UL 2335 explained for pallet buyers

Reading a report

• Find the model name. If it does not match the pallet in your hand, the report does not apply.
• Find the date and the revision.
• Find the test arrangement: height, spacing, commodity.
• Find the result, in the standard's own terms.

A report is a record of a test, not a general promise. Conditions in the test, such as stack height and sprinkler arrangement, are the conditions the result describes.

Pairing with FM

Some makers hold both an FM classification and a UL report; some hold one. The two are separate standards from separate bodies, and a buyer or a fire engineer may ask for either. Ask which your building's insurer and engineer accept before you pick a pallet.

A beam load worked out

Take a pallet with a 2,700 lb racking load. A loaded pallet of 1,282 lb uses 47.5 percent of it and leaves 1,418 lb; one of 2,900 lb is 200 lb over. Rack engineers also apply their own safety margins, so treat the figure as a ceiling.

A stack worked out

Take a stackable rated 12,000 lb static. The bottom pallet carries the pallets above it, so with each loaded pallet weighing 2,323 lb it can hold 5 above, a stack of 6. With 6,365 lb per pallet it can hold 1 above. This is a ceiling on a flat floor for a still stack, not a promise for a stack that moves or waits.

A buyer's checklist for a UL report

1. Write down the pallet's exact model name and the maker's name.
2. Ask for the test report and its date, not a summary.
3. Read the tested arrangement: height, spacing, what was stored.
4. Check that your storage matches, or ask the fire engineer what the gap means.
5. Keep the report with the purchase record and give a copy to the insurer.

Questions to put to the maker

• What is the name of the testing body on the document, and what is the date?
• Does the listing cover the pallet with its deck pattern, open or closed?
• Which arrangement was tested: height, spacing and the load on it?
• Does the classification apply once the pallet is loaded and wrapped?
• Does the document name a limit on storage height?
• How is the pallet marked so an inspector can match it to the document?
• Is a different model offered with a listing, and what does it cost in weight or rating?
• Does the maker hold a listing for this exact model, or only for a family of models?

From the dock

• Colour is not a marker of fire performance; read the moulded model name and match it to the paper.
• Fire design changes with ceiling height and commodity; the same pallet can be fine in one building and not another.
• Inspections happen on a schedule you do not control; keep the documents where the inspector can find them.
• Ask your insurer which standard they use before asking a maker for a listing to that standard.
• Plastic pallets burn differently from wood, and the design that protects one may not protect the other.
• Mixing listed and unlisted pallets in one aisle undoes the point of listing the ones that are.
• A listing covers the pallet as tested: height, spacing and arrangement matter as much as the material.

Words on this page

Polypropylene

Another common pallet resin, lighter and stiffer than some others, with its own behaviour in the cold.

Open deck

A deck with slots or a grid, which drains water, sheds dust and weighs less than a solid one.

HDPE

High-density polyethylene, a tough resin used in many plastic pallets, valued for strength against its weight.

Closed deck

A solid deck that keeps small items and torn bags from falling through and wipes clean on top.

Beam span

The open gap between two rack beams. The longer the span, the lower the load the pallet can carry across it.

Static load

The weight a pallet holds while standing still on a flat floor, spread evenly across the deck. It is the highest of the three ratings.

UL

Underwriters Laboratories, a safety testing body that publishes fire test standards, including one for storage pallets.

Racking load

The weight a pallet holds when it rests on two rack beams with an open gap between them. It is usually the lowest rating and only exists for pallets built for racks.