Gaylord footprints we stock.
| Footprint (L×W) | Height range | Most common walls | Load rating | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40" × 48" | 24" – 48" | DW / TW | 1,800–2,400 lbs | Standard pallet bulk, grain, textiles |
| 48" × 48" | 36" – 44" | DW / TW | 1,600–2,200 lbs | Oversized bulk, baled fiber |
| 45" × 48" | 40" | TW | 2,200 lbs | Automotive, foundry, scrap metal |
| 36" × 36" | 30" – 36" | DW | 1,400 lbs | Smaller-footprint dunnage |
| 30" × 30" | 30" | SW / DW | 800 lbs | Returnable bins, light bulk |
| 47" × 38" | 36" | DW | 1,500 lbs | European footprint, specialty |
Wall types explained.
- Singlewall (SW) — one flute layer between two liners. The standard for most shipping cartons. Lightest, cheapest, least strong. Not recommended for gaylord-size bulk containers.
- Doublewall (DW) — two flute layers, three liners. The workhorse of the gaylord world. Good for most bulk applications up to about 1,800 lbs.
- Triplewall (TW) — three flute layers, four liners. Heavy-duty, used for automotive, foundry, and loads over 2,000 lbs. Also chosen for stacking where bottom boxes need to support a whole column.
- Quadwall — rare. Only used for exceptional loads (think castings and dies) and export crates. We stock it on request.
Flute profiles explained.
- A-flute (5mm) — tallest flute, best cushioning and stacking strength. Most common in gaylords and triplewall.
- B-flute (3mm) — better for flat-crush resistance and die-cutting. Common in smaller cases and inner packaging.
- C-flute (4mm) — the middle ground. Used in most standard shipping cartons.
- BC / AC / EB doublewall combinations — combine two flute profiles to get specific performance (e.g., AC doublewall for gaylords is common).
Choosing the right spec.
Match your load rating first. If you’re moving 1,600 lbs of grain, a doublewall 40×48×36 will do it. If you’re moving 2,400 lbs of metal castings, you need triplewall, full stop. After that match your handling method (forklift, pallet jack, walk-in) to the footprint. And last, match your height to the product — a gaylord higher than the product will crush under a stacked box above.
RSC and HSC sizes we stock.
For the smaller end of the corrugated spectrum — standard shipping cartons and open-top totes — these are the most common footprints we keep in reclaimed inventory.
| L × W × H (inches) | Wall | ECT | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 × 6 × 6 | Singlewall | 32 | Tiny shipper |
| 9 × 6 × 4 | Singlewall | 32 | E-com small |
| 12 × 12 × 12 | Singlewall | 32 | E-com cube |
| 14 × 10 × 6 | Singlewall | 32 | Apparel mailer |
| 16 × 12 × 12 | Singlewall | 32 | Standard ship |
| 18 × 18 × 18 | Singlewall | 32 | Mid-size cube |
| 20 × 16 × 12 | Singlewall | 32 | Office move |
| 24 × 12 × 12 | Singlewall | 32 | Long product |
| 24 × 18 × 18 | Singlewall | 32 | Medium ship |
| 24 × 24 × 24 | Doublewall | 48 | Heavy ship |
| 30 × 20 × 14 | Doublewall | 48 | Furniture/parts |
| 36 × 24 × 24 | Doublewall | 48 | Heavy industrial |
Edge crush test ratings, in plain English.
ECT is the most common way to measure how much vertical compression a corrugated box can survive. The number is in pounds per linear inch. A 32 ECT box can support roughly 32 pounds per linear inch of edge before crushing. For a typical 12"×12"×12" cube that translates to about 40 pounds of stacked load. For a 40"×48" gaylord footprint, the same ECT translates to about 175 pounds. ECT scales linearly with edge length, which is why bigger boxes can carry proportionally heavier stacked loads.
How walls and flutes combine.
Walls (singlewall, doublewall, triplewall) describe the number of fluted layers. Flute profiles (A, B, C, E, F) describe the size of each fluted layer. They combine in pairs for doublewall (e.g., AC means A-flute glued to C-flute) and triples for triplewall (e.g., BCC). The combinations matter because different profiles excel at different things — A-flute is best for stacking strength, B-flute is best for flat-crush resistance, C-flute is the middle of the road. For most gaylord applications, AC doublewall or BCC triplewall is the right choice.
Common spec mistakes.
- Specifying weight without considering distribution. A box that can hold 1,800 lbs of evenly-distributed grain may fail at 600 lbs of concentrated metal castings.
- Ignoring stacking height. A standalone box rated for 1,800 lbs may crush at 400 lbs when six identical boxes are stacked above it.
- Forgetting moisture. Wet loads soften corrugated dramatically — under-spec by one wall type for any wet application.
- Picking footprint by guess. Always match the footprint to your forklift method and your dock layout, not to what feels “close enough.”
- Buying for theoretical maximum instead of typical use. Most operations don’t need triplewall for everything — over-spec adds cost without adding value.