How to Take Apart a Pallet Without Breaking It

Using a Reciprocating Saw

Choose pallets that show no sign of deterioration. Although they might be easier to disassemble, the wood is more likely to be damaged beyond use. You can get up to 40 feet (12m) of wood from a good pallet.

Don’t try to take apart pallets with regular tools. Shipping pallets are built with annular ring nails, which are meant to stay put.

Purchase a Sawzall tool. A handheld reciprocating saw will reduce pallet deconstruction from 30 minutes or more to about 10 minutes.

Buy a metal cutting 12-inch (30.5cm) demolition blade. The five-inch (12.7cm) blade that comes with the saw will not work, and you will break the saw if you use it for this project.

Install the blade on your saw. Make sure it is secure. Plug the saw into an electrical outlet.

Put on some safety goggles, work clothes and gloves. Earplugs or ear protectors will also reduce the risk of hearing loss. A dust mask is also very helpful.

Prop the pallet up vertically if you can get it securely clamped to a surface. If you can’t, lay it across sturdy workbenches and you can saw the nails off using a horizontal motion.

Find the two main vertical pieces of wood on the pallet. The smaller horizontal slats, usually 2 x 4 wood, should be nailed to these pieces to create the top surface of the pallet. You will need to cut through the nails along the vertical pieces where the horizontal and vertical slats meet.

Start your reciprocating saw. Place your saw between the two pieces of wood and cut downward or sideways, away from your body, in a smooth motion. You will cut through the spiral nails that connect the two pieces of wood.

Continue cutting down one side of the vertical slat until all the horizontal slats are loose and cut free of the nails.

Go to the other vertical slat and repeat the process through the other side of the pallet. The horizontal boards may start to fall off. Ask a friend to pile them up if they are becoming a hazard.

Move to the back of the pallet where the frame of the pallet is put together. Saw around the outer edge, cutting between the wood where the frame pieces meet.

Using a Crowbar

Obtain some good quality pallets from shipping yards. Always ask before you take them, unless they are near a garbage can.

Assess any places on the pallet that seem slightly loose. This is the place you will start.

Put on your safety goggles, work gloves and work clothing. This method is far more labor intensive than the saw method.

Place the pallet on the ground.

Wedge a pry bar between the layers of wood, where the nails look somewhat loose. You will usually loop the pry bar underneath the 2 x 4s, where it meets the frame.

Move the pry bar back to lift the piece of wood and loosen it. Don’t try to lift the board all the way up, just loosen the nail. Move a few inches away and repeat to loosen the nail further. Doing too much too soon with your pry bar will split the wood. You must move slowly and rock the pry bar around the nail, rather than trying to lift it up forcefully.

Repeat on the other end of the 2 x 4 slat. Hit the top of the crowbar with a hammer to help wedge it under tightly nailed sections of board.

Move to the middle of the slat and loosen the nails. Once all three nailed sections of the slat are loosened, work the pry bar underneath as far as you can and pull up the slat.

Flip the slat over and hammer the nails out backwards. Dispose of the nails, rather than keeping them on the ground.

Repeat with each slat, loosening the nails in each section before prying the entire slat loose. The whole process can take 30 minutes or more and requires physical strength.