ScaFixShort answer
How many scaffold boards per bay?
The count follows from two widths: the bay's, between the inner and outer standards, and the board's. System makers publish their own combinations; for tube and fitting the timber board width does the arithmetic.
By Ole Emil Frikstad Urstad · How the numbers are computed ·
How many scaffold boards go in one bay?
It depends on the bay width and the board width. A 0.73 m Layher Allround bay takes 2 × 0.32 m steel decks or one 0.61 m deck (Layher, p. 19); HAKI Universal fits 3 aluminium planks of 230 mm into a 0.7 m bay; a UK tube-and-fitting lift is usually four or five 225 mm boards.
How many boards does each system lay across a bay?
Count the boards from the maker's own table where one exists. Layher prints one for every Allround bay width, and HAKI ties its plank count to the width. The figures below come from ScaFix's engine, which encodes those tables and draws the same boards in the 3D model; the access column is the bay with the ladder hatch.
Layher Allround (maker's table, U-ledger decks)
| Bay width | Plain deck (variant A) | Access bay (0.61 m access deck) |
|---|---|---|
| 0.73 m | 2 × 0.32 m | 0.61 m |
| 1.09 m | 3 × 0.32 m | 0.61 m + 0.32 m |
| 1.4 m | 4 × 0.32 m | 2 × 0.61 m |
Layher's example on the same page: a 1.09 m bay is covered with three 0.32 m decks (variant A) or one 0.61 m deck plus one 0.32 m deck (variant B).
HAKI Universal (aluminium plank 230 mm)
| Bay width | AL-plank 230 per bay and lift |
|---|---|
| 0.7 m | 3 |
| 0.77 m | 3 |
| 1.01 m | 4 |
| 1.25 m | 5 |
| 1.655 m | 7 |
The rule is as many whole 230 mm planks as fit the width; HAKI's own table lists 4 for 1,010 mm and 5 for 1,250 mm.
Other systems: ScaFix's packing rule
Where the engine holds no maker's table, it fills the bay with as few catalogue widths as fit, after 20 mm of edge clearance. These are planning counts, not the maker's word, so check the system's instructions before ordering:
| System | Width | Boards across the bay |
|---|---|---|
| Doka Ringlock | 0.73 m | 0.32 m + 2 × 0.19 m |
| ULMA BRIO | 0.7 m | 2 × 0.32 m |
| Hünnebeck MODEX | 0.82 m | 4 × 0.19 m |
| Plettac SL 70/100 | 0.73 m | 0.61 m |
| ALFIX facade | 0.73 m | 0.61 m |
| PERI UP Easy | 0.67 m | 0.61 m |
That way 81 of the 108 systems in the catalogue get a board-by-board count. The other 27, among them Jamax, HAKI Ram, Tube & fitting, Cuplock, Shoring / falsework, PERI UP, are drawn with their own deck recipe and listed as one deck unit per bay and lift.
How many boards does a UK tube-and-fitting lift take?
Usually four or five. A standard UK scaffold board is 225 mm wide, NASC's FAQs note, so a five-board lift is about 1.1 m of deck between the standards. Putlog scaffolds are set out for a platform four or five boards wide, and TG20:21 added tied independent scaffolds with up to three inside boards.
HSE's checks apply to every board:
- platforms fully boarded and wide enough for the work and for access, usually at least 600 mm;
- boards properly supported and not overhanging excessively, as a rule no more than four times the board's thickness;
- NASC recommends gaps between boards of no more than 25 mm, beside the 50 mm gap where standards pass through.
The tube and fitting quantities guide turns these widths into a full take-off.
How do you count the boards for a whole scaffold?
Multiply the boards per bay by the bays and by the decked lifts, then correct the access bays. In a Layher Allround bay of 0.73 m, the 0.61 m access deck replaces the 2 plain decks, so each lift with a ladder needs one access deck instead of 2 plain ones.
For 10 bays and 4 decked lifts with one ladder bay per lift, that is 2 × 9 × 4 = 72 plain decks plus 4 access decks. Corners and returns add bays of their own, which the corners guide counts.
Does the board length change the count?
Not the count across the bay, but the load it may carry. HAKI rates its aluminium planks by span: load class 6 up to 1,964 mm, class 5 at 2,500 mm and class 4 at 3,050 mm. A longer bay therefore needs the same number of planks yet allows a lighter working load, which matters for masonry work.
The classes are explained in scaffold load classes.
What does OSHA require of the boards?
Every working level must be fully planked or decked. Under 29 CFR 1926.451(b)(1) the gap between platform units, and between the platform and the uprights, may be no more than 1 inch (2.5 cm), and under (b)(2) each platform must be at least 18 inches (46 cm) wide, with stated exceptions.
Planning information, not structural approval. The deck configuration and its load class come from the system's instructions for assembly and use, a TG20:21 compliance sheet or a design, and a competent person inspects the platform before use.
Frequently asked questions
How wide is a scaffold board?
In the UK a standard timber scaffold board is 225 mm wide, as the NASC notes. System decks come in their own widths: Layher's are 0.19, 0.32 and 0.61 m, HAKI's aluminium plank is 230 mm.
How many boards is a five-board scaffold?
Five 225 mm boards side by side, about 1.1 m of platform between the standards. Four boards give about 0.9 m. Both clear HSE's usual 600 mm minimum width.
How many decks go in a Layher Allround bay?
In a 0.73 m bay, 2 × 0.32 m steel decks or one 0.61 m deck; in a 1.09 m bay three 0.32 m decks or 0.61 m + 0.32 m, from Layher's instructions, p. 19.
Can there be gaps between scaffold boards?
Only small ones. NASC recommends no more than 25 mm between boards, beside the 50 mm where standards pass through; OSHA allows at most 1 inch between platform units.
Sources
Primary sources used for this article, with the date each was read.
- Layher Allround Scaffolding, Instructions for Assembly and Use, edition 04.2018, p. 19 (U-ledger deck configuration, pdf) (read 25 October 2026)
- HAKI Universal user's manual, international version (© HAKI AB 2024), p. 29 Decking and load classes (pdf) (read 25 October 2026)
- NASC: FAQs (scaffold board width 225 mm, gaps between boards) (read 25 October 2026)
- HSE: Scaffolding (fully boarded platforms, 600 mm, board overhang) (read 25 October 2026)
- 29 CFR § 1926.451(b), Scaffold platform construction (eCFR) (read 25 October 2026)
- Scaffmag: Putlog scaffolds (platform four or five boards wide) (read 25 October 2026)
Try one week – €0.98See the demo house in 3DSee ScaFix
First week €0.98, then €9.98/week. Full Pro. Cancel anytime.