Free check · works on any brand

A label can say anything. A scale can’t.

Weigh a roll of stretch film and you can work out how thick it really is. Ours, someone else’s, it makes no difference. If the weight doesn’t match the label, you’ll see it here in about 30 seconds. No label at all? The weight and length alone give you the microns.

weight = width × length × thickness × 916 kg/m³

Check a roll now See our weights

Run the check

Know what the label says? Pop it in, then add what your scale says. Don’t know the thickness? Leave it blank and the weight and length will tell you. Kitchen, luggage or parcel scales are all fine.

A 400mm core usually weighs 0.25 to 0.40kg. If you can weigh an empty one, type that in and the answer gets sharper.

Scale readout

Should weigh

—kg

You weighed

—kg

Real thickness

—µ

Type in your scale reading

Until you do, the first screen shows what a roll with that label should weigh.

Check any roll in three steps

Nobody can see 23 microns by eye, which makes it the easiest number on a label to stretch. Weight is much harder to fool. Less plastic in the roll means a lighter roll, full stop.

  1. Weigh a roll

    Pop one on a kitchen, luggage or parcel scale. Leave the wrapper on and the core in, and note the reading in kilograms.

  2. Type in what the label says

    Width, length and microns. Got more than one supplier? Check each one.

  3. See what you’ve really got

    You’ll see how thick the film actually is, and how much of the film you paid for is in the roll.

Our numbers

We put the weight of every Hilux Poly roll on its product page, so you can check ours before you check anyone else’s. Same size, 400mm x 250m, same sums as the tool above.

RollFilm onlyCore (approx.)What your scale should say
17 micron, 400mm x 250m1.56kg0.32kg1.87kg
20 micron, 400mm x 250m1.83kg0.32kg2.15kg
23 micron, 400mm x 250m2.11kg0.32kg2.43kg

A roll labelled 23 micron that weighs 1.20kg has less than half the film of a proper 23 micron roll. The label is the only thing saying otherwise.

Where this can be a bit off

It’s an estimate, not a lab test, so here’s what can nudge the result.

The core

Cores weigh anywhere from about 0.25 to 0.40kg. If you can weigh an empty one, type it in and the answer gets sharper. We also allow a little give either way instead of judging on one exact number.

Winding and resin

Different resin blends and winding tension change the weight slightly, and black film is a touch denser. We call anything within about 5% of the film weight a match.

Quick questions

Do I have to open the roll?
No. Weigh it as it is, wrapper and core included, and leave the core box ticked.
My roll’s heavier than expected. Is that bad?
Not usually. If it’s a bit heavy, the film is a bit thicker than labelled, which is the right way round to be wrong. Weigh the empty core to double-check.
Why 916 kg/m³?
That’s the density of the plastic stretch film is made from (0.916g per cubic centimetre). It’s the same whoever makes it, which is why weight can tell you thickness.
Can I check other sizes?
Yes. Just change the width and length (and the core weight if you know it). It works for any roll.

Weighed something that doesn’t add up?

Send us the numbers and we’ll check them against our own rolls. Or see what switching would actually cost you.

WhatsApp us your numbers Run the Switch Check Shop verified rolls

Spec check by Hilux Poly

Need Help?