Wall Panel 87A Oak 03: 14.7cm on the panel, 13.5cm on the wall

Wall Panel 87A in Oak 03 is an interlocking outdoor composite panel, 290cm long, six to a pack. Unusually for this catalogue, its listing publishes two widths, and the difference between them is the most useful thing on the page.

14.7cm on the panel, 13.5cm on the wall

The listing gives 14.7 x 290 x 2cm per panel, then 13.5 x 290 x 2cm per fitted and interlocked panel. In other words the long edges lap into each other and you lose 1.2cm of face width at every joint. Coverage is quoted at 2.35m² per pack when fitted and interlocked, and six panels at 13.5cm by 290cm comes to 2.349m², so the published area is calculated on the fitted width, not the overall one.

That matters because a pack covers less wall than the panel sizes suggest. Six panels at 13.5cm is 81cm of width, so one pack gives you a strip less than a metre across by 290cm high. Count your panels at 13.5cm, not 14.7cm, or you will be short.

One line on the listing contradicts the others

The product name, the pieces line and the coverage figure all agree on six panels a pack. One sentence in the body text says the pack contains twelve. Six is what the arithmetic supports, since twelve interlocked panels would cover 4.70m² rather than the 2.35m² published, but it is worth confirming the pack quantity with the shop when you order rather than assuming either number. Mentioning it here is more use to you than quietly picking one.

Where 290cm is the right length

At 290cm these panels reach the height of most boundary walls and a good deal of house wall in a single piece, which means no horizontal joint at all on a typical garden elevation. That is the reason to choose this group over the shorter 240cm packs: you trade a wider pack coverage for an uninterrupted vertical line. If your wall is well under 240cm, you are cutting almost a metre off every panel and the shorter group is the better buy.

The interlock also fixes the panel spacing for you. There is no judgement call about the gap between panels, as there is with a butt-jointed board, so the run comes out even provided the first panel goes on plumb. Spend the time on that first panel.

The trims it names, and the finish

Two trims are listed against this panel: Wall Panel 73/83 Trim at 290cm, and Wall Panel 84 Trim at 240cm. Both are separate products and sit in outdoor trims and fittings. No corner piece is named, so if your panelling turns an external angle, ask the shop how that detail is handled before you order.

The listing describes wood grain texturing and calls the panels UV resistant, saying they hold colour and structural integrity under prolonged sun, without quoting a standard, a figure or a panel weight. Oak 03 is a colour name rather than a description, so judge the grain and the tone from the photographs on the 87A product page.

In the same group, Wall Panel 87B in Grey and Wall Panel 87D in Dark Brown are the alternative finishes, and Wall Panel 84A in Oak 03 carries the same colour name in the 240cm twelve-piece pack. The rest are under outdoor wall panels.

Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond it.