Thank you for making this video! It's nice to actually see these in action instead of just reading a vague review about the detectors online. Your video helped immensely!
Great video as usual. That said, no review of stud finders is complete if leaves out the STUDPOP magnetic stud finder. I've been using it since it came out 10 years ago. Unlike every other stud finder---electronic or magnetic---it is able to find studs (via the metal fasteners) in any kind of wall: sheetrock, tile over sheetrock, plasterboard, wood lath and plaster. It's actually...fun? to use, if that's possible : )
Yes thats good for just that, finding studs, these scanners are really more than stud scanners, in Europe they are usually just called "wall scanners" rather than stud finder/scanner/detector.
I find most stud finders work well until u got water, gas and electrical running through a wall. Then they go off over everything and simetimes i find some detectors are very vague with detecting electrical or not finding them at all. Would also to like to add im usually using these on 100+ year old hones so sometimes there is just random shit in the walls like gas lines for old gas burning lamps that were never taken out.
Ya they have limitations for sure. This is meant as a guide to help people get there moneys worth when buying one for their specific use. I’ve never tested one that didn’t have a flaw one way or another.
We always go back to the 10 year old stanly. It’s the most accurate. I’ve had the newer Stanley that he tested, an expensive Stanley, a dewalt (looked like the Stanley in the video with the small hole for marking), the yellow zircon. All junk. Either returned or tossed them all except the 10 year old Stanley. It finds a stud every time. The zircon found plumbing a couple times which was really fun too...
Thank you for this video. I have used Zircon center finder stud finders for over 15 years. I have several. They are very accurate and sometimes they may give readings that are confusing. As a back up I use CH Hanson or stud buddies. Zircon stands behind their products. I’ve had great experience with them. If you watch the DVD that used to come with them or watch or read the instructions they explain most scenarios that you may get a false reading. They are my favorite. Enjoyed the video very much
waste of money. Get yourselfs a couple of magnets instead. Knock on the wall and listen where you think the studs are. Bring out your magnets and move them up and down left and right on the wall. Eventually youll find the screws, thank me later.
Magnets and your knuckles won’t verify wire location. I carry both they each have their place. I included a magnet in my second video against different detectors.
That being the case only lowers it in my rankings. All of the detectors can be zeroed in more accurately with several passes but it should be how accurate the detector is right away. In real life an end User isn’t checking each stud using 2-3 passes. Bosch having that as a requirement is another reason their detector is overpriced.
@@heathbirkett2182 almost all of them did electrical (see second test in video) if you have solid block walls you would be looking at a different line of detectors and in that application this is the wrong video.
@@alistermunro7090 I wouldn’t, my point is all of the detectors use multiple passes. The more you do the more accurate the results. However it doesn’t change how well they work on first pass and it doesn’t change the ranking of any of them. To say the Bosch requires multiple passes to be accurate isn’t an argument for it being better it’s an argument for it being worse.
Provding your house is made of wood this is great in the UK we have walls made of brick, how do they all work on chased cables in walls made of brick and cement?
The only one in this test that does an ok job on brick/cement is the Bosch but there is better detectors meant for that. These tests aren’t really that relevant to brick.
I can only test what is available, a magnet is also a good option if you don’t like any of these. If you would like to see anything else tested I’m always open to suggestions. Thanks for the feedback either way dood!
i don't understand why so many people don't know how to use stud finders. If you calibrate it on the wall first before running it across, they work fine in most cases, sometimes double drywall over tile or a plaster wall can cause issues. But standard framing and drywall board they work fine.
Thank you for making this video. What I'd be interested to find out though is to see how tests with N>1 hold up; you might have gotten lucky with one model and unlucky with another. I'd be interested to know the variance for each model - say you test *10* units of the Zircon M1, do they all give he same results or do you just have to be lucky to get the right unit?
Hey you are correct you may get one unit better than another. They are supposed to be calibrated at the factory so in theory they should all function the same. Each detector is used several times off screen to make sure the results are accurate across multiple attempts but there is no way to know if I had a lemon or not using only one like you said.
Is the zircon m1 still on amazon because i cant find it to save my life and i even tried taking a screenshot of the stock photo from the video and doing a photo search 😅
I bought mine at Home Depot, my local store still has lots in stock. Both home depot.com and homedepot.ca show it available to order as well if that helps
Thanks for the video. Would have helped the accuracy of your tests if you had masked out previous locations for each device. It's clearly influencing your positioning of the marks on later devices (e.g., the zircon m1)
How so? The devices indicate the edges I can’t control or influence them in any way. You should be able to see the screen on each detector. It’s not something I can change the outcome of nor do I try. All detectors are checked after the test multiple times to make sure the ranking is accurate as well.
Thanks, but the only thing I can take away from these tests is that none of them are worth a single penny. The bottom line is "accuracy"; we are blind through the drywall, so if it can't accurately mark where the edge and/or the center (actual, not just near it), then the tool fails! Isn't there any stud finders out there that actually works accurately?
I can only show what I find. But no there isn’t any that work perfectly every time, add paint to the wall and drywall mud and they become even less accurate. A normal magnet is tough to beat
There ones that are extremely powerful and costs 200+ euros, there also the x-ray option if you are willing to spend 1000 euros on an x-ray scanner for walls.
most people don't know to calibrate it on the wall first, so find stud finders don't work for them. I use them nearly daily and they work fine for me. Just have to calibrate it on the wall first. Except for the Franklin, doesn't need to be calibrated. That is a my favorite one. They all work however.
No they can’t. The problem with stucco is it’s put on a metal wire and that wire can have air pockets both those things cause even the most expensive detectors not to work. Further if your referencing an exterior wall the wire is usually over plywood which it also can’t detect through.
The point is I bought every in stock detector I could at two big box stores. It’s universally what people in NA should be able to pick up immediately. There’s no point in ordering detectors from all over the place just because they are different if no one can easily get them.
I don understand, do builders like to be warned further away from a live wire, or get the location of the live wire? Wouldnt you elevate a sensor higher up your list if it can detect the actual location of the wire and not close to it?
Early warning is always good it helps to keep end users from hitting a wire. however accuracy is most important. My ranking for the wire detection was based solely on accurately detecting the wire location not how early it alerted. The first marks are just to show how early the detector alerts of nearby power, the second marks are where the detector indicated the wires location if it had that option.
Your video is quite misleading. The Zircon is an unstable product. Having used the Zircon on multiple walls, they were the most unreliable ones. I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. The BOSCH one was quite reliable so far if not the best. Just be aware that the Bosch has a bigger circle to mark the point compared to the other ones. So it is also down to the person to mark the point correctly. The Stanley's are the worst. Never understood why people buy any of their products. Sorry those Zircons are cheap but those are hideous.
Hey that’s incorrect, not all zircon brand detectors are the same and while the lower end ones I would say I agree with you the ones tested are represented accurately. I’m assuming you’re saying the Bosch requires a larger calibration area comparatively? Either way I have used all of these many times and the results are still exactly as shown.
