What conventional HT requires
Conventional heat treatment requires a minimum temperature of 56°C for at least 30 continuous minutes throughout the wood profile, including its core. HT is the treatment code used for this process. A chamber air temperature or an informal claim that pallets have been “heated” is not a substitute for an approved treatment and marking process.
Buy the result, not a DIY process
For a purchasing team, the useful question is whether the supplied packaging has been treated and marked through the appropriate authorised system. Ask how the order will be identified and how the supplier handles a pallet with a missing or unreadable mark. Do not attempt to reproduce an official mark, add your own treatment code or assume that an ordinary drying oven establishes compliance.
Keep moisture requirements separate
A buyer may need both phytosanitary treatment and a specified moisture condition. Put both requirements on the enquiry. A temperature-and-time treatment specification is not a promise about the moisture percentage of the delivered load. If moisture matters to your product, agree how it is assessed, where readings are taken and what happens if the delivery is outside the agreed condition.
Plan treatment around your packing date
For time-critical exports, allow for specification, supply, any treatment arrangement and delivery before packing begins. Ask the supplier to confirm the actual lead time for your quantity and pallet construction. A last-minute switch of size or addition of timber spacers can change the packaging requirement. Include those components when the job is first reviewed.
Temperature inside the timber versus air temperature
The conventional HT schedule refers to the wood throughout its profile, including the core. An oven display or a photograph of a heated chamber does not establish what the coldest part of a particular timber load experienced. Approved operators work within their treatment and verification procedures. Buyers should ask for confirmation of compliant treatment and marking of the actual packaging rather than trying to infer compliance from equipment photographs.
Different treatment codes are not interchangeable descriptions
HT identifies conventional heat treatment. DH identifies dielectric heating; MB and SF identify different fumigation treatments in the international standard. A buyer asking for HT should not receive a different method without an agreed review of destination and customer requirements. Equally, a drying or moisture specification should be stated separately: heat treatment and low moisture are not synonyms.
A useful enquiry says whether a customer has explicitly prescribed a treatment method. The supplier can then check the request against available arrangements rather than assuming that any recognised code meets the customer’s contract.
Whole pallets, components and subsequent work
A treatment history for timber components does not give a warehouse unrestricted authority to assemble, repair and stamp packaging. The provider’s approved processes and marking responsibilities still matter. If a pallet is modified after treatment, refer the change to the authorised provider before using it for export.
This is particularly relevant to bespoke packing. Adding timber blocks to locate machinery feet, sawing a base shorter or replacing a damaged runner changes the item being shipped. Make the final construction part of the treatment enquiry from the outset.
What to ask when comparing treatment quotations
Ask what is being supplied, which treatment is included, who will provide the required marking and when the packaging will be ready for your packing operation. Clarify whether you are buying pallets, requesting a separate treatment service or asking for a complete packing assembly. Those are different scopes.
Describe quantity, timber dimensions, finished construction and any customer-specific documents. Availability of standalone treatment, collection arrangements and lead times must be confirmed; this website does not book a treatment slot or claim that Palletmove operates a treatment chamber.
Sources & further reading
Forestry Commission: wood packaging material for import and export (opens in a new tab)References reviewed 7 October 2026. Confirm the current rules for your shipment with the relevant authority or freight adviser.