Quarter, Half or Full Pallet? How to Size Catering Equipment for Delivery
How to pick a quarter, half or full pallet for catering equipment: the five sizes, the pallet's own height, and three real machines worked through.
Measure after wrapping, not before. The pallet and wrap add height, and a fryer just over 1 m tall can push a load from a Half into a Light.
Check the way in before you book. A pallet is at least 1.0 m wide, and most UK doorways are narrower, so measure every door, corridor, step and lift between the kerb and where the machine is going. If the pallet won't fit through, plan to unwrap it and take the machine off the pallet outside, and have enough people or a sack truck ready.
Quick answer: Choose quarter, half or full by the finished height and total weight with the pallet included, not by the machine's own spec. A counter-top fryer fits the smallest size, but a free-standing fryer just over 1 m tall already needs a Light, because the pallet adds height. Measure the wrapped load with a tape before anyone books.
The pallet sizes at a glance
Listings on CaterBids that offer pallet delivery with Interparcel use five sizes. All five share the same 1.2 m by 1.0 m base, so a Quarter takes up just as much floor as a Full. Only the height and weight limits change.
Both limits include the pallet itself and all the packaging. Final limits are confirmed when the buyer books with Interparcel.
| Size | Weight, up to | Height, up to | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mini Quarter | 150 kg | 0.6 m | Counter-top kit, such as a twin-tank fryer |
| Quarter | 300 kg | 0.8 m | Low, heavy kit that stays under 0.8 m once packed |
| Half | 500 kg | 1.1 m | Floor-standing kit that stays under 1.1 m once packed |
| Light | 750 kg | 2.2 m | Tall kit that is not too heavy, such as a free-standing fryer |
| Full | 1,000 kg | 2.2 m | The heaviest single machines |
Work it out in three steps
- Measure the machine at its tallest point, including legs, castors, a flue or a splashback.
- Add the pallet. One standard 1200 by 1000 mm UK wooden pallet is 138 mm tall and weighs 15.2 kg, but they vary, so measure the one you are using.
- Add the wrap and any boxed parts, then pick the smallest size where both the height and the weight fit. If either one goes over, move up a size.
Three real machines, worked through
Here are three machines from UK makers, each on that 138 mm pallet. In every case the height set the size, not the weight.
| Machine | Maker's height and weight | On the pallet | Size to book |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincat Silverlink DF66 counter-top twin-tank fryer | 330 mm, 22 kg | About 468 mm, 37 kg plus wrap | Mini Quarter |
| Lincat Opus 800 OE8108 free-standing fryer | 1,020 mm, 95 kg | About 1,158 mm, 110 kg plus wrap | Light |
| Foster EcoPro G3 EP700H single-door fridge | 2,080 mm, 99.5 kg | About 2,218 mm, 115 kg plus wrap | Over 2.2 m: ask first |
The Opus 800 is far under the Half weight limit but 58 mm too tall for it. Booked as a Half, the booking no longer matches what the driver arrives to collect. Book the Light.
The tall Foster cabinet goes about 18 mm over the biggest standard height once it sits on the pallet. Don't lay it down to make it fit: our guide to sending catering equipment on a pallet explains why refrigeration stays upright. Measure the actual unit, then ask Interparcel about the load before booking, or arrange collection with the seller instead.
Selling: put the packed figures in your listing
On a listing with pallet delivery, CaterBids fills in the collection details, weight and size for the buyer's Interparcel booking. So the height and weight in your listing need to be the wrapped figures, not the brochure ones.
Wrap the machine first, then measure the height, width, depth and total weight. Photograph a tape measure stood against the finished load, so there is proof if the size is ever questioned. Nothing may overhang the 1.2 m by 1.0 m base in any direction.
Take out any LPG cylinder or gas bottle before it is wrapped: they cannot travel by pallet. Then list it in the right category, such as cooking equipment, with the figures in the description.
Your first listing is free while our launch offer lasts, then from £5 for 30 days. No commission and no final value fee.
Buying: check the size before you pay
The buyer books and pays Interparcel directly after buying, and CaterBids does not deliver, book or charge for delivery. Before paying for an item, check its listed height and weight against the table above. If the wrapped figures are missing, ask the seller in site chat.
Then plan the drop. Deliveries are kerbside by tail-lift, so someone needs to be there to move the load inside, and a heavy one may need a pallet truck. The lorry needs level, solid ground, so tell Interparcel about gravel, slopes, narrow lanes or low bridges when booking. Measure your doorways and the route inside too: if the pallet won't pass through, the machine will need taking off it at the kerb.
Walk round the pallet before signing and write any damage on the delivery note. Browse used catering equipment for sale across the UK, or start with refrigeration if a fridge is on the list.
Pallet size checklist
- Measure the machine at its tallest point
- Add the pallet's own height and weight
- Add the wrap and boxed parts
- Pick the smallest size where both figures fit
- Ask before booking anything over 2.2 m
- Put the final figures in the listing
- Plan kerbside access before the lorry arrives
Sources
Ready to Sell Your Equipment?
Your first listing is free while our launch offer lasts, then from £5 for 30 days. No commission and no final value fee, so what a seller makes is what they keep.
Prepare Your Equipment
- Clean stainless surfaces
- Disconnect safely
- Photograph the data plate
- Box loose parts
- Measure and weigh
- Prepare for pallet collection