Four fates of a core
| Fate | What happens | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Repair | Replace cracked boards, add plugs | Grade B pallet |
| Rebuild | New decks on kept stringers | Combo pallet |
| Dismantle | Take boards apart for lumber | Sound boards reused |
| Grind | Chip irreparable wood | Mulch, composite products, biomass |
Racklify's encyclopedia describes a core pallet as one recovered for repair, resale, remanufacturing or recycling, and notes irreparable wood may be chipped for mulch, composite products or biomass.
What a good core looks like
- Stringers that are whole, even if the decks are not.
- No chemical staining.
- A common size.
- A dry history.
A core with cracked stringers loses value quickly, because the stringer is the part that carries the load. If you have mostly cracked stringers, look at broken pallets.
Why it matters for Utah
Wasatch Front docks produce enormous numbers of 48 x 40 stringer pallets that fall below Grade A after a few trips. Their best chance of a second life is as cores. Dock owners in Salt Lake City and Ogden both generate them.
Describing cores
Give a count, the size, a rough share that is repairable, and whether it is dry. Pallet recycling explains what follows after the cores are inspected, and the quote form is where to ask.
Sorting a core pile before you describe it
- Pull out pallets that are sound enough to use as they are; they are worth more as pallets.
- Set aside obvious firewood and rot.
- Count the rest by size, because recyclers sort by footprint.
- Check for nails, wire and plastic wrap trapped in the stack.
Do not overthink the label
"Core" is a trade word, not a legal one. If you call a stack mixed used pallets, a buyer will understand it. What matters is that the description says how bad the worst of it is and how many there are.
Photographs of the broken ones matter as much as photographs of the sound ones, because they show what the recycler is really taking on.
The economics in words
A core has value as raw material, and that value rises with the share that can be repaired and falls with distance and contamination. A clean pile of cracked 48 x 40 stringer pallets near a recycler is worth more than the same pile far away. Say where yours sits, and say what is mixed in.
Sources