Sonotube Concrete Calculator
Concrete volume for round column forms (Sonotube-style tubes).
Result appears here
Fill in the fields and press Calculate.
Formula, calculation, assumptions and sources
Volume per tube = π × (Diameter ÷ 2)² × Height
Total volume = Volume per tube × Number of tubes
Run the calculation to see each step with your own numbers.
Four 12 in tubes, poured 4 ft high, with the default 10% waste.
Radius = 6 in = 0.5 ft
Volume per tube = π × 0.5² × 4 = 3.14 ft³
Total = 3.14 × 4 = 12.57 ft³ = 0.47 yd³ exact
0.47 yd³ × 1.10 = 0.52 yd³ recommended
- The tube is a straight cylinder of constant diameter.
- Pour height is the concrete depth, not the full tube length.
- Any flared or belled base, or a separate footing pad, is not included.
- Does 'pour height' mean the full tube length?
- No — enter the depth the concrete actually fills. If your tube is 48 in long but you only fill 40 in, enter 40 in.
- What about the footing under the column?
- This calculator covers the cylinder only. Add the pad footing separately (a rectangular footing fits the Concrete Calculator).
Cylinder volume
Standard geometry: V = π r² h. No empirical constant.
Unit conversion
NIST SP 811, Appendix B.
Waste allowance default
10% is a common rule-of-thumb allowance for spillage and tube over-fill; always editable, with the exact figure shown alongside.
About the Sonotube Concrete Calculator
The Sonotube Concrete Calculator gives the concrete volume for round column forms — Sonotube-style cardboard tubes — from the tube diameter and height, for one or several piers. It returns the exact volume and a recommended volume with waste added. For square footings or a belled pier base, use the Concrete Footing or Concrete Pier calculators.
What you enter
- Tube diameter — Common Sonotube sizes are 8, 10, 12, 16 and 18 in.
- Pour height — How deep the concrete fills the tube.
- Number of tubes
- Waste allowance — Default 10%. Adjust to your own allowance — the exact figure is always shown too.
What you get back
- Concrete volume — shown as the exact figure and, separately, a recommended figure with your waste allowance added.
The formula, a worked example, the assumptions behind it and the sources are shown in full below the calculator.
Related calculators
- Concrete Calculator — How much concrete a rectangular slab or footing needs, in cubic yards or cubic metres.
- Concrete Calculator for Fence Posts — Concrete volume to set a run of fence posts, allowing for the posts displacing concrete in each hole.
- Cubic Yard Calculator — Convert a length, width and depth into cubic yards, cubic feet or cubic metres.
- Concrete Cost Calculator — Estimated material cost of a concrete pour from its volume and a unit price.
Part of the Concrete calculators.