How is your stud finder working?

17 years ago

Stud finders have changed since I got mine about 20 years ago. Mine is starting to miss the studs about half the time and find phantom studs half the time. I'm in the market for a new one. How do the newer ones work?

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Comments (5)

fqp25
17 years ago
the real question is how much are you willing spend???

The stud finders today have all the bells and whistles. From alarms to laser-levels to depth gages.

What are you planning to do with it? Are you really worried about hitting an electrical line? Do you think there might be some hidden Steel Studs? There are Stud Finders on the market which can sense all of these things.

But a good old fashion stud finder for $10-$15 bucks I think should be fine for things like hanging shelves. Or maybe get a "Laser Self Mounting" finder for around $30-$45, for hanging pictures all in a row, or hanging a mantle piece.

There is a lot out there, or you can still tap the wall with a hammer. A few times of doing that, you'll probably won't need a stud finder.(ha ha ha)
tryinbrian
17 years ago
How is my stud finder working? My knuckle and ears are working fine at the moment, thanks. I use them regularly to figure out when that little electronic beeper unit I have is lying to me or keeping something from me (especially with plaster walls). Maybe there's something better out there, but sometimes it's better just to trust your senses.
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With sheetrock walls, you can usually use any electrical receptacle as a reference point since the box will typically be attached on one side or the other to a stud. Since you are dealing with plaster, the boxes may not necessarily all be attached to studs, but you could take off a receptacle faceplate and, if you can't see a stud, use a piece of wire to probe to either side around the opening...of course turning off the power before fiddling around with a wire by the box. If you don't have a receptacle on the wall in question, is it an inside wall where you can make such a determination from the other side of the wall? Lastly, you can always do the drilling approach and put the holes where a shelf will be so you don't have to worry about patching and re-painting.
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sierraeast
17 years ago
My wife says hers worked great when she found me! Sorry, couldn't resist.I have a scan pro that is fairly reliable, but it reads the edge of the stud rather than the center. So when you hit your target, you have to remember to add3/4" to give you the center. I believe this is the case with most older units,but have heard that they have newer units that pinpoint the center along with different depth settings, as well as wiring and plumbing locators.You might run this question by tools of the trade magazine. Their website has a section for this.

Here is a link that might be useful: tool questions
sierraeast
17 years ago
Sorry, i gave out the wrong website. Here's the correct one

Here is a link that might be useful: tool questions
hilltop_gw
17 years ago
I have a Black & Decker Bulls Eye Laser Level and Stud Finder that I use all the time. It works like a charm. Hubby gave it to me for Christmas a few years ago & it's one of my most used gifts. Highly recommend it!

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How is your stud finder working?

Comments (5)

fqp25

tryinbrian

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