Formatubes in Victoria, New South Wales & Queensland
Australia’s most well-known product name, The Tubeworks, can happily say it’s a nationally preferred supplier of Formatube with over 14 diameters ranging from the small 150mm ID to the large 1200mm ID Formatube. Formatube is a cardboard tube specifically designed for builders to pour concrete columns above or below ground but also used to create a void in the ground from collapsible soil.
Formatubes
Formatube is a cost-effective method and easy-to-use product that is designed to stand upright, requiring minimal bracing when used as concrete formwork.
The outer surface of a Formatube is impregnated with a plastic coating for water resistance, whilst the inside is coated with an oil lining to prevent concrete from sticking to the Formatube, leaving a smooth, straight-lined concrete column. The Tubeworks currently holds over 700 lengths of Formatubes in our Melbourne plant, with stock lengths of 3 & 4 metres. However, if you are after a longer Formatube, we can join or make a Formatube to your length, with the largest Formatube being 11 metres long.
The Tubeworks designed a new way of creating a better finish on the inside of the Formatube, which we call a Plastitube.
Plastitubes
A Plastitube is where we insert a plastic lining into the inside of the Formatube to remove all spiral marks, leaving a nice Class 1/2 finish rather than the standard Class 2/3 finish a Formatube achieves. Plastitube isn’t a stock size, so please allow our team some time to cut the plastic and insert it into your column, as each diameter has a different cut and number of sheets.
If you require your Formatube to be trimmed down with a plastic liner already inserted, you must ensure you tape up the plastic back to the Formatube to avoid concrete flowing between the liner and the tube wall.
PINK & Odd shaped Columns
Pink column formwork tubes are designed to make concrete column pours faster, cleaner and more consistent on site, with options available for circular, square, rectangular, oval and custom-shaped profiles. They can be supplied in a wide range of standard diameters and dimensions, from smaller columns through to large-format commercial and civil applications, with different strength grades available to suit the height of the pour and project requirements. Custom sizes can also be manufactured where a project needs a specific diameter, shape or non-standard dimension, including larger column sizes on request. A range of finish options is available, from standard spiral finishes through to smoother lined finishes and textured architectural effects, giving builders, concreters and designers flexibility across structural, decorative and architectural concrete work.
Steel Columns
The Tubeworks is proud to announce that it is now in the market as a supplier of steel columns for the construction industry. Made from galvanised steel, our steel columns won’t rust if left outside, with diameters available from 152mm to 1524mm. The Tubeworks’ steel columns can be used both above and below ground, with stripping possible using a grinder.
The strength of these columns can be determined based on gauge, as we have 0.6mm, 0.8mm, 1mm, and 1.2mm available. With stock available in our Melbourne plant, our steel columns can also be made to your building plans, with the largest length so far being 12 metres. Our quick turnaround makes us highly competitive, with delivery happening Australia-wide.
EPH Void Former
The Tubeworks EPH Void Former is a cardboard honeycomb panel used to separate slabs and ground beams from reactive expansive soils. Designed to break down with the absorption of moisture, the EPH will create a void under the slab or beam. The Void Former is made from 400-micron cardboard with a honeycomb cellular core between face sheets, and being made from cardboard, it can be cut with ease. Ranging in different sizes, The Tubeworks holds most sizes in stock.