What You Don’t Know About Pallets Can Harm You And Your Family

Any pallet may or may not have a stamp on it.  It will look something like this:

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or this:

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If there is no stamp, there is no way to know if the pallet has been treated with chemicals.  So better not to use it.

If there is a stamp, then you know where it came from and what it has been treated with.

According to 1001pallets:

There are 2 main things to watch for on the stamp :

The IPPC Logo: if you don’t see it, don’t use it! Even if a pallet may be perfectly safe without this logo it could also mean that it was treated with chemicals!
The treatment code : [HT] = Heat treatment / [MB] = Methyl Bromide / [DB] = Debarked / [KD] = Kiln Dried.

Always better to not use a pallet that has something spilled on it or anything oily.  There is no way to know what it is and you don’t want to be sleeping or sitting on something everyday that is emitting potentially toxic fumes.

Pallets are a wonderful way to create great things like benches, tables , shelving and even patios and you should continue to use them!  Just make sure you know what you are using by following the guidelines, reading the stamps, and not using unstamped pallets.

Thank you very much to 1001pallets for this great advice!!