48 x 48 x 36 gaylord box: specs and uses

The square pallet box

Some industries ship on 48 x 48 pallets: drums, grocery goods and some beverage and chemical packaging move that way. The 48 x 48 x 36 gaylord matches that pallet exactly and gives more room than the standard 48 x 40 at the same height. The maker lists 1,400 lb at triple wall, slightly lower than the 1,500 lb on the 48 x 40 sizes. A larger footprint carries the same load on longer, weaker panels.

Where it turns up used

Square-pallet industries are not where most Boston-area docks live, so used 48 x 48 gaylords are a minority of the stock. They appear from grocery and beverage distribution and from some industrial suppliers, and they find buyers among farms and recyclers who are not particular about the footprint.

Arithmetic

Volume is 48 x 48 x 36 divided by 1,728, which is 48.0 cubic feet. Divide by 27 for yards: 1.78. Ten standing boxes take 17.8 cubic yards of dumpster volume, which is why the calculator exists.

The square footprint

A 48 x 48 pallet is the choice of many drum and keg lines and of shippers who pack square. The box that fits it carries more per layer than a 48 x 40, and it needs a dock door and a truck bed that will accept the extra width. Check both before you order.

Stack arithmetic for the 48 x 48 x 36

One standing 48 x 48 x 36 takes 48 cubic feet. Ten of them take 480 cubic feet, or 17.78 cubic yards, which is why a short run of empties from a 48 x 48 pallet dock can fill a container. Knocked down, the same ten collapse into a slab about 9.6 inches thick, assuming three walls and the calculator's default of 0.16 inch of board per layer. Measure your own board before relying on that figure.