colour. Direct food contact has stricter rules on the resin.
Ask for a lot
Pick a footprint and a grade. The reply describes a matched lot in writing.