Standard aluminum tube and pipe offer an impressive array of benefits that make it an extremely efficient material for consumer items, recreational merchandise, automotive applications, and manufacturing across a wide range of industries. When selecting a tubing type, the options may seem overwhelming, as both aluminum and stainless steel come in a variety of alloys and tempers, each with their own distinct properties.

However, unlike many other alternatives, aluminum casts a wider net of advantages and generally works well under a variety of pressures and stresses. Today, we’ll go over aluminum’s properties and the factors you should consider when choosing a material for your project.

Aluminum Tubing Properties

Out of the numerous advantageous properties conferred by Aluminum, its low density and ability to resist corrosion through the passivation process makes it essential to the aerospace, automotive and building industries. It is often used for designs such as window frames and other structural instances. Aluminum is also respected for its strength, particularly because it is only 1% of the weight of steel. Aluminum tubing provides a greater volume of tubing per weight because of this versatile blend of strength and flexibility, and is especially beneficial for products with a mobility component such as wheelchairs and outdoor furnishings.

Aluminum also absorbs heat exceptionally well. This makes it a fantastic candidate for temperature control applications such as refrigerators, solar power panels and air conditioning systems. Because of its increased weldability and outstanding tolerance to corrosion, manufacturers use the aluminum alloy 6061 for many medium-to high-strength applications.

When to Use Aluminum Tubing and Piping

Aluminum’s versatility makes it great for a number of industry uses with outdoor recreation manufacturers benefit from aluminum tubing to construct materials like tent poles, camp chair frames, and outdoor tables. Aerospace, automobile, and rail transportation manufacturers make use of aluminum tubing in fuselage, hydraulic systems, and fuel lines. Due to its heat-conductive capabilities, aluminum is a great alternative to steel or other heavier metals in refrigerators, engines, and HVAC systems. It can also be used to support chain link fences, lining tables, and housing electric equipment such as desktop monitors.

Manufacturers also utilize aluminum square tube alloy 6063 for its extremely smooth surface finish. Since it holds only about half the strength of aluminum alloy 6061, aluminum alloy 6063 is often the correct choice in applications that value aesthetics over strength.

Alloys International Inc, Your Go-to Aluminum Supplier

At Alloys International, we extend our high-technology commitment to aluminum and aluminum alloys. We offer over 90 aluminum grades in every temper available.

Our specialty lines include 5000 Series aluminum, along with high-strength aluminum alloy sheet, tubing, bar, profile shapes, and more. Our hard-temper seamless tubing is produced by the mandrel extrusion process, and our drawn tubing is made to very tight tolerance requirements. For the best place to source and buy aluminum tubing, Alloys International extends our “You Want It, We Got It” attitude for any and all aluminum needs.

With the best pricing and lead time in the industry, our extensive metals inventory is the #1 stop for aluminum tubing for sale, as well as other metals and alloys such as titanium, stainless steel, and reactive & refractory metals. For any questions or comments regarding our extensive inventory, contact us today or request a quote to learn more.