Battery Rescue operates a used lead acid battery collection service in Perth, Western Australia

At Battery Rescue of Perth, Australia, we run a used battery collection service, built around providing customers with specially-designed returnable plastic containers for transporting and storing used lead acid batteries (ULABs). When a container fills up, we swap it out for an empty one. This service is a safer, greener, and more convenient method for battery transport and storage (BTS).

In 2020, we deployed several Dolav ACE box pallets to complement our fleet of BTS containers. Dolav’s box pallets were modified, adding a Snap-Flat over centre latch and two stud bolts to the lid, to help secure it in outdoor settings and during transport.

Thanks to their affordability, Dolav’s box pallets provided an alternative for our low-volume customers, where our more expensive BTS containers meant insufficient return for us. They were perfect for customers seeking higher returns on their batteries, and for collecting small to medium ULABs.

Dolav’s box pallets have proven to be robust and easy to work with. While they do not have the ergonomic front load capability of a BTS container when it comes to large, heavy ULABs, they are a major improvement over the de facto industry standard of wood box pallets. Here are some of their advantages:

Transport Safety

With wood box pallets, packaging requirements and regulations can be complex, especially when shipping differently-sized batteries. In the absence of proper staff, training, tools, and materials, shipments are often unsafe and uncompliant.

Provided an adequately secured lid, a plastic box pallet provides a better and easier means of securing batteries during transport.

Better Storage

Unlike wood, a plastic battery box pallet will capture any acid leak, and offers more convenient options for meeting Dangerous Goods and Global Harmonisation System (GHS) label requirements.

Additionally, with a suitably tightened lid, the plastic box pallet is a safer method of securing batteries and preventing accidents in outdoor storage – a common requirement in workshops with limited space.

Lower Environmental Impact

Acid leaks are a common occurrence in handling damaged and old ULABs. Battery acid is hazardous to humans and the environment, containing high levels of entrained lead and other toxic heavy metals.

Wood box pallets are inadequate for capturing acid leaks, and become unserviceable after just a few uses. This, in addition to the plastic strapping and wrapping required, is a major source of waste. In contrast, a heavy duty plastic box pallet is designed to be reused many times, and will ensure zero leakage en route to the recycling facility.

Simpler Packaging Requirements

Provided a few simple precautions are observed, a plastic box pallet makes it much easier to stack and prepare batteries for road or rail transport.

Using a suitably secured lid enables to prevent any loss of contents, and fully meet the requirements of the Australian Code for the Transportation of Dangerous Goods by Road and Rail (ADGC).

Another requirement is to prevent the risk of fire due to short circuits. For this, we recommend stacking batteries upright and snugly together to prevent excessive movement during transport. Subsequent layers of batteries can be stacked directly on top of the underlying batteries, provided the batteries’ outer casing is made of polypropylene (plastic not metal).

Easier Regulatory Compliance

With no need for an operator to wrap and strap ULABs onto a wooden pallet, and simpler transport and storage procedures, a Dolav plastic battery box pallet or a UNISEG BTS container make it easier to meet all relevant environmental, safety, and transport regulations.