Dimensions / Industrial & logistics / Pails / Steel pail
A steel pail is a UN 1A2 packaging, a removable-head steel drum. Uline’s 5 gallon UN pail, made by Cleveland Steel Container, is 13 1/2 in tall with a 12 in lid, weighs 4.85 lbs, is made of 24 gauge steel (0.019 in minimum) and is marked 1A2/Y2.2/100: liquids of packing groups II and III up to relative density 2.2, tested at 100 kPa. Its 16-lug cover is crimped on and can be used only once to keep the UN rating. Steel pails have no five-year limit, and European tinplate pails are 285 mm across at 20 litres.
| 5 gal steel pail: height; lid diameter (Uline S-7344) | Minimum wall; UN mark | Largest steel pail under UN rules; net mass |
|---|---|---|
| 13 1/2in12 in | 0.019in1A2/Y2.2/100 | 450L400 kg |
Sources: Uline, Cleveland Steel Container, RID 2025. Checked October 2026.
Uline’s 5 gallon UN steel pail, toluene and a pallet are filled in. Enter your pail’s mark, your load and your pallet; each check follows a rule or figure on this page.
Copy the mark on the pail. A solids mark such as 1H2/Y27/S gives the maximum gross mass in kg before the S; a liquids mark such as 1H2/Y1.5/30 gives the relative density (left off at 1.2 or less, so enter 0) and the test pressure in kPa. The top-load rating is on the maker’s sheet.
1A2/Y2.2/100 covers packing group II up to a relative density of 2.2; this liquid is 0.87. Keep its vapour pressure at 50 °C below 114.2 kPa absolute, four-sevenths of 100 + 100 kPa (RID 4.1.1.10).
Uline’s CSC-made pail, 1A2/Y2.2/100, and toluene (packing group II, relative density 0.87 from NIST) are filled in.
10 pails a layer in offset rows on 1219 × 1016 mm, and 4 layers of 343 mm under the 1778 mm limit: 40 pails, enough for 36.
The 12 in lug cover sets the footprint, 305 mm, and the pail stands 13 1/2 in tall.
With 4 layers a pallet, stacked 2 high, the bottom pail carries 7 pails of 19 kg: 133 kg, 412 kg under its 545 kg top-load rating. The upper pallet’s own weight is not counted.
Steel pail makers publish no top-load rating; CSC’s UN test report loads the bottom pail with 1201 lbs for a 3 m stack, used here.
Selling steel pails? Photograph the pail, mark its height, lid diameter, beads and UN mark in SizeMarker and send it with your quote.
Mark a photoMaker sheets and a UN test report first, then distributors. US pails in inches, European tinplate pails in millimetres.
| Pail | Height; diameter | Weight; steel | UN mark or certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uline S-7344, 5 galThis page | 13 1/2 in; lid 12 in, outside top 11 3/4 in | 4.85 lbs; 24 gauge cold-rolled | 1A2/Y2.2/100; rust inhibitor lining |
| Cleveland Steel Container 5 gal open headUN test report | 13.437 in; inside 11.25 in top, 10.5 in bottom | 4.80 lbs tare; 0.019 in minimum wall | 1A2/Y2.2/100/26/USA; maximum capacity 5.3 gal |
| Uline S-24962BL, 5 gal, linedDistributor | 13.4 in, 13 3/4 in with lid | 2.41 lbs; 28 gauge | Not UN rated; gold phenolic lining, pH 3.0 - 7.0 |
| Uline S-20030BL, 5 gal, unlinedDistributor | Same size | 2.64 lbs | Not FDA compliant |
| Emballator UN Pail Ø285, 20 l, 2 beadSweden, tinplate | 369 mm; 285 mm top, 270 mm bottom | 1 232 g | UN; 88 a EUR pallet |
| Emballator UN Pail Ø285, 20 l, 1 bead | 370 mm; 285 / 270 mm | 1 232 g | UN; 121 a EUR pallet |
| Emballator UN Pail Ø285, 10 l and 25 l | 207 mm and 460 mm; 285 / 270 mm | 843 g and 1 448 g | UN; 154 a pallet for the 10 l |
| Pirlo hobbock, 20 lAustria / Poland, tinplate | 390 mm; 265 mm bottom, 280 mm top | Tinplate | UN certification available; 140 or 198 a pallet |
| Pirlo hobbock, 20 l wide | 350 mm; 290 / 307 mm | Tinplate | UN certification available; 145 a pallet |
| Mauser steel open-head pails, 5 galMaker, pallet counts only | 108, 120, 132 or 156 a pallet | Steel | UN-certified and non-UN offered |
Sources: Uline · Cleveland Steel Container · Uline · Emballator · Pirlo · Mauser Packaging Solutions
RID 2025 (the same paragraphs as ADR and the UN Model Regulations) and 49 CFR.
| Rule | What it says |
|---|---|
| Why 1A2RID 1.2.1, 6.1.4.1.5 | A pail-shaped steel packaging is a drum; openings wider than 7 cm make it removable-head, 1A2 |
| Largest sizeRID 6.1.4.1; 49 CFR 178.504 | 450 litres; 400 kg net mass |
| Light-gauge steelRID 1.2.1, 6.1.4.22 | Walls under 0.5 mm may instead be approved as 0A2 with an RID/ADR mark: 40 litres and 50 kg at most, road, rail and inland waterway only |
| SeamsRID 6.1.4.1.2 | Mechanically seamed or welded at 40 litres of liquid or less; CSC uses an electric lap-welded side seam and a triple-seamed chime |
| Inside coatingRID 6.1.4.1.7 | Required where the steel is not compatible with the contents |
| Period of useRID 4.1.1.15 | The five-year limit covers plastic drums and jerricans only |
| Reuse in the US49 CFR 173.28 (b)(4) | Metal drums of 20 L need 0.63 mm, of 30 L 0.73 mm; a 0.019 in (0.48 mm) wall falls short |
| US dimensional standardISDI | ANSI MH2-2018 covers steel drums and pails of 5 to 58 gallon |
| German pail standardDIN | DIN 2004-1:1979-07 for tinplate pails and hobbocks is withdrawn |
Sources: RID 2025 · 49 CFR · Cleveland Steel Container · ISDI · DIN
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Lug coversUline; CSC | Lid can only be used once in order to meet UN rating (Uline); CSC’s lug covers are non re-sealable, its ring-seal cover is re-sealable |
| Heavy and light coversCSC | Heavy gauge 16 lug cover for UN pails, light gauge for non-UN pails |
| LiningsCSC | Red phenolic for pH 3.0–7.0, epoxy-phenolic for pH 7.0–9.0; a rust inhibitor is not a protective lining |
| SizesCSC; Emballator | Pail sizes vary by height only (CSC); every Emballator UN Pail is 285 mm across |
| Stack testCSC UN test report | 9 pails of 13.437 in make the 3 m (118.11 in) stack; test load 1201 lbs on the bottom pail |
| Loading filled pailsCSC loading drawing | No ear to ear placement, no ear to sidewall placement, all bail handles face inside |
| Offset rowsEmballator; our check | Every Emballator pallet count is a multiple of 11; 285 mm pails in offset rows on 800 × 1200 mm give 4 + 3 + 4 = 11 |
| In the check aboveOur calculation | 305 mm pails fit 10 a layer in offset rows on 1219 × 1016 mm; 4 layers of 343 mm under 1778 mm make 40 |
| Pallet and height limitCHEP; FedEx Express Freight | 1219 × 1016 × 141 mm (48 × 40 in); skids over 70 in (1778 mm) need prior approval |
| Toluene, UN 1294RID Table A; NIST | Packing group II; 871.53 kg/m3 at 15 °C, relative density 0.87 |
Sources: Uline · Cleveland Steel Container · Cleveland Steel Container · Emballator · Cleveland Steel Container · Emballator · CHEP (B4840A) · FedEx Freight · RID 2025 · NIST
Uline’s UN pail is 13 1/2 in tall with a 12 in lid and 11 3/4 in across the top outside; CSC’s test report gives 13.437 in tall and 11.25 in inside at the top. Non-UN lined pails are 13.4 in, 13 3/4 in with the lid.
1A2 is a removable-head steel drum; Y covers packing groups II and III; 2.2 is the highest relative density of liquid it was tested for; 100 is the test pressure in kPa. CSC’s full mark goes on with the year, 26, and USA.
Not on a UN pail: Uline says the crimped lug lid can only be used once to meet the UN rating, and CSC calls its lug covers non re-sealable. A ring-seal cover with a locking ring can be reclosed.
It depends on the product’s pH: CSC uses red phenolic for pH 3.0–7.0 and epoxy-phenolic for pH 7.0–9.0. A rust inhibitor only slows rust; it is not a protective lining.
Emballator’s 20 l UN pail is 285 mm across the top, 270 mm at the bottom and 369 or 370 mm tall, weighing 1 232 g; Pirlo’s is 280 mm at the top and 390 mm tall.
Buyers ask for the height and the lid diameter, the gauge, the empty weight, the UN mark and its density and pressure, the cover (lug, ring-seal), the lining for their product’s pH, the handle and the pallet pattern. Mark the real pail, its cover, beads and mark on your own photo in SizeMarker, as in the picture at the top, and send one product card for WhatsApp or WeChat.
