A lot of people who call us have never bought steel before, and a fair number open with some version of “I’m not sure how to ask for this.” That’s fine. You don’t need to speak the language — describe what you’re building and we’ll figure out the material.
This page covers what to have ready, how our cutting works, whether to pick up or have it delivered, and what happens after you send a quote request. If you’d rather just talk to someone, that works too: call the sales office at 407-293-5788 during business hours and we’ll walk you through it.
The Five Things We Need to Quote You
A quote comes back faster and more accurate when it includes these. Miss one and we’ll just call you to ask, which costs you a day.
- What shape. Plate, sheet, pipe, tube, angle, channel, beam, flat bar, round bar, expanded metal. If you don’t know the name, describe it — “the L-shaped stuff” gets you angle iron every time.
- What size. For plate and sheet: thickness plus the length and width you need. For pipe and tube: diameter and wall thickness (or just say “whatever’s standard”). For beams and channel: the depth, or the callout off your print if you have one.
- How much. Number of pieces, total feet, or just “enough to build X.” One piece is a real order here — see the no-minimums section below.
- Whether you need it cut. And to what lengths. If you have a cut list, send it as-is; you don’t need to format it.
- Pickup or delivery, and roughly when you need it.
Grade only matters if your print or inspector calls for one. If nobody has told you a grade, you almost certainly want A36 — that’s the standard mild steel for fabrication and general shop work, and it’s what we stock.
What to Write in the "Project Details" Box
Our quote form has one free-text field, and it’s where people freeze. Here’s what a good one actually looks like. Copy the shape of these:
Fabricator / shop: “Need 6 pcs of 2x2x1/4 angle, 20 ft each, no cutting. Will pick up Thursday.”
Contractor: “Looking for 1/2″ A36 plate — need (4) pieces at 18″ x 24″ and (2) at 12″ x 12″. Plasma cut is fine. Deliver to a job site in Sanford.”
Trailer repair: “Rebuilding a 16 ft utility trailer deck. Need 1/8″ diamond plate, roughly 6 ft x 14 ft of coverage. Also need 2 pcs of 3″ channel at 16 ft.”
Homeowner / DIY: “Building a fire pit. I need a piece of 1/4″ steel about 30″ x 30″. Can you cut a circle? I’ll pick it up.”
Don’t know what you need: “I’m building a gate for a driveway, about 12 ft wide. Not sure what material to use — what do most people use for this?”
That last one is a completely normal quote request. We’d rather scope it with you than have you guess wrong and buy the wrong steel.
"I Don't Know What Size I Need"
Then describe the job instead of the material. Tell us:
- What it’s for — a gate, a repair, a trailer, a bracket, a table base, a ramp
- What it has to hold or survive — a person standing on it, a truck driving over it, just its own weight
- How big the finished thing is
- Whether looks matter — a visible railing gets a different finish than a hidden bracket
That’s enough for us to tell you what’s normally specified. Forty-seven years of doing this means most projects rhyme with something we’ve quoted before.
One clarification worth having up front: if someone told you “10 gauge,” that’s sheet, not plate. Plate starts at 3/16″ and goes up; sheet is thinner and sold by gauge. People mix these up constantly and it changes both the price and what we pull off the rack.
Cutting: Which Service Fits Your Job
You don’t have to pick the process. Tell us the cut and the tolerance, and we’ll route it to the right machine. But if you’re curious what’s happening in the back:
| Service | Best for | Edge quality |
|---|---|---|
| Saw cutting | Straight cuts on structural steel, merchant bars, tube, pipe | Clean and square |
| Plasma cutting | Shapes, curves, holes, custom profiles in plate and sheet | Smooth, slight bevel |
| Torch cutting | Breaking down heavy or oversized steel into haulable pieces | Rough — for sizing, not finishing |
| Iron worker | Punching, shearing, and shaping heavy stock | Clean, fast |
| Picket maker | Consistent custom-length pickets for fence and railing | Finished |
We also prime and paint and arrange galvanizing. If you want the material protected before it leaves, say so on the quote — retrofitting a finish later costs more than doing it up front.
No job is too small. A single 12″ × 12″ square of 1/4″ plate for a repair is an order we’ll cut and turn around quickly.
Pickup or Delivery?
Will-call pickup at our Apopka yard (2401 Clark St) is same-day on many orders — call ahead and we’ll have it staged. Fastest and cheapest option if you can haul it.
Delivery is next-day on most orders across Orange, Seminole, Marion, Osceola, Lake, Volusia, Eastern Polk, and Brevard counties. Our trucks do not carry a forklift, so plan to have a way to offload the material when it arrives.
The deciding factor is usually weight, and steel is heavier than people expect. Some real numbers:
| What you’re buying | Approximate weight |
|---|---|
| 3/16″ plate, one 4′ × 8′ sheet | 245 lb |
| 1/4″ plate, one 4′ × 8′ sheet | 326 lb |
| 2″ schedule 40 pipe, 21 ft stick | 77 lb |
| 4″ schedule 40 pipe, 21 ft stick | 227 lb |
| 2″ × 2″ × 1/4″ angle, 20 ft | 64 lb |
| 2″ × 2″ × 1/8″ square tube, 24 ft | 73 lb |
| W8×18 beam, 20 ft | 360 lb |
A half-ton pickup tops out around five 4×8 sheets of 1/4″ plate before you’re over payload — and that’s ignoring how far past the tailgate a 20 ft stick hangs. If you’re near your limit, take the delivery. We’d rather send a truck than have you make three trips or drive home unsafe.
How Fast Is This?
- Quotes: same day on most requests submitted during business hours. Late-afternoon requests may land the next morning.
- Will-call pickup: same day on many in-stock items once the order is confirmed.
- Delivery: next day on most orders across the Central Florida service area.
- Cut-to-size: most cutting is handled same-day or next-day alongside the order.
- Special order / non-stock material: we source hard-to-find sizes and grades through our wholesale network. Most standard sourced material arrives in 3–5 business days; unusual sizes, plus prime and paint or galvanizing, depend on the order, so ask and we’ll give you a realistic date rather than a guess.
Do You Sell to Individuals? Is There a Minimum?
Yes, and no.
No minimum order. One piece or a full truckload, we will sell it to you, with price breaks on larger orders. This is genuinely unusual for a metal service center and it’s the reason a lot of Central Florida welders, repair shops, hobbyists, and homeowners end up here after being turned away somewhere that only wants contract volume.
We sell to general contractors, fabrication and machine shops, trailer builders, sign companies, theme parks, schools and government agencies, metal artists, ornamental iron shops, farms — and to the person building one thing in their garage on a Saturday. Same counter, same answer on the phone.
We take cash, check, and all major cards.
Se habla español. Our counter staff is fluent in English and Spanish.
What Happens After You Hit Submit
- Your request lands with the counter team in Apopka.
- We check stock and price it — same day in most cases.
- You get a quote by email or phone, whichever you gave us.
- If something’s ambiguous, we call rather than guess. Bad assumptions cost more than a phone call.
- You approve, we schedule the cut and the pickup or delivery.
No account setup, no credit application, no minimum, no sales sequence. You ask for steel, we price steel.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I buy just one piece of steel?
Yes. There's no minimum order at Surplus Steel — a single piece is welcome, and larger orders get price breaks. We cut single pieces for repairs, hobby projects, and one-off fabrication every day.
Do I need to know the grade of steel I need?
Only if your print or inspector specifies one. If nobody has told you a grade, A36 mild steel is the standard for fabrication, structural, and general shop work, and it's what we stock. Describe what you're building and we'll match the material.
What's the difference between steel plate and steel sheet?
Thickness. Steel sheet is thinner than 3/16" and is usually sold by gauge. Steel plate is 3/16" and thicker and is sold by fractional or decimal inch. If someone told you "10 gauge," that's sheet — about 0.135" thick.
Can you cut steel to my exact sizes?
Yes. We run saw, plasma, and torch cutting plus an iron worker and picket maker at our Apopka yard. Send your cut list in whatever format you have it. Most cutting is done same-day or next-day.
How fast can I get steel in Orlando?
Same-day will-call pickup is available from our Apopka warehouse on many in-stock items, and next-day delivery covers most orders across Central Florida. Quotes usually come back the same day.
How much does a 4×8 sheet of 1/4" steel plate weigh?
About 326 pounds. Plan your vehicle accordingly — that's near the practical limit for stacking in a half-ton pickup once you add anything else.
Do you deliver, and where?
Yes. Next-day delivery on most orders throughout Orange, Seminole, Marion, Osceola, Lake, Volusia, Eastern Polk, and Brevard counties. Our trucks do not carry a forklift, so you will need a way to offload the material.
Do you sell to the public, or only to businesses?
Both. We supply contractors, fabricators, and machine shops alongside homeowners, hobbyists, and DIY builders. No account or business license required.
What if I don't know what I need?
Describe the project instead of the material — what you're building, what it has to hold, and how big it is. That's enough for us to tell you what's normally used.
Ready to Order?
Tell us what you’re building.
If you know the sizes, send them. If you don’t, describe the job.
Call: 407-293-5788 (toll-free 800-299-5788)
Visit: 2401 Clark St, Apopka, FL 32703
Hours: Mon–Fri 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM (closed 11:45–1:00 for lunch)
Have extra steel to move? We buy excess steel too.