Wall Panel 87D Dark Brown: fitting it upright or lengthways

Every decision about the Wall Panel 87D in dark brown starts with one number: the board is 290cm long. Six come in a pack, they interlock along their edges, and the listing quotes 2.35m² of coverage per pack once they are fitted together. Whether you run that 290cm up the wall or across it changes the cut list, the joint positions and sometimes the number of packs.

The one length you are planning around

At 290cm the board clears a standard storey height with a little to spare, and falls short of most garden walls measured end to end. So vertical fitting usually means one board per column with a trim at top and bottom, while horizontal fitting usually means a joint somewhere along every row. Neither is wrong. They just put the cuts in different places.

Running them upright

• Measure the height at both ends of the wall and in the middle. Cut each board to the shortest reading and let the trim absorb the difference.
• Divide the wall width by 13.5cm, the fitted width of one board, for the number of boards. Divide that by six for the number of packs, and round up.
• Water runs down a vertical board rather than standing on a horizontal edge, which is why upright is the common choice outside. The listing makes no drainage claim either way, so treat that as a fitting judgement and not a published feature.

Running them lengthways

• Work out where the 290cm joints land before you cut anything, and stagger them from row to row rather than stacking them in one vertical line.
• A wall over 290cm wide needs a joint on every row. Decide whether you want it hidden at one end or centred deliberately.
• The rows stack at 13.5cm each once interlocked, so a wall 2m high wants roughly 15 rows.

Cuts, offcuts and what to keep

The listing gives the loose board as 14.7 x 290 x 2cm and the fitted board as 13.5 x 290 x 2cm. The difference is the interlock. Cut with the fitted figure in your head and the loose one only for the two boards at either end of a run, where one edge sits open. Keep every offcut longer than about 30cm until the job is signed off: cladding around a meter box or a tap almost always needs a short piece you would otherwise have thrown out.

What the listing does not settle

It describes the panels as UV resistant and does not state a fixing method, a batten spacing, or what screws to use, and it gives no weight for a pack. If you are fixing to anything other than solid masonry, those are questions for the shop before you order rather than after the pallet arrives. The 87D description also names two trims, the 73/83 Trim in 290cm and the 84 Trim in 240cm; the 73/83 Trim is the one whose finish list names a D Dark Brown fitting panels 73D, 83D and 87D.

If you want the same profile in a lighter tone, the 87F in khaki measures identically, and the wider 21cm boards in the outdoor wall panel range are worth a look if your wall is large and you would rather fit fewer pieces. Once the direction is decided, the 87D dark brown cladding panel page has the photographs and the full listing.