Woodgrain Composite Wall Cladding 3.6m

Yes. Always fit it on battens with at least a 25 mm air gap behind the boards, open at the top and the bottom so air can move. Never fix boards straight onto the wall, and never seal the gap.

Battens always run at 90° to the boards, 500 mm apart, in one layer: upright battens for horizontal boards, level battens for vertical boards.

Yes, over any sound wall, because the battens do the work. On brick or block, use masonry fixings. On render or pebbledash, knock off anything loose and pack the battens so they're plumb. On a timber frame or garden room, fix through a breather membrane into the studs.

Some rooms in a house have fire rules for wall linings, so check with building control before cladding inside a living space. Call 0161 509 8637 and we'll talk your wall through.

Both work. Vertical makes a low building look taller; horizontal makes a long, low one look wider.

Along their length, each board's groove slots over the tongue of the one before, so the screws are hidden. On a long horizontal run, boards join end to end on a double batten, and we stagger the joins row to row. A vertical wall taller than 3.6 m gets a horizontal join with a batten behind it.

Often not, but not always. Cladding a house or extension needs permission in conservation areas, National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the Broads and World Heritage Sites; elsewhere it must look similar to your existing walls. Garden rooms have no such rule. Re-cladding a quarter or more of a house wall usually needs Building Regulations approval.

Guidance for England; check with your local authority.

Building Regulations guidance expects a wall less than 1 m from a boundary to have an outer surface of Class B-s3,d2 or better, on a fire-resisting wall. Woodgrain and Smooth are Class D, so they don't meet that on their own. Check with building control before you order; rules differ in Scotland.

Like any material left in direct sun, it can weather a little over the years. The 25-year warranty covers excessive fading. Order samples and look at them outside before you choose.

Cut it with an ordinary fine-tooth saw, outside, with a mask and glasses. Ripping a board lengthways removes its tongue, so the last board is screwed through its face into the battens and the cut edge finished with edging trim.

10 mm at the ground and 5 mm to every trim, with at least a 25 mm air gap behind the boards, open at the top and the bottom.

Wash it once a year with water, a little washing-up liquid and a soft brush. Don't use a pressure washer. It can't be painted.

Yes for feature walls, garden walls and single-storey garden rooms, if you're handy with a drill, a level and a saw. You'll want two people for 3.6 m boards. Anything needing scaffolding is usually a builder's job.

No. Timber costs less to buy. You're paying for cladding you fit once and leave alone: no oiling, staining or painting.