Recycled Plastic ‘Wood’ Lumber Planks
Our Recycled plastic ‘wooden’ lumber planks and posts provide a sustainable and zero-maintenance alternative to timber for a variety of uses, particularly in challenging weather conditions.
Recycled Plastic Lumber
Our Lumber is Maintenance-free with a 25 year guarantee:
Will not rot, split or splinter and can be worked like wood.
Recycled plastic lumber planks are the basic material from which much of the British Recycled Plastic range is made.
Designed as an alternative to traditional materials like wood, concrete and metals, recycled plastic planks allow for the easy and quick construction of fences, platforms, fishing pegs, revetments, boardwalks, steps, pontoons and many other uses.
It is particularly suitable for areas subject to flooding or standing water as our recycled plastic will never rot.
Plastic Wood Boards, Planks & Posts
British Recycled Plastic Lumber is available in an extensive range of sizes and shapes (square & rectangular) along with decking boards and other profiles designed for civil engineering. Please contact our friendly customer team for more support.
Here’s an example of a cutting list:
- 24no. RPL004 BLK @1200mm
- 16no. RPL001 BLK @600mm
Square Posts
RPL100 – Square Profile 38mm x 38mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 300 on 3 pallet spaces 3.91kg
RPL001 – Square Profile 50mm x 50mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 300 on 3 pallet spaces 6.77kg
RPL003 – Square Profile 75mm x 75mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 100 on 3 pallet spaces 15.5kg
RPL004 – Square Profile 80mm x 80mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 100 on 3 pallet spaces 17.41kg
RPL005 – Square Profile 100mm x 100mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 75 on 3 pallet spaces 27.09kg
Rectangular Planks
RPL005 V CUT – Square Profile 100mm x 100mm x 1500mm with V- CUT Ends Black or Brown 75 on 2 pallet spaces 27.09kg
RPL017 – Rectangle Profile 100mm x 20mm x 1800mm Black or Brown 300 on 2 pallet spaces 3.68kg
RPL0171 – Rectangle Profile 100mm x 20mm x 1200mm Black or Brown 300 on 1 pallet space 2.45kg
RPL018 – Rectangle Profile 100mm x 30mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 200 on 3 pallet spaces 8.13kg
RPL020 – Rectangle Profile 100mm x 40mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 200 on 3 pallet spaces 10.84kg
RPL022 – Rectangle Profile 100mm x 50mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 150 on 3 pallet spaces 13.54kg
RPL023 – Rectangle Profile 120mm x 50mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 120 on 3 pallet spaces 16.25kg
RPL019 – Rectangle Profile 150mm x 30mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 150 on 3 pallet spaces 12.19kg
RPL024 – Rectangle Profile 150mm x 75mm x 3100mm Black or Brown 50 on 3 pallet spaces 30.49kg
RPLCOL02BLUE – Rectangle profile 18mm x 140mm x 3200mm Blue 200 on 3 pallet spaces 5.64kg
RPLCOL02LIME – Rectangle profile 18mm x 140mm x 3200mm Forest 200 on 3 pallet spaces 5.64kg
RPLCOL02RED – Rectangle profile 18mm x 140mm x 3200mm Red 200 on 3 pallet spaces 5.64kg
RPLCOLBLUE – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Blue 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
RPLCOLFOREST – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Forest Green 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
RPLCOLLIME – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Lime 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
RPLCOLORANGE – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Orange 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
RPLCOLPINK – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Pink 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
RPLCOLPURPLE – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Purple 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
RPLCOLRED – Rectangle profile 38mm x 90mm x 3200mm Red 200 on 3 pallet spaces 15.90kg
Decking
DECK001 Decking 150mm x 40 x 3150mm Black 120 on 3 pallet spaces 16.22kg
Please note: It is important to understand, that while recycled plastic planks and posts can be used as alternatives to wood, steel and concrete for many applications, they should not always be treated as like-for-like replacements. They have different mechanical properties, and considerations should be taken for things like spans and for thermal movement.
Recycled Plastic Lumber is an excellent material, so please familiarise yourself with the downloadable sheets below and, if in any doubt whatsoever, ask for a sample, call us or send us an email. We’d be delighted to offer you some guidance regarding your project, although, ultimately it’s your responsibility and only you can decide if this is the right material for you.
Technical Information Overview for Recycled Plastic Planks and Posts
Expansion
The lower the temperature during installation, the more the planks or posts may expand.
British Recycled Plastic has an average linear expansion of 0.109mm/m/°C.
It is vital to calculate the maximum expansion/contraction of the boards in order to establish correct expansion/ contraction gaps.
Calculation example: Installation of 3.1m decking at a temp of 15°C Max.
Temperature expected 40°C
Temperature at Installation 15°C
Temperature difference 25°C
Interval = 0.109mm/m/°C.
Calculation: 0.109mm x 3.1m x 25°C = 8.44mm
Flexibility
Recycled plastic is more flexible than wood or metal.
All product and structure designs facilitate this technical characteristic (e.g. maximum distance between fence posts), furthermore, all of our products are supplied with installation or fabrication recommendations.
Material Structure
British Recycled Plastic planks and posts bear a non-porous surface resembling timber grain and a honeycomb core. The internal air pockets (caused by evaporation of surface moisture from the ground waste plastic feedstock) may be visible when the end of the profile is cut.
Bolts and Screws
We recommend that all fixings are made from stainless steel/brass or are plated, to retain the integrity, long life, rot free, maintenance free, quality of the final product.
When bolting or screwing profiles together, the pilot hole must be larger than the bolt.
Elongated slots are recommended to facilitate temperature related expansion/contraction of the material, particularly on runs of fencing.
Impact
Use of a ram or protective sleeve is recommended if profiles are hammered mechanically into the ground – it will prevent potential damage to the product.
Storage
Direct sunlight may affect profile alignment and cause profile distortion.
To prevent planks and posts bowing, profiles should be stored on a flat surface, strapped in batches.
Technical Information about ordering British Recycled Plastic Lumber
We can provide lumber posts, planks and boards to you in full lengths of 3100mm, or we can cut it to your requirements.
Before you request a quote, please read the following guidance notes to help you find the easiest and most economical way to have your order transported.
There are four main considerations:
Speed of shipping: Lumber purchased in full lengths will generally be dispatched the fastest, as it doesn’t need to pass through our workshop. However, it will occupy three pallets-worth of space in a wagon at a cost of around £60 per pallet space. The lead time for cut lumber varies according to the volume of work we have passing through our workshop. As such, if you’re working to a tight schedule, we’d recommend giving the office a call to check on timescales.
Access: If you have restricted access to your property and will be unable to accept delivery by articulated truck, then your delivery can be made in a smaller vehicle. This smaller truck will be around the same size as a small bin lorry. Such vehicles can only offload via a tail-lift, so you must ensure that no item on your order exceeds 2000mm in length (see notes on offloading).
Cost: As mentioned above, the more pallet spaces your order occupies, the more your delivery will cost. Planning your project and carefully considering the lengths of lumber you work with can make considerable savings.
1200mm – 1 pallet space
2400mm – 2 pallet spaces
3600mm – 3 pallet spaces
Offloading: The maximum length which can fit on a tail-lift is 2000mm. If there is one piece of lumber on your order which exceeds 2000mm, you will be responsible for offloading the entire order yourself, via the curtain-side of the vehicle. Offloading will require either the use of a forklift, or manual “handballing”. If you wish to handball, please note that you will not be permitted access to the flatbed of the vehicle and you will need to offload from ground level. Due to drivers’ time constraints, two able-bodied people are required for every 50 pieces of lumber in an order.
The golden rule for the most economical and easy-to-handle delivery is this – keep all of your lengths at 1200mm or less, wherever possible. If you do this, you’ll only pay for one pallet space (weight-dependent), your order can be tail-lifted to the ground and it’ll fit in a small truck. That’s why we designed our raised bed kits around 1000mm panels.
In order to provide you with a quote for cut lumber, we will need a cutting list with measurements in metric units.
We operate rather like a timber yard, so will need a code, a quantity and lengths. We regret that we are not able to design on your behalf, or to interpret sketches, technical drawings, photographs or written descriptions.
Delivery information for lumber. Please contact our office for more information on 01422 419 555
“Really impressed by both the recycled plastic products, and the service given by the staff. Orders are gratefully received, quickly processed, and a firm delivery date is given. Absolutely no hesitation in recommending British Recycled Plastic for recycled plastic lumber. Just remember to read and understand the FAQs (the products, in some ways, are different to wood).”
British Recycled Plastic Lumber Case Study Videos
Recycled Lumber at Accrington Woodland Nature Reserve
Turning Plastic Waste Into Recycled Plastic Lumber
Recycled Lumber Decking Transforms Boat Club
What Can You Make With Recycled Plastic Lumber?
What Are The Benefits of Recycled Plastic Lumber?
Plastic Lumber -From From Waste To Wonderful
British Recycled Plastic Lumber Case Studies
Check out our lumber case studies from organisations such as Trentham Boat Club & Friends of The Beck in Driffield:
British Recycled Plastic Lumber FAQ’s
We would strongly recommend using stainless steel bolts and screws for any recycled plastic structure, whether boardwalks, platforms or anything else, otherwise the fixings will need replacing long before the planks, rails and posts
We’d expect it to last several decades, probably 40-75 years if you build it well.
It is difficult and can be frustrating. We always advise drilling a pilot hole.
The grooves on the surface should always be laid across the direction that people will walk. Where used over water, the grooves should always be parallel to the bank
500mm centres are fine
Allowing for a 10mm gap between boards, each decking plank can be roughly counted as half a square metre.
Yes, we can cut your material to your specified sizes for a small charge (see price list).
We strongly recommend using 100x100mm posts (RPL005) spaced at a maximum of 1.5 metres apart, centre to centre.
In many scenarios, recycled plastic lumber can be worked like hardwood, however it is worth noting that it should never be cut lengthwise. This is to do with differing tensions between the “skin” of the recycled plastic and the inside. Nor should deep notches over 50% of the width of the plank be cut into it. Cutting a notch into a lumber plank weakens it as would be the case with timber. Therefore if notched planks are integral to your design, we suggest this is only as part of a finished product which remains static, ie. not something which is regularly moved or dismantled.
It can be cut and drilled like hardwood, but please be aware that this means you will go through blades and drill bits more quickly than if you were working with treated pine.
Recycled plastic boardwalk parts should always be stored laid flat on delivery, until you assemble them.
I’m afraid we don’t design and install ramps, platforms or boardwalks. We just manufacture and supply the boards.
Our recycled plastic does, however, cut and perform in a similar manner to hardwood planks, so the people you would normally use to make this if it were wood should be able to construct it from recycled plastic.
We would be happy to give you a price for the material and can cut it to size if you would like to supply a list of the planks you need. We are also happy to talk to any installers/joiners/volunteers on the phone if they would like additional support.
You will need to do your own workings out based on what you need using our price and product list for the sizes. Having said that, our team are available to offer lots of advice to help you make the move from wood to recycled plastic.
Recycled plastic boardwalk parts should always be stored laid flat on delivery, until you assemble them.
