How to lay WPC decking: tiles or boards
Updated: October 2026
You have click tiles or composite boards, and one phrase covers two jobs. How to lay WPC decking depends on which is in the boot. Tiles click onto a flat base. Boards need that board’s joist chart, which the six amazon.co.uk pages in the [WPC decking comparison](/hub/fencing-and-wire/wpc-decking) do not include. This page is the method. Product ranking stays elsewhere. Products Compared used listings from 15 October 2026 and public guides as examples only. We did not lay these packs. A qualifying purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
You have click tiles or composite boards, and one phrase covers two jobs. How to lay WPC decking depends on which is in the boot. Tiles click onto a flat base.
You have click tiles or composite boards, and one phrase covers two jobs. How to lay WPC decking depends on which is in the boot. Tiles click onto a flat base. Boards need that board’s joist chart, which the six amazon.co.uk pages in the WPC decking comparison do not include. This page is the method. Product ranking stays elsewhere. Products Compared used listings from 15 October 2026 and public guides as examples only. We did not lay these packs. A qualifying purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Fitting | Base | Cutting | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  VOUNOT VOUNOT WPC tiles, 11 wood | Click-fit, no glue or screws | Needs a properly flat surface | Listing says they can be cut | 5.6 | about £32.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  VOUNOT VOUNOT WPC tiles, 11 grey | Click-fit, no glue or screws | Needs a properly flat surface | Listing says they can be cut | 5.5 | about £32.99 | View offer |
| Preis-Tipp |  VOUNOT VOUNOT WPC tiles, 16 brown | Click-fit, no glue or screws | Needs a properly flat surface | Listing says they can be cut | 4.9 | about £42.99 | View offer |
On this page
Two jobs, not one set of steps
The VOUNOT sets are a click cover: no glue, no screws, and they can be cut. A platform with feet is a third object. None of the platform foot claims is a tile sequence or a joist chart.
Boards fix to joists with that board’s clips. UK guides often use about 300 mm centres, and some brands about 400 mm. Those are examples, not the spacing for these tiles. If the listing gives two sizes, stop before the saw. The spa deck says 33 x 33 in and also 10 x 10 x 10 mm. The brown pack says sixteen tiles and 1.0 square metre.
Click tiles on a flat base
Sweep the slab first. Grit under a 30 cm tile rocks a corner, and a rocking corner opens a click joint. Lay the VOUNOT tiles only on a firm, flat, clean, draining surface: sound concrete, sound paving, or an existing deck. Grass, soil and loose gravel are the wrong base. No base layer is specified, so do not invent a membrane stack and call it the manufacturer’s method. Do not cover a gully or a balcony outlet. Leave a gap at walls. These listings do not state the millimetres, so do not invent one and treat it as a VOUNOT rule.
A review says the tiles come undone unless the surface is properly flat. Rocking slabs are a stop, not a heavier hammer. Cut last, and only once the listing gives one size.
Boards on a frame
Leave the tile method if you are holding board. Use that board’s clips, do not share one clip across two ends, and double the joist where boards meet. The TDCA says closer centres than timber are likely, and that WPC expands along its length. Why the movement belongs to the material is on WPC decking vs timber.
The published numbers disagree, and they are examples only. Trekker’s guide uses 300 mm centres, 250 mm on a diagonal, 6–8 mm at short ends and 10 mm at the perimeter. Talasey uses 300 mm and a fall away from the building. Other brands use about 400 mm. None of that is printed on these six listings. If your chart is missing, do not average 300 and 400. Stop. Close the expansion gap and the board has nowhere to move.
When you stop and hire
Stop if the deck is tied to the house, if someone could fall, if a hot tub will sit on it, or if the house is listed. A deck used with the dwelling, where the fall exceeds 600 mm, is inside the Building Regulations, and external balcony guarding in Approved Document K is 1100 mm. Tiles do not build that rail. The nation-by-nation height table is on the WPC decking buying guide. Do not guess the English 30 cm figure into Scotland.
A hot tub is the clearest hire point. The TDCA says a filled tub can weigh several tonnes and usually needs a structural engineer. The spa-deck line of 300 kg per square metre is not that design. Click tiles state no load.
Match the method to the object
If you are holding click tiles, sweep a firm flat slab, keep the outlet clear, and stop when the flags rock. If you are holding boards, follow that board’s chart and do not average two brand figures. If the listing gives two sizes, or a hot tub will sit on the deck, stop and hire before you cut.
Common questions
Can you lay these click tiles straight onto concrete?
Yes, if the concrete is firm, flat, clean and draining, and you are allowed to cover it. The VOUNOT pages say the tiles click without glue, screws or tools. Sweep first, keep the outlet clear, and leave a wall gap. The listings do not state that gap in millimetres, so do not invent one. A review says the tiles undo unless the surface is properly flat.
What happens if the slabs rock?
The click joints open. A review on the VOUNOT pages says the tiles come undone unless the surface is properly flat. Forcing the joint with a mallet does not level the slab. Relay the paving, or stop. Grass, soil and loose gravel are the wrong base, and no base layer is specified on the listing.
Do WPC boards use the same joist spacing as timber?
Not as a habit you can copy. The TDCA says closer centres than timber are likely, and the board expands along its length. Use that board’s chart. These six listings do not include one. A 300 mm figure from a Trekker or Talasey guide is an example for those boards, not a VOUNOT tile rule.
Why do UK guides say both 300 mm and 400 mm?
Because the chart belongs to the board. Trekker and Talasey examples use about 300 mm centres, with tighter spacing on a diagonal in the Trekker guide. Other brands use about 400 mm for some boards. Averaging the two is not a specification. If your bundle has no chart, stop rather than pick the wider number.
How big an expansion gap should you leave if the listing does not say?
Do not invent a single gap and call it universal. Board guides differ: examples include 6–8 mm at plank ends and 10 mm at the perimeter, and other guides say about 20 mm at walls. Tile listings in this set state no millimetre figure. If there is no guide, stop before you close the edge tight to a wall.
Can you put a hot tub on a click-tile pack or on the spa deck because it says 300 kg per square metre?
No. The tile packs state no load. The spa-deck sentence has no certificate in the file, and the page also states two sizes. A filled hot tub can weigh several tonnes. The TDCA treats that as a purpose-designed structure and a structural engineer’s job. A seller’s load line is not the design.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources for planning, guarding and the WPC decking standard. Listing prices and stars are from amazon.co.uk on 15 October 2026.
- Planning Portal — decking planning permission (England) (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- GOV.UK — permitted development rights for householders: technical guidance (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- GOV.WALES — planning permission for decking (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- mygov.scot — add decking to your house (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- Approved Document K — protection from falling, collision and impact (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- Dorset Council — when a deck is inside the Building Regulations (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- BSI BS EN 15534-4:2014 — WPC decking profiles and tiles (retrieved 15 October 2026)
- TDCA — what to know about composite WPC decking (retrieved 15 October 2026)