Full flap and partial flap bottoms

The bottom of a gaylord decides whether the load stays in and what the box needs under it. Full flap bottom gaylords have overlapping flaps that make a closed base. Partial flap bottom gaylords have flaps that meet in the middle, so the box rides on a slip sheet or a pallet. Neither is better. Each is right for a different load.

Which load wants which

• Powder, fines, small parts: full flap, plus a poly liner if the fines are very fine.
• Resin pellets and regrind: either; partial flap with a slip sheet is common, full flap if it sifts.
• Produce: partial flap, and ventilated if the harvest page says so.
• Heavy metal parts: full flap, short box.

The slip sheet

A slip sheet is a thin sheet laid under a partial-bottom box. It closes the base and keeps pallet nails off the load. It also lets a forklift with a push-pull attachment move the box without a pallet. The slip sheet guide goes deeper.

The Container Exchanger listing for a used 48 x 45 x 40 box is a typical example: partial bottom flaps with slip sheets, 5-ply. If you need that build, say so on the request.

A test you can do at the dock

Stand the box on the floor, flaps closed, and push down on the middle of the base with the heel of your hand. A full flap bottom feels like a floor. A partial flap bottom gives, because the centre is open and the box is meant to sit on something. If you are buying a mixed lot, do this to one box of each kind before you decide how many slip sheets to order.

Two mistakes show up again and again on requests. The first is ordering partial bottoms for a load that sifts, such as a powder or small parts, and finding the fines on the dock floor. The second is ordering full flap bottoms for a conveyor that expects a slip sheet underneath. Name your handling equipment on the request and the bottom style can be chosen to match it.

What changes in a trailer

Trailers add one more reason to choose. A full flap bottom lets boxes ride on any floor and be pulled by ordinary forks, so a mixed trailer of boxes and pallets loads without special equipment. Partial flap boxes on slip sheets pack tighter, since no pallet sits under them, but each one needs the push-pull truck at both ends. If either end of your route lacks one, the saving disappears at the dock.

Asking for a mix

You can order both styles in one request: full flap for the heavy loads, partial for the ones that ride on slip sheets. Say how many of each, give the footprint for both, and which lanes or stations each kind is for, so the two do not get mixed on the floor or in the trailer.

A full flap bottom is also easier to inspect, since the whole base is visible when the box is tipped, while a partial flap box leaves the centre open and the load resting on whatever sits beneath it.

Questions, answered