90 gauge stretch wrap

The buying guide puts 90 gauge at loads up to 2,600 pounds.¹ That is one step past the 80 gauge band, and it is where many docks land when 80 starts tearing on carton corners or the occasional heavy pallet goes out leaning. Drink cases, canned goods and boxed hardware are the sort of loads that end up here.

Toughness at an edge matters more than thickness alone, which is why 90 is worth asking for as blown film: blown resists puncture and holds irregular loads better than cast.²

If only a few loads need it, wrap those with an extra turn of 80 at the base and the top rather than buying everything at 90. If the loads pass 3,000 pounds, skip to 100: the chart lists no step between 2,600 and 3,000.¹ And if the trouble is a load sliding off its pallet, look at the base wraps before the gauge; see how to wrap a pallet. Back to 80 gauge.

A heavier hand roll takes more effort to stretch, and operators who tire tend to stop stretching it at all, which wastes the extra thickness. Two things help: a hand dispenser with a brake, which lets the operator set tension without gripping the roll, and blown film, whose cling holds the tail and the overlap even when the stretch is modest. Shorter rolls are lighter to carry if 1,500 feet is too heavy to walk round loads all shift.

On machines, 90 needs no special setup on most powered carriages, but check the pre-stretch setting: a heavier film at the same setting puts more force on light cartons at the top of a load.

Bottlers and canners shipping full pallets, distributors of motor oil and automotive fluids, paint and coatings makers, pet food and animal feed plants, and builders' merchants sending boxed tiles or fixings. Their loads are dense, often over a ton, and they travel by truck to customers who unload with forklifts and pallet jacks, sometimes roughly. A tougher wrap saves rewrapping at the receiving end and fewer claims for crushed or fallen cases.

A roll of thicker film covers fewer pallets, so plan for more roll changes.

Is 90 gauge harder to wrap by hand?

A little: thicker film takes more pull to stretch. If operators find it tiring, look at a blown 80 gauge roll first.

Do machine rolls come in 90 gauge?

Yes, in the usual 20 inch width, cast or blown. Check the carriage handles the heavier film.

Should I go to 90 for drink pallets?

Often, if they pass 2,400 pounds. Measure containment force on a few loads first.

How many top turns for a tall drink pallet?

Start with three at the top and measure. Tall, heavy stacks lose containment at the top first.