Both layouts
EPAL 2 covers 95.7% of the floor and 48 × 40 covers 98.8%. One EPAL 2 takes 1.20 m² and one 48 × 40 takes 1.24 m², so the count alone does not tell you which carries more goods: 30 × 1.20 = 36.0 m² against 30 × 1.24 = 37.2 m² of pallet deck.
Floor and door
The 53 ft domestic reefer container has 37.6 m² of floor (405 sq ft) inside. Pallet decks cover 36.0 m² with EPAL 2 and 37.2 m² with 48 × 40, leaving 1.6 m² and 0.5 m² of gaps.
The door opening is 2,438 mm wide, so the EPAL 2, carried narrow side first, clears it by 1,438 mm and a 48 × 40 by 1,422 mm. The EPAL 2 layout puts 30 turned with the 1000 mm side along the length; the 48 × 40 layout puts 30 turned with the 1016 mm side along the length.
Inputs
| Inside length × width | 15,265 × 2,464 mm |
|---|---|
| Inside height | 2,565 mm |
| Door opening, width × height | 2,438 × 2,591 mm |
| Guideline payload | not published by the source |
| EPAL 2 footprint | 1,200 × 1,000 mm |
| 48 × 40 footprint | 1,219 × 1,016 mm |
| Equipment source | CN (Canadian National Railway). payload not published in source |
How this is computed
The engine tries every split of the deck into rows of pallets placed one way and rows placed the other way, along the length and across the width, and keeps the arrangement with the most pallets. It does not overhang, mix in other pallet sizes or allow for bulging goods. The methodology page explains each step, and the load planner runs the same code on your own dimensions.