Show Me Your Pallet Projects!

[Sally PB]

@gtaus, thank you for following up with the manager, for both the good and not-so-good experience.

 

[gtaus]

@gtaus, thank you for following up with the manager, for both the good and not-so-good experience.

Well, my problem was taken care of this past weekend. But I hope my little conversation with the store manager on Tuesday will help someone else in the future. That, of course, includes myself.

 

[StinkyAcres]

I'm sorry if this has been done already, but could someone show me their process for breaking down pallets? I found a source of free pallets nearby and I believe they are hardwood as they are SO HARD to take apart and end up wasting a lot of good wood. The nails are in there really good and I have split the wood trying to take them out.

 

[gtaus]

Pallet Firewood Rack finished!

Just posting some quick pictures of my latest pallet wood project. I mentioned that after finishing splitting one pile of tree rounds and filling up a small V-shaped pallet firewood rack for the campfire ring, I still had another full pile of rounds in another location to take care of.

I now needed to build a larger, more permanent firewood rack for long term storage. The perfect location for me was alongside one of my backyard sheds...

A few comments on the stuff in that picture. The double sink has a garbage disposal mounted on one side. Before I got my chickens, I would take our kitchen scraps and leftovers, grind them up in that garbage disposal into a 5-gallon bucket below, and then dump up that slurry on top of my pallet wood compost bins. It really worked great and in a matter of days the slurry was more or less turned into compost. Probably made great worm food.

That white 55-gallon barrel with the PVC pipe in it was going to be a horizontal compost bin, with a door in the barrel to put in the compost material, and everything would spin on that PVC pipe. Never finished that project because I got chickens soon afterwards. Now, the chickens get all the kitchen scraps and leftovers so that sink and barrel have been looking for a new life for over 4 years now! Any suggestions most welcome.

That stuff had to go to make the site ready for my pallet firewood rack...

There is a slight slope at that spot, but not too bad. Here I am checking the base for level. You know, who really cares if the base is level on a pallet firewood rack, but I guess that's just me. Anyway, all it took was a couple of pallet wood planks on one side and the bottom base was level...

Fast forward a bit, and here is a picture of the final assembly with the side bracing supports and a temporary board on top that was used just to keep the sides plumb while I put everything together...

Yesterday evening, I split up a wagon cart full of wood and had it in my tow behind utility cart. I have maybe 2 more carts full of wood to split. Here is the first cart full of wood stacked into this pallet firewood rack...

As you can see that full cart of split wood hardly made a dent in this new rack! I'll have plenty of room to clean up the other wood pile that I am working on and a number of other trees if I need to cut them up.

As far as time involved in this project, I estimated about 15 minutes. It actually took me just over an hour. I had not factored in a few small things like checking the level. But the real time burner was trying to hold the sides plumb while screwing in those support braces on the bottom. Working by myself adds additional time that I almost always forget to factor into my projects.

At any rate, the project is done, done, and done. I'm pretty happy with the results and now it's on to other to-list items. Later...

 

[gtaus]

Wear good gloves when working with pallet wood!

I have been using a good pair of leather working gloves for the past couple of years...

They were really nice and I completely wore them out, with some of my fingers sticking out and/or exposed. So, I finally retired my old working gloves and thanked them for their service.

Not to worry, I had a package of other gloves that I thought would work just fine...

However, those cotton "garden" gloves are NOT good for working with pallet wood. I managed to stick myself with a couple of slivers today as they go right through that cotton glove. Worse yet, that cotton will catch and keep bits of wood on the glove and a splinter can work it's way in later. I was fortunate that I did not get a bad splinter in the fingers, but the little pokes I did get made me realize that these types of gloves are not good for pallet work. I'm going to have to buy a new pair of good leather gloves for protection.

Of course, any glove would be better than no glove when working with pallet wood. But I have learned that it's worth it to me to buy a good pair of leather gloves when working with pallet wood. I will use those cotton gloves for other things, but they really don't work good with pallet wood full of splinters.

 

[NanaK]

Wear good gloves when working with pallet wood!

I have been using a good pair of leather working gloves for the past couple of years...

View attachment 3605246


They were really nice and I completely wore them out, with some of my fingers sticking out and/or exposed. So, I finally retired my old working gloves and thanked them for their service.

Not to worry, I had a package of other gloves that I thought would work just fine...

View attachment 3605252

However, those cotton "garden" gloves are NOT good for working with pallet wood. I managed to stick myself with a couple of slivers today as they go right through that cotton glove. Worse yet, that cotton will catch and keep bits of wood on the glove and a splinter can work it's way in later. I was fortunate that I did not get a bad splinter in the fingers, but the little pokes I did get made me realize that these types of gloves are not good for pallet work. I'm going to have to buy a new pair of good leather gloves for protection.

Of course, any glove would be better than no glove when working with pallet wood. But I have learned that it's worth it to me to buy a good pair of leather gloves when working with pallet wood. I will use those cotton gloves for other things, but they really don't work good with pallet wood full of splinters.

Agree 100%.
I like the deer skin gloves. Soft to the skin but tuff so no splinters. They last too.

 

[gtaus]

I'm sorry if this has been done already, but could someone show me their process for breaking down pallets? I found a source of free pallets nearby and I believe they are hardwood as they are SO HARD to take apart and end up wasting a lot of good wood. The nails are in there really good and I have split the wood trying to take them out.

There are many methods of breaking down pallets. With experience, you start to know which break down method on what pallet will work the best to yield the most useful wood. Because the condition of the pallet wood will differ from pallet to pallet, and the way the pallet is constructed will vary, it's best to know at least a few different ways to take apart pallets.

The 2 methods I use the most are the reciprocating saw method and the circular saw method. The advantage of using saws is that you can often avoid splitting the pallet wood, compared to using a pry bar, and thereby saving most of it.

Here's a 10 minute YouTube instructional video on those first 2 methods...

You might have heard about using a Paller Buster bar to break down pallets. Here is what that method looks like...

When you have the right pallet, the pallet buster is a great tool. Having said that, I find that most pallets I pick up are not good candidates for using the pallet buster. Here is a video on the negative side of using a pallet buster on most pallets that I seem to find...

You can see that, on the wrong kind of pallet, the pallet buster is more like a wood buster and you end up with lots of firewood after breaking down the pallet.

I made my own DIY Pallet Buster and use it maybe once on every 10 pallets I break down. I would not recommend buying, or making, a Pallet Buster bar unless you really have access to perfect pallets for that tool. I could easily live without my Pallet Buster, but, given the right type of pallet, it's a great tool to have in your toolbox.

The other big consideration on breaking down pallets is knowing what you will be using the wood for in a project. For example, I build lots of 16-inch-high raised garden beds. So, for me, it makes more sense to use the circular saw method, cutting the planks off the 2X4 stretchers, giving me nail free plank boards about 18 inches long. I will cut them down to 16 inches long for my raised bed builds. Using the circular saw method is the fastest and easiest way to get the wood I need for my garden beds.

If I really need the full length of the plank, then I use the reciprocating saw method and cut off the nails. That yields longer boards but you have to consider that the nail head is still in the plank and the nail bottom is still in the 2X4 stretcher. If you need to cut the wood on a table saw or miter saw, you have to remove the nail bits or risk damaging your saw blade or causing injury to yourself if you hit a nail. But, it's a great method when you will be using the full 2X4 or the plank without having to saw it.

There are various methods of manually breaking down pallets with hammers, crowbars, etc... Those usually take the longest time for me and more than often I end up breaking the wood anyway despite trying my hardest to be careful. You have to realize that the pallet nails used usually have barbs on them, which is great for holding the wood together, but makes it a lot harder to remove the nails and not destroying the wood in the process.

There is a slight learning curve to pallet break down methods, what method to use on which pallets, and how best to reclaim the most wood you need for your projects. I tried a number of pallet break down methods when I started. I found it only took a short while for me to figure out what method would work best on any pallet I had to break down.

Of course, I often say the best pallet projects I make use the entire pallet, as is, and I don't have to break it down at all. Like pallet wood compost bins or the pallet wood firewood rack I just built. Nothing wrong with that.

Feel free to ask any questions about pallet wood concerns on this thread. I, and others, will do our best to help. You can save lots of money building things out of pallets if you know how to break down and use the wood to your advantage.

 

[StinkyAcres]

There are many methods of breaking down pallets. With experience, you start to know which break down method on what pallet will work the best to yield the most useful wood. Because the condition of the pallet wood will differ from pallet to pallet, and the way the pallet is constructed will vary, it's best to know at least a few different ways to take apart pallets.

The 2 methods I use the most are the reciprocating saw method and the circular saw method. The advantage of using saws is that you can often avoid splitting the pallet wood, compared to using a pry bar, and thereby saving most of it.

Here's a 10 minute YouTube instructional video on those first 2 methods...

You might have heard about using a Paller Buster bar to break down pallets. Here is what that method looks like...

When you have the right pallet, the pallet buster is a great tool. Having said that, I find that most pallets I pick up are not good candidates for using the pallet buster. Here is a video on the negative side of using a pallet buster on most pallets that I seem to find...

You can see that, on the wrong kind of pallet, the pallet buster is more like a wood buster and you end up with lots of firewood after breaking down the pallet.

I made my own DIY Pallet Buster and use it maybe once on every 10 pallets I break down. I would not recommend buying, or making, a Pallet Buster bar unless you really have access to perfect pallets for that tool. I could easily live without my Pallet Buster, but, given the right type of pallet, it's a great tool to have in your toolbox.

The other big consideration on breaking down pallets is knowing what you will be using the wood for in a project. For example, I build lots of 16-inch-high raised garden beds. So, for me, it makes more sense to use the circular saw method, cutting the planks off the 2X4 stretchers, giving me nail free plank boards about 18 inches long. I will cut them down to 16 inches long for my raised bed builds. Using the circular saw method is the fastest and easiest way to get the wood I need for my garden beds.

If I really need the full length of the plank, then I use the reciprocating saw method and cut off the nails. That yields longer boards but you have to consider that the nail head is still in the plank and the nail bottom is still in the 2X4 stretcher. If you need to cut the wood on a table saw or miter saw, you have to remove the nail bits or risk damaging your saw blade or causing injury to yourself if you hit a nail. But, it's a great method when you will be using the full 2X4 or the plank without having to saw it.

There are various methods of manually breaking down pallets with hammers, crowbars, etc... Those usually take the longest time for me and more than often I end up breaking the wood anyway despite trying my hardest to be careful. You have to realize that the pallet nails used usually have barbs on them, which is great for holding the wood together, but makes it a lot harder to remove the nails and not destroying the wood in the process.

There is a slight learning curve to pallet break down methods, what method to use on which pallets, and how best to reclaim the most wood you need for your projects. I tried a number of pallet break down methods when I started. I found it only took a short while for me to figure out what method would work best on any pallet I had to break down.

Of course, I often say the best pallet projects I make use the entire pallet, as is, and I don't have to break it down at all. Like pallet wood compost bins or the pallet wood firewood rack I just built. Nothing wrong with that.

Feel free to ask any questions about pallet wood concerns on this thread. I, and others, will do our best to help. You can save lots of money building things out of pallets if you know how to break down and use the wood to your advantage.

Thank you so much! You have saved me from spending 40 bucks on a pallet buster. I have been using the circular saw method and disliked that it left the small pieces on the 2x4s, but I guess that's the best I can do. Still got some nice pieces, just wish I could use the entire pallet.

 

[gtaus]

Thank you so much! You have saved me from spending 40 bucks on a pallet buster. I have been using the circular saw method and disliked that it left the small pieces on the 2x4s, but I guess that's the best I can do. Still got some nice pieces, just wish I could use the entire pallet.

I find it easier to remove those small pieces left on the 2X4's after the circular saw method if I clamp the 2X4 down on a clamping workbench, then use a flat bar or screwdriver to pop up the wood piece, then remove the nails with a crowbar. Yes, it's a little work but then you should have a full-length nail free 2X4 in the end.

I love it when I can use the entire pallet, as is, in a project. But most of the time, I have to break down the pallet and reuse the wood. What I save in the price of new store bought lumber, I'm sure I make up in my time and labor breaking down the "free" pallet wood. But it's a hobby that I enjoy.

All I can say is that as I gained more experience working with pallet wood, I learned what method would work best for me to break down any given pallet to yield the most salvaged wood. Only a small fraction of my pallet break downs end up as firewood these days. When I was just starting out and learning, I made more firewood. So, don't be too hard on yourself as you gain knowledge and experience working with pallets.

And yes, I'm glad to hear that you have reconsidered buying a pallet buster. It's probably the least used method for me in pallet break downs. I would not recommend the Pallet Buster as the main method of pallet break downs. It creates more firewood than any other method I use unless you have the perfect pallet for the Pallet Buster.

FWIW, I made a DIY Pallet Buster for about $20, but mostly consider it money NOT well spent. Live and learn. At least I did not buy the $40-$60 Pallet Busters online.

 

[Sally PB]

We needed to move some wood that had been stored in a garage into a pole barn. DH had piles of old barn wood he'd reclaimed from an old barn. At the bottom of the pile were 7 (!) 2x6x16s, from a crate when we got some metal roofing. There were also some 2x4s that are at least 10 footers.

And... I found a pallet! Just a small one, about 20x30. Oh, goodie, says Sally!

After we got done moving the wood, I decided to dismantle the pallet, as I have some ideas for more projects. Well, that pallet has been in there for probably 5+ years, and the wood was toasty dry. I did not get a single board off there without a crack, split, or, in one case, total disintegration.

I got enough that I can make something, but I'll have to take care when I screw boards together, and it definitely won't be for anything weight bearing. It was an exercise in patience. Well, ok. My patience needs some exercise.