# Building pallets



## Lauri (Feb 1, 2012)

I am also moving to pallets instead of long benches, but still need to be able to _tip_ my hives on occasion for quick inspection or treating. That prevents me from making 4 way or 6 way pallets, mine have to be in a single row once placed.

These benches are 8' long at my home location. I have 2 new yards now and wanted to switch to a more standard size. I don't do pollination, but may become somewhat migratory for honey production in the future.










After some careful consideration, I built 24" x 60" ( 2' x 5' )pallets that will hold 3 -10 frame sized hives with about 5" between them when spaced out at final location. 










My Kubota forks are long enough to carry 2 pallets at a time if I wish, so they are similar to 6 ways but meet my needs since I run all deeps and am not as strong as the guys. 











Pressure treated lumber is 3 times as expensive as standard lumber. With a framing nailer they were pretty fast to build. So why not build them with cheaper lumber? By the time you paint them I din't think you'd be ahead with the time and cost involved. 

The hard part for me is getting help moving hives off old failing cheap pallets so I wanted to do it right this time. I don't use the pallets as bottom boards because I use a variety of equipment sizes.
I have a file with several photos of good commercial styles if you want them. Standard types with clips, some solid, some screened. I've see some dip their pallets, paint them, treat them. 

Before I placed them, I used a hammer tacker to staple weed block on the bottom so grass and weeds won't be growing through them.










Something else I have found invaluable to me is my extra long and tall nursery cart. It's my work bench on wheels. Anything that allows me to work without bending over all day is usually worth the extra cost or the extra effort to build it. 










http://www.amleo.com/leonard-flatbe...t-2ft-x-5ft-deck-850-lb-capacity/p/VP-2460EX/

I'm on the sideliner scale, not commercial but it sounds like about what you want to build.

Anytime I've used plywood in this climate it's fallen apart, even if painted, not to mention it doesn't _drain_. I see you are also in Wa.

You can see on my bench's at home I used a commercial fiberglass grate product over a treated frame. 










I wish Barry would start a Sideliners forum, there's really no place in between to post for someone like me. There are several sideliner facebook groups though. You might find them helpful.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TooBigToQuitNow/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1096320300380337/


----------



## dtp (Jun 4, 2013)

I used HDO on my last 100 pallets. I will continue to use it in the future. Also treated runners and cedar for the pallet strips.


----------



## My-smokepole (Apr 14, 2008)

I know at one time the acid in treated lumber was eating fasteners made with Hot dipped galvanize. One of the reasons that you see so many coated deck screws.


----------



## dtp (Jun 4, 2013)

Hot dipped galvanized are approved fasteners. I use the hot dipped galvanized staples.


----------



## yousowise (Apr 14, 2011)

Are you painting both sides of your hdo? And would any harm come from making them 48 inches and leaving a larger gap between the front and back hives?


----------



## johng (Nov 24, 2009)

It really depends on what you plan on moving them on. On my trailer they already hang off a little bit when you load a pallet on each side. So if they were an extra inch longer on each side that would make things even worse. I really don't see an advantage to making them 48 inches long. Why do you want them longer?


----------



## yousowise (Apr 14, 2011)

Pure laziness, I don't want to trim the plywood by a couple inches if not necessary. I thought most flatbed trailers were 8 ft wide.


----------



## hex0rz (Jan 14, 2014)

yousowise said:


> Pure laziness, I don't want to trim the plywood by a couple inches if not necessary. I thought most flatbed trailers were 8 ft wide.


Actually, 102".


----------



## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

If you are considering having hives transported by commercial truckers, unnecessary weight in your pallets may reduce the maximum number of hives that can be accommodated on a given truck. That, in turn, can increase the transport cost per hive. Its not just the plywood that will be oversize - presumably the plywood will be supported by longer stringers underneath (2x4s perhaps?) that will also add to the total weight.

Here are a couple of earlier pallet threads:
http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?219802-Migratory-Pallets
http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?291091-Standard-4-way-pallets



Update: I added this topic to the FAQ area , and there are now additional 'pallet' linked threads here:
http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?333599-Pallets-(for-palletized-hives)

.


----------



## yousowise (Apr 14, 2011)

Thanks for those links Rader!!! I just got done reading them. I was going to build them with a solid deck, but see that many designs have a split deck and am now considering using that design. For those that use a solid deck what are the advantages? I have also seen some plans using 1/2" or 5/8" plywood, these should obviously be lighter and probably a little cheaper, but do they last as long as 3/4"? Any other downsides to using a thinner plywood? 4 way 10 frame pallets.


----------



## goodlife bees (Feb 9, 2014)

my uncle uses a fiberglass coated plywood WOW!! they hold up really well and are only half inch thick.


----------



## B&E (Dec 27, 2011)

5/8 is totally fine. 1/2 is too flexible with hives on it, and bees get crushed. I have done both. 5/8 obviously won't last as long as thicker plywood. We also use pressure treat. Some guys think this is nuts, but the bees don't eat it....I assure you .


----------



## Broke-T (Jul 9, 2008)

I build mine 48" with solid tops. The 48" gives you more room between hive backs that makes easier to handle and solid between hives keeps grass and weeds from growing there.

Johnny


----------



## Broke-T (Jul 9, 2008)

I also rip a 4x8 sheet into 3 pieces 32x48. I let the top strips the boxes set on extend 1/2 inch over each side which gives me the 33' I need when using w clips. No waste this way.

Johnny


----------



## yousowise (Apr 14, 2011)

Just cut my plywood to 32 inches yesterday, 3 pallets from one sheet is great. What do you use for your top strips? I was thinking strips of cedar fence boards (5/8" thick) or 1x2's. What does everyone else use?


----------



## liljake83 (Jul 2, 2013)

1/2 plywood


----------

