Tongue-and-groove wall paneling in ash and oak: profiles, coverage and install basics
2026-09-02 — Yachidamo team
Hardwood tongue-and-groove wall paneling is one of the highest-margin joinery finishes a builder can offer. It looks bespoke, installs faster than shiplap, and — done right — holds tolerances through three heating seasons. Done wrong, it buckles or opens gaps you can fit a coin through by February. Here is the buying and install brief we give every new stockist.
Profiles we cut
Three profiles cover almost every project we quote:
| Profile | Board width (visible) | Board thickness | Look |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classic V-groove | 96 mm | 15 mm | Sharp shadow line at each joint; formal panelled look |
| Micro V-groove | 96 mm | 15 mm | 1 mm shadow line only; contemporary |
| Bevelled (chamfer) | 120 mm | 18 mm | 5 mm chamfer on both edges; broad chalet feel |
Lengths: 1500 – 4200 mm in one-piece boards; end-matched (TnG on ends too) available at 20% premium for herringbone or offset patterns.
Coverage and waste
- 96 mm profile: covers approximately 10.4 lineal metres per m² of wall. Order 8–10% extra for cuts.
- 120 mm profile: covers approximately 8.3 lineal metres per m² of wall. Order 6–8% extra.
- Extra 15% for herringbone or diagonal patterns.
- Boards are packed in mixed lengths within a bundle; ask for a "long-only" pack (>2400 mm) if the design shows single-run walls.
Moisture and expansion
We ship at 8 ± 2% MC. That matches heated interiors in most of North America and Northern Europe at 40–50% RH. If the room will run at 60% RH or higher (a fireplace room, a subtropical climate), acclimatise the boards on-site for 5 days before installation. Two rules that avoid every complaint:
- Leave 3 mm expansion at every wall termination. Cover with a scotia or shadow-gap trim. Do not caulk directly to plaster.
- Do not fix through the face. Blind-nail through the tongue at 25° with 40 mm brads. Face-fixing locks the panel and cracks the finish across a full wall.
Install sequence, honest short version
- Fix 20 × 40 mm battens to the substrate at 400 mm centres, plumb and true. Skip this at your peril — no board is straight enough to correct a bowed wall.
- Lay out from the visible corner. Rip the first board so the last board is at least 40 mm wide.
- Start with the groove edge to the wall; blind-nail the tongue. Slide the next board home, tap with a scrap offcut, blind-nail.
- Break end joints with staggered pattern; no two consecutive rows within 300 mm of each other.
- Finish with hard-wax oil after installation, two coats, buffed. See the Manchurian ash tongue-and-groove project for a live install.
Species and finish choices
- Manchurian ash — pale straw, light figure. Reads modern under oil.
- Mongolian oak — warm honey, prominent ray flake on radial cuts. Reads traditional.
- Yellow birch — pale, almost white with primer + limed oil. Good for cabins and small rooms.
Species catalogues: ash, oak, birch. See the wall paneling product page for the full profile drawings.