Guides · handling
How to store cable reels
Checked 9 November 2026 — Store cable reels standing on their flanges, never lying flat, on timbers or pallets off the ground, chocked both sides, in rows by size with a lane for a forklift. Keep plywood reels under cover and steel reels apart. Stored that way, a nailed wood reel keeps its value for a season or more until pickup.
From the reel desk · Checked 9 November 2026
Storing reels, step by step
One. Pick firm, drained ground
Choose a spot that does not hold water after rain, with room for a flatbed and a forklift to reach the rows.
Two. Lay timbers
Put two timbers or a pallet under each reel's flanges, so the flange edges sit off the dirt and water can drain.
Three. Stand the reels up
Stand each reel on its flanges with the arbor hole level. Never lay a reel flat on one flange outdoors.
Four. Chock both sides
Wedge both sides of each reel, and both ends of each row, so nothing can roll.
Five. Sort into rows
Group by build and size. Steel and tagged returnable reels in their own row with serial numbers recorded; plywood under cover.
Six. Check after storms
Tip out water from drums that hold it, re-set chocks, and move any reel that has started to sink.
Why standing, not flat
A reel lying flat has one flange on the ground. Rain soaks into that flange from below, water pools on the top flange, and the drum fills. The bottom flange rots from its edge; the plies of a plywood flange lift. Standing on its flanges on timbers, a reel sheds water and dries in the sun. This is the single biggest difference between a reel that sells and a reel that gets recycled.
How long reels keep
- Nailed wood, standing on timbers: a season or more. It weathers grey, which AFL's program says is acceptable, but stays sound.
- Nailed wood, lying flat outdoors: months, then rot at the bottom flange.
- Plywood, outdoors: one wet winter can delaminate the flanges. Keep under cover.
- Plastic: brittle after a few summers of direct sun.
- Steel: keeps, but has a deadline. Southwire's reel charge is credited only within 12 months of shipment.
Sorting while you store
The work of a pickup is mostly sorting, and it is easiest when reels arrive. Keep rows for:
- Steel and tagged returnables, serial numbers logged.
- Sound nailed reels, grouped by size.
- Plywood reels, under cover.
- Broken reels and loose lagging.
- Plastic reels.
When a pickup comes, each row is already a line on the request.
Space and safety
Leave a lane wide enough for a forklift between rows and a clear path for a flatbed to the yard gate. Do not stack reels on top of each other outdoors; small reels can be stacked flat on pallets indoors, short term, shrink-wrapped. Large reels on a slope need chocks on the downhill side and a check after every storm.
Indoors
In a warehouse or a garage, small and plywood reels can be stored flat on pallets. Keep them off bare concrete if the floor sweats in summer.
Handling, in short
- Roll only on firm, level ground, pushing from behind the reel, and in the direction of any arrow painted on the flange.
- Chock both flanges every time a reel stands on its rims, front and back.
- Stay uphill. Nobody stands in the path a reel would take if it got away.
- Lift with forks long enough to reach under both flanges, or with a shaft through the arbor hole and a spreader bar so the slings clear the flanges.
- Never drop a reel off a tailgate or a dock edge. A cracked flange turns a reusable reel into scrap.
- Store on rims, on drained gravel or pavement, with walkways between rows. Lay small reels flat only where stacks stay square and low.
- Keep paper with steel. Serial numbers and invoices travel with any returnable reel until its maker has it back.
The details: moving reels, storing reels, readying a pickup.
What to put in a request
- Count and measure. Count the reels and measure the largest flange edge to edge across the face. A photo with the tape in it is better than a guess.
- Check the build. Nailed lumber, plywood sheet, steel or plastic. Look for a stencil or tag naming the maker and the reel number.
- Set aside steel and tagged returnables with their serial numbers. Those go back to the maker, not to the desk.
- Say where they stand: yard, dock, garage level, alley or curb, plus clearance, gate hours, badging or escort a driver needs.
- Say what loads them: forklift, pallet jack, loader, ramp, or only people. Reels over 42 inches weigh more than 100 lb empty.
- Say how often: one time, weekly, monthly or at each job close-out.
- Buying instead? Give the flange and height you want, how many, and how the reel gets from the truck to where it will sit.
- No form handy? Email info@dcwoodenspools.com with the same details and a few photos.
Sources
Each opened and read on 9 November 2026.
- AFL, Wood Reel Recycling Program: nailed wood only, no plywood; flanges at least 1½ in thick and 30 in across; 75% of staves; full truckloads; mainly East Coast and Midwest
- Southwire, Steel Reel Policy: steel reels carry a charge, credited if returned within 12 months of shipment