Wall Panel 81D Dark Grey: thickness, sockets and trims

Panelling jobs rarely go wrong on the panel. They go wrong at the socket, the architrave and the skirting, because nobody added the thickness of the panel to the drawing. Wall Panel 81D is listed at 15 x 240 x 1.8cm per piece, sixteen pieces per pack, in a dark grey PVC wood-effect finish covering 5.76m² per pack. Start with the photographs on the Wall Panel 81D Dark Grey Seamless pack page, then read the next section before you order anything.

The 1.8cm that changes the detailing

Every panelled wall moves forward by the thickness of the panel. At 1.8cm that is enough to matter in five places:

• Sockets and switches. The faceplate has to finish on the new wall face. Have an electrician confirm the existing box depth and what extension is needed. It is the detail people leave until the panels are already cut.
• Door architraves. The panel will stand proud of the architrave unless you plan for it. Either stop the panel short with a trim, or have the architrave packed out.
• Window reveals. Decide whether the panel returns into the reveal or stops at the edge, and how that edge is finished.
• Skirting and coving. Remove and refit over the panel, or scribe the panel to it. Choose before the first piece goes up.
• Radiators, poles and brackets. Fixings now sit 1.8cm further out. Check valve clearances and bracket depths.

None of this is difficult. All of it is easier to decide on paper than halfway along the wall.

Pack, coverage and the pack count

Sixteen pieces at 15cm wide give 240cm of wall width, and each piece is 240cm long, which is where the 5.76m² comes from. Divide the wall width in metres by 2.4 and round up, or count in pieces at 15cm each if the wall has returns and recesses. Read 240cm as the length and 1.8cm as the thickness, leaving 15cm as the face width, and confirm that with us before cutting.

Trim, fixing and finishing the edges

The listing names one finishing piece, the Wall Panel 81 Trim - 240cm, and it is a separate order from the panels. On a dark wall the edge detail shows more than it does on a pale one, so work out your external corners, internal corners and exposed top edge now and put the trim on the same order.

No fixing method is given on the panel listing. Adhesive for Wall Panels is listed separately in the same range, so tell us whether you are fixing to plaster, plasterboard, tile or batten and we will confirm what suits the wall rather than guessing at it.

What the listing states, and what it does not

Stated: PVC with a wood-effect finish in dark grey, sixteen pieces per pack, 15 x 240 x 1.8cm each, 5.76m² of coverage, and consistent colouration across the pieces. That last point is what the word seamless means here, and it is about colour matching from piece to piece rather than a wall with no joints. The listing suggests the panel for modern homes and commercial interiors.

Not stated, and worth asking about: the joint profile, a fire classification, a cleaning method, a grey colour reference and whether the finish is matt or satin. A dark grey will also show dust along a horizontal trim more readily than a pale one, which is a reason to think about where the panel stops in a hallway or a kitchen. If the wall has to meet a written specification, ask us for the supplier's documentation before you buy.

Lighter and darker in the same system

The size, pack and coverage are the same across the finishes, so none of the planning changes if you switch colour. Wall Panel 81C Light Grey is the pale version for a room that needs the light kept in, and Wall Panel 81E Black takes the same panel to black. The rest of the wall options sit in Slat & Acoustic Panels.

Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond. Once the sockets and the skirting are decided, order the Wall Panel 81D Dark Grey Seamless pack, or send us the wall details and we will work out the packs, the trim and the fixing with you.