Why the pallet decides the order
Heavy materials are sold loose but delivered in pallet units, and suppliers price a part pallet almost the same as a full one. That means the real question is rarely how much you need — it is how many pallets that rounds to, and whether the difference is worth adjusting the job.
The second constraint is weight. A pallet of cement or paving weighs about a tonne, which is the limit of what most lorry-mounted forklifts will place, and considerably more than any driveway surface enjoys.
Typical pallet quantities
| Material | Per pallet | Approx. weight | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cement, 25 kg bags | 40-56 bags | 1 000-1 400 kg | — |
| Ready-mix concrete, 25 kg bags | 40-48 bags | 1 000-1 200 kg | 0.5-0.6 m³ |
| Tile adhesive, 25 kg bags | 48-54 bags | 1 200-1 350 kg | — |
| Levelling compound, 20 kg bags | 48-60 bags | 960-1 200 kg | — |
| Porcelain tiles, 60 × 60 | 30-40 boxes | 1 100-1 400 kg | 43-58 m² |
| Laminate flooring | 40-60 packs | 700-1 000 kg | 88-132 m² |
| Concrete blocks, 100 mm | 72-96 blocks | 1 100-1 500 kg | 7-9 m² of wall |
| Facing bricks | 400-500 bricks | 1 400-1 700 kg | 6-8 m² of wall |
| Paving slabs, 600 × 600 | 20-40 slabs | 900-1 400 kg | 7-14 m² |
| Topsoil / aggregate, bulk bag | 1 bag | 800-1 000 kg | ~1 m³ |
| Plasterboard sheets | 50-60 sheets | 1 000-1 400 kg | 150-180 m² |
| Paint, 5 L tins | 96-120 tins | 600-750 kg | — |
Every one of these varies by supplier and by product density. Confirm the pallet quantity when ordering — it is the number that decides whether you are paying for one delivery or two.
What the lorry needs
- Width
- A standard rigid delivery lorry needs about 3 m of clear width and 4 m of height. Overhanging branches and narrow gateposts are the two things people forget, and the driver will not risk either.
- Firm, level ground
- A lorry-mounted forklift needs solid ground to place a pallet. It will not go onto soft lawn, gravel over soft ground, or a slope. In practice this means most deliveries land on the drive or at the kerb.
- Kerbside delivery
- The default for most suppliers unless you pay for more. It means exactly that: the pallet is placed at the edge of the public highway and becomes your problem, including moving it before it obstructs anyone.
- Timed or booked slots
- Usually an extra charge. Worth it if you cannot be present all day, because a failed delivery is normally charged for and rescheduled a week out.
- Pallet return
- Some suppliers charge a deposit and collect; many do not take them back at all. Ask before you have six pallets in a garden you cannot dispose of.
Planning the order around the constraint
- Work out the quantity first, then look at the pallet break. If you need 44 bags and a pallet is 48, take the full pallet — the four spare bags cost less than a second delivery.
- If you need 52 bags against a 48-bag pallet, look hard at whether the design can lose four bags. One bag over a pallet break is the worst place to be.
- Order heavy materials for the beginning of the job, not all at once. Cement absorbs moisture and a pallet standing in a garden for six weeks is partly landfill.
- Check the delivery date against when you can actually move it. A tonne of blocks on a driveway blocks the driveway.
- Photograph the access before ordering if you are unsure. Most suppliers will tell you honestly whether their vehicle fits.
- Have somewhere flat and hard identified before the lorry arrives, and something to cover the pallet with. Shrink wrap is not weatherproof for long.
A worked example
A patio, 5 × 4 m, in 600 × 600 slabs, on a 100 mm compacted sub-base with a 40 mm bedding layer.
slabs = 20 m² ÷ 0.36 = 55.6 → 56 + 10% waste = 62 slabs
at 30 slabs per pallet = 2.1 → 3 pallets
sub-base = 20 × 0.10 × 1.2 compaction = 2.4 m³ ≈ 3 bulk bags
bedding sand = 20 × 0.04 × 1.2 = 1.0 m³ ≈ 1 bulk bag
Three pallets of slabs and four bulk bags: roughly seven tonnes arriving on one lorry, needing about 8 m² of firm ground to stand on. Note the slab pallet break — 62 slabs against 30 per pallet means the third pallet carries just two slabs you need. Ordering 60 and accepting 8% waste instead of 10% saves an entire pallet, and on a simple rectangular patio 8% is defensible.
That is the whole point of thinking about pallets: the arithmetic said 62 slabs, and the delivery said the real choice was 60 or 90.
On the day
- Be there. Deliveries left unattended get placed wherever is convenient for the driver.
- Check the delivery note against what is on the lorry before signing. Once signed, shortages are your word against theirs.
- Inspect for breakage, especially tiles and slabs. Note damage on the paperwork at the point of delivery, not the next day.
- Check the batch or shade codes on tiles and bricks now. A second pallet from a different batch is visible in the finished work and must be rejected on arrival.
- Do not let a pallet sit on a block-paved drive under load. A tonne on four small feet marks pavers permanently.