How to Disassemble a Pallet Without a Saw.

I was looking at some different ways to disassemble a pallet when a light bulb went off in my head and I thought about Newtons 3rd law, where there's an action there's an equal and opposite reaction, so I grabbed my low-profile jack and started disassembling the pallet. After removing the first 4 or 5 boards, it dawned on me that I should make an Instructables. Because my jacks handle is on the left side, I started by placing the jack under the first board on the left side of the right cross member and jacked away, then I moved the jack to the left side of the middle cross member and jacked some more. Once you get that done you can usually just grab the board on the right end and lift and twist to remove it. If you can't, just put the jack on the right side of the left cross member, under the left end of the board, and as you jack put your boot on the board and put some weight on it and it will come lose. Please use some common sense and don't wear flip flops or try it barefoot, put your boots and gloves on because of the protruding nails and if you don't want any slivers. Depending on how many bottom boards you have will dictate how many top boards you remove and because of that you will need a 2x4 or a 2x6 or a piece of plywood. If you have a sheet of plywood as large as your pallet, flip your pallet over and while using your jack, remove the 3 or how ever many boards are on the bottom and take your screw gun and drive in some screws attaching the plywood. This is the easiest way because you won't have to move the 2x6 multiple times, if you do decide to use a 2x6 or 2x4 turn your pallet over and place your 2x in between a couple of the upper boards and drill some holes, large enough so that when you drive in your screws, it won't cause any jacking between the 2x and the cross member. You should only need 2 screws per end of the 2x in order to hold it, also I use the Kreg washer head screw so I don't have to worry about the wood splitting. I also use one 2x long enough for all of the pallet I come across, that way I only need one board and I predrilled all of the holes to make it go faster. Some pallets don't have any bottom boards that run parallel to the upper boards and if doesn't, just use your 2x or a piece of plywood and do the same as above. I hope this will help those who prefer to use the whole board and not just cut them up, especially if they're newer pallets. Thank you and I hope that this being my first Instructables I hope I made one that is understandable.

Step 1: How to Disassemble a Pallet Without a Saw.

Place the jack under the first board on the left side of the right cross member.

Step 2:

Place the jack under the first board on the left side of the middle cross member.

Step 3:

After removing the first 4 or 5 board's I decided I would try to make my first Instructables.

Step 4:

Turn the pallet over and take a 2x4 or 2x6 and place it parallel and below the the next 2 boards and drill 2 holes directly over the left and right cross members. Drill the holes slightly larger than the screws, this will prevent jacking between your 2x and the cross member.

Step 5:

I use a longer 2x6 so I can use it on multiple pallets and after the holes are drilled, I use Kreg washer head screws specifically designed not to split the wood.

Step 6:

Now that the 2x6 is screwed in below I can turn the pallet right side up and continue on with the same process of removing the upper boards.

Step 7:

Depending on the location and the number of bottom boards will dictate how many times you will need to move the 2x6. Some pallets don't have any bottom boards running parallel with the upper boards and because they're running perpendicular just use a large piece of plywood, that way you screw it down once and remove all of the upper boards. Don't forget to first turn the pallet over and remove the boards running perpendicular, that way you don't have to find a 2x6 once you've removed the upper boards.

Step 8:

After the last step you can usually just take the board and twist it off, if you can't just use the jack and place your boot or have a friend place their boot in the middle of the upper board and apply pressure as you're jacking. I know everyone out there isn't 6'3" and and some of you can't do both at the same time, that's why you need a friend to help you. It's not worth it to fall on a nail, or hit your head if you fall, please use some common sense.