Mixed and broken piles, cleared
A Mixed load is an unsorted pile of more than one size or grade. It is what a dock collects over weeks before anyone sorts it, and it is normal.
Nobody sorts a pile before asking
A pile gets built the way a dock works: a few pallets at a time, whatever came in on the trailer. Six weeks later it is a mix of 48 x 45 under 48 x 40, a pair of Euro pallets and a lot of broken boards. A request about it does not need to be tidy. It needs a rough count and what you can see.
What is in a typical mixed pile
| What you will find | Where it goes |
|---|---|
| Sound 48 x 40 and 48 x 45, no repairs | Back into use as Grade A |
| Pallets with a plug or plate already on them | Grade B, back into use |
| Cracked stringers or missing boards | Cores, for repair or breakdown |
| Odd sizes: 42 x 42, 48 x 48, Euro | Sold or placed by size |
| Rotted, oil-soaked or chemical-stained | Ground, or not accepted |
Say what you can see
- A rough count of the pile. Count one stack and multiply.
- The sizes you recognize. If you are not sure, a photo of the stringers is enough.
- Whether there is more coming. A pile that refills is a candidate for a dock program.
- Anything that does not belong: trash, banding, scrap metal or liquids.
Use the sorter if you want to see it first
If you would like to know how your pile reads before you ask, the sorter takes a row per size and condition and groups them into what looks worth selling and what needs clearing. It does not price anything. It only shows you the shape of the pile.
Broken is not a problem
A broken pallet still carries value in its boards and, sometimes, its stringers. Broken piles go through recycling: repair where it is cheap, dismantling for boards where the frame is gone, grinding where nothing is worth keeping. The cores page explains the same route from the seller's side.
Questions about big messy piles
Is a pile too far gone?
Rarely. Even a ruined pile has boards worth reclaiming and wood worth grinding.
Should I sort it first?
If it takes an hour, yes. If it takes a week, describe it as it is.
Is there a minimum?
Say how many you have, and describe the pile honestly.
Piles grow where nobody owns them
The worst piles collect at the back of a yard or a shared dock, where no one has the job of tidying them. The first step is deciding who owns the pile. Once that is clear, a count and a few photographs are enough to describe it.
Pictures of a pile
Take three photos: the whole pile from a distance, the top from a ladder or a lift, and the worst corner up close. Together they answer how big, how tall, and how bad. Add a tape or a person for scale.
Ownership
Settle who owns the pile before you ask.
Drone and phone photos
A photo from a raised point shows the size of a pile better than one from the ground.
Make the request
Clearing a mixed pile: say how many, what you can see in it, and where it sits.
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