Side by side
| EPAL 2 | EPAL 3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 1,200 × 1,000 × 162 mm | 1,000 × 1,200 × 144 mm |
| Weight | 35 kg | 30 kg |
| Safe working load | 1,250 kg | 1,500 kg |
| Boards / blocks / nails | 17 / 9 / 133 | 13 / 9 / 84 |
The counter-intuitive rating
EPAL 2 is the heavier build but has the lower published safe working load: 1,250 kg against 1,500 kg for EPAL 3. Its bottommost-pallet stacking limit is also lower, 4,250 kg against 4,500 kg. EPAL describes the EPAL 2 as made for the heaviest industrial loads because its base frame lets it run on chain or roller conveyors; the rating figures are EPAL's own.
Telling them apart
Measure the height first: 162 mm against 144 mm. Then look underneath: the EPAL 2 has the full base frame. EPAL lists the EPAL 2 as length 1,200 × width 1,000 mm and the EPAL 3 as length 1,000 × width 1,200 mm, which reflects how the boards run.
Board thickness
EPAL 3 deck boards may be as thin as 17 mm, while EPAL 2 boards are 22–24 mm. That is the main reason the EPAL 3 is 5 kg lighter.
In a container
The footprint is the same, so floor counts in our load tables are identical. The difference shows up in stacks of empties: at 162 mm, fewer EPAL 2 pallets fit under the door height than EPAL 3 pallets at 144 mm.