Which board do I need?
They all look similar on a pallet — the right choice depends on the job, the environment and whether it's structural.
Start with the board type.
Plywood
Birch, hardwood, softwood, marine and structural. Clean faces or hidden strength.
Chipboard (P5 TG4)
Moisture-resistant flooring chipboard, tongue-and-groove all round.
What each one is for.
Plywood — grades and uses
Grades describe the face quality (e.g. B/BB) and the bond. Birch ply gives clean faces and edges for visible joinery; softwood structural ply (Arauco) for hidden load-bearing use; hardwood ply for general building; marine ply for permanent damp and exterior, with a Class 3 (WBP) bond. Match the grade to whether the board is seen and whether it gets wet.
MDF — standard, MR and fire-rated
Standard MDF for dry interior joinery and paint-grade work. Moisture-resistant (MR) MDF for kitchens, bathrooms and humid areas. Fire-rated (Class 0) MDF where surface spread-of-flame is specified. MDF machines and paints beautifully but is not structural.
OSB3 — structural and moisture-resistant
Load-bearing oriented strand board rated for humid conditions — flooring, roofing, wall sheathing and site hoarding. OSB3 is the moisture-resistant structural grade; OSB2 is interior/dry use only.
Chipboard — P5 TG4 flooring
P5 moisture-resistant flooring chipboard with tongue-and-groove (TG4) edges on all four sides, for fast, gap-free floor decks. Resists site humidity but isn't for permanent wet exposure.
Doorblanks — solid and hollow-core
FSC-certified door blanks in solid and hollow-core constructions, ready to cut to size for doors, linings and panels.
Shopping by performance? Try Shop by Job
If you know what the board has to do rather than what it's called, browse by job: Fire-Rated, Moisture & Marine, Structural, Decorative Faced, Lightweight and FSC Certified.
Common questions.
MR MDF vs marine ply — what's the difference?
MR MDF resists interior humidity (kitchens, bathrooms) but isn't waterproof and isn't structural. Marine ply is a structural plywood with a Class 3 (WBP) bond built for permanent damp and exterior exposure. Use MR MDF for paint-grade interior, marine ply for structural or wet.
Can I use OSB3 for flooring?
Yes — OSB3 is widely used for structural floor decks. For a finished deck with locating joints, P5 TG4 chipboard is the dedicated flooring board.
What board should I use in a wet area?
For interior humidity, MR MDF or a moisture-resistant board. For permanent damp or exterior, marine ply or an exterior-grade structural ply. Tell us the exposure and we'll point you right.
What does Class 0 / fire-rated mean?
Class 0 describes a surface spread-of-flame performance to BS 476. Our fire-rated ply and MDF carry it for projects where fire performance is specified.
Tell us the job and we'll recommend the board, grade and thickness.
Real product knowledge on the phone — no guesswork.