Steel Section Quick Reference

The sizes that move out the gate most often. Phone or counter reference.

What each section is usually for

SHS — posts, uprights and light frames. Square tube takes load evenly from any direction, which is why it ends up under most patios and carports.

RHS — beams and spans. Rectangular tube is strong the tall way, so it goes across the opening rather than down into the ground.

Pipe — handrails, balustrades, sleeves, and anywhere a round profile is easier to grab or to clear. Sized by nominal bore, not by outside diameter.

Flat bar — straps, plates, gussets and base plates. The section that turns two other sections into a joint.

Round and square bar — solid stock for pins, shafts, posts, and decorative work where a hollow section would look wrong.

Finishes, one line each

Black — untreated mild steel. Cheapest, and fine indoors or under cover.

Painted — a primer coat. Survives storage and handling, still wants a proper finish coat.

Galvanised — hot-dip zinc. What to use outdoors, and what to use near the coast without thinking twice about it.

DuraGal — an in-line galvanised finish on the tube. Neater than hot-dip and easier to weld to, though the cut ends still want a cold-gal spray.

Before you ring

Have the size, the wall thickness and the quantity ready. Wall thickness is the number most often left off, and it changes both the price and whether the section actually does the job.

Don't see your size? We can source it — phone 07 5576 6037 or send the list through.