Slip sheets and partial bottoms

A slip sheet is a thin sheet laid under a partial-bottom box. It closes the open middle of the base and keeps pallet nails and deck gaps off the load. Without a sheet, a partial flap bottom leaks fine material and lets the load meet the pallet.

When you need one

• Every partial flap bottom gaylord, always.
• A full flap bottom on a rough or gapped pallet deck, optionally.
• Produce bins with ventilated bottoms, if the load is small enough to fall through.

What to ask

1. Is one sheet included for every box?
2. What is it made of: corrugated, plastic or paper?
3. Is it the same footprint as the box?
4. Will it stay put when the box is lifted?

In the Container Exchanger listing for a used 48 x 45 x 40 box, partial bottom flaps came with slip sheets. That is the pattern to look for: the sheets are included, and the listing says so.

Slip sheets and stacking

A slip sheet is not a strength part. It closes a gap. The strength comes from the walls and the board. A partial-bottom box with a sheet stacks like a full flap box of the same walls and grade, provided the base is supported. Stack Check does not add a factor for the bottom.

See full and partial bottoms, lids and liners and the buy desk.

Slip sheet or pallet

A slip sheet is a thin sheet of cardboard or plastic with a tab on one or more edges. A push-pull attachment on a forklift grips the tab and pulls the load on or off. For a warehouse with that equipment, a slip sheet saves the pallet and the space the pallet takes in a trailer. For one without it, a slip sheet is a nuisance: you cannot lift the load with ordinary forks.

The right question for a buyer is therefore not "do I need a slip sheet" but "what moves my boxes". If the answer is ordinary forks and pallets, ask for a full flap bottom, which sits on a pallet by itself. If the answer is a push-pull truck, ask for partial flap bottoms and say how many slip sheets you want with them.

Slip sheets also change how you count a stack. A box on a slip sheet has no pallet under it, so the box bears all the weight above it directly on its base. The partial flap bottom is weaker there than a full one, and Stack Check will say so if you tell it which you have.

Slip sheets and the dock

The dock is where the choice is tested. A slip sheet needs a smooth floor, a push-pull attachment and an operator who has used one. On a rough or wet floor the sheet binds and tears. On a clean dock with trained operators, it is quick. If you are not sure that your dock meets that description, a full flap bottom on a pallet is the safe choice.

Also check the receiving end. A load shipped on slip sheets to a customer without a push-pull has to be re-palletised, and that is time and risk you pass on. Put the destination on the request so the bottom style can be matched to both ends.

Slip sheet sizes

Slip sheets are cut to the footprint of the box. Order the sheet for the box, not for the pallet you imagine under it, and ask for the tab on the side your truck grips, on the edge that faces the attachment.

Plastic slip sheets last longer than cardboard ones but cost more and are harder to recycle; for a single-trip move, cardboard is common.

Questions, answered