To find the best stud finder nowadays is not easy thing as it requires a bit knowledge about stud finders
A stud finder is a handheld device used with wood buildings to locate framing studs located behind the final walling surface. They are also called stud detector or stud sensor.
We all leave in places where we have walls. Walls can be used for hanging pictures or bookshelves. This way we will be able to properly utilize the area available and populate usually empty walls with many things. There are however, some issues with hanging the things on the wall. All walls feature some empty space inside them. This is done for the purpose of either making the wall lighter, for cabling purposes or just to save the cost. There is a part of the wall that is strong and it features the wooden skeleton. This skeleton is what is called stud. The purpose of the stud finder is to locate the strong wooden skeleton in the wall so that we can hand our things on the wall. When we do not use stud finder, we might drill in the empty space and nail things on weak areas of the wall. If that happens, probably the thing that we hang on the wall will not be strong and will probably fall down and break. Many people will think that they do not need stud finder to hang a picture frame or a wall shelf. They might be right. For someone who is rarely drilling holes in the walls or hanging something on it, stud finder will not be useful all at. So, who are the ones that will need stud finders? They are those who often work with walls. Mostly construction workers, electricians and furniture delivery and installation personnel. Those people will definitely need the stud finder. For people like these or just those who want to have a stud finder in their houses, we feature a list of best five stud finders. However, before we move to that list it is important that we discuss how stud finders work and what main types of stud finders available out there.
Best Stud Finder: Top 5 Most Promising
CH Hanson 03040 Magnetic Stud Finder
This is the simplest and cheapest magnetic stud finder in this list. Despite that it is a professional and multi-functional center-finding unit that is capable to scan depth up to 1 inches. It is a small and compact device which easily fits in pocket. It has powerful magnets allow easy identification and marking the stud are. This is a magnetic stud finder so it does not require any batteries to use. This makes it easy to use at any weather conditions such as rain or extreme colds. Because of its compact design and the comfortable grip, it can fit inside almost any pockets. The magnets even allow hands free use. Due to the low cost and simple use many people can buy this and keep it inside their toolboxes. This stud finder is recommended for normal people who rarely need to use stud finder.
ProSensor 710 Precision Stud Finder
Unlike a simple stud finder featured above, this is totally opposite. This is a professional unit made for professional use. It uses Advanced Multi-Sense Technology, which allows this unit to scan multiple locations of the wall. Its bright LEDs lights illuminate when there are some hidden objects on the wall. This makes it very easy and simple to identify where all the studs are located. It can also display the width of the hidden objects on the walls. The sensor can sense up to 1.5 inches inside the wall. The user can identify position and size of the objects inside the wall. Not to mention that this unit can identify several studs at the same that are located close to each other. In terms of precision this unit is one of the best. However, there are two main issues with this unit. First of all, it has no LCD display. It uses LED lights to tell the readings of the sensors, however this might not be enough for many people. Second issues is the price. At this price point there are many other units with better functions. This unite suits those who have long experience working with walls and can easily tell what the LED light are indicating. For those who just started using stud finders or new at working with wall, this is not a best choice, as the readings will not be sufficient regardless how accurate the sensors are.
Zircon StudSensor e50-FFP Edge Finding Stud Finder
The StudSensor e50 is an edge finding stud finder. It can quickly and easily locate where are the edges of stud is located and also locate all the metal objects inside the walls. This stud finder can be used with floors and ceilings as well as walls. This scanner features two modes for scanning different surface materials. It features an LCD display where it displays the readings from the sensors. It is simple and easy to read. This finder features a SpotLite Pointer feature, it shines a light shaped like an arrow for marking the studs. This finder can locate the wires that can be damaged when working with the wall. The scanner can scan up to two inches inside the wall. The design for this stud finder is very comfortable to hold as the lower part is slimmer than the upper portion. The display is located at the upper side of the scanner. This is a slightly larger device and might be difficult to put inside any pockets. However, most people will keep it inside a toolbox. This is a great device at a great cost, which both professionals and newbies will enjoy.
Zircon MultiScanner i520-FFP Center Finding Stud Finder
This one is Zircons more advanced stud finder. It has similar functions as the above one. However, the design and screens have been improved and some new functions were added. It is a multi-surface scanner with 4 modes unlike two one the model before. Because of that it can detect studs, metal and live electrical wires. This reduces the risk of damaging the wiring in the house or getting hurt by electricity. It can easily identify the center of the stud and tell if any metal there so that the user can use appropriate tools. StudScan and DeepScan modes can locate the wood or metal studs and show their edges and the center for those studs. Metal Scan can identify any metals available inside the wall and AC Scan helps identify live wires inside the wall. When the wire is located the finder indicates WireWarning Detection for safety. This model also can correct some errors made by users such as when they start on the stud and not the empty place of the wall. The SpotLife technology is also present and it display where the target is. The device uses 9V batteries. The design has improved and now it is more ergonomic to use by people with both small and large hands. This stud is just best all-rounder.
Bosch GMS120 Digital Multi-Scanner
Bosch GMS120 is a great scanner from Bosch. It also features multi-mode detection. It can detect many objects inside the wall, such as wood and metal studs, rebar, metal pipes and live wiring. It uses three sensor technology. It can scan up to 121mm inside any walls even concrete walls. It uses automatic calibration, which makes it much more convenient to use. Illuminated graphical LCD display can indicate modes, signal strength, material detected and show if any wire is present. The scanner features detection signal that can be on or off. This is very good device at a great price and it provides many functions. It is also very easy to use that even first time users can easily use this item.
How do stud finders work?
When there were no stud finders, people used mainly two techniques to find the stud. First of them is to nail a small nail on the wall until you find the stud. This method is fast, but it will damage the wall. That is why many people started using a magnet for the purpose of finding the studs. Magnet can locate the nails nailed on the stud and ultimately show where the stud is located. This method did not damage the wall, but the whole process was so slow it might take hours to finish finding the studs.
Those two methods were later replaced by a stud finder. We live in the world where we need effective and efficient ways of doing things. Stud finders save a lot of time and they are more accurate than the two methods used before. This means no more damage to the wall by wrongly drilled hole or a nail. First stud finders featured a magnet to find the studs. Later they were replaced by electronic stud finders. They give an accurate view into the wall and show exactly where is the stud. They are using changes in capacitance to sense where the stud is. The stud will have different capacitance than the empty area of the wall. When we place the electronic stud finder on the wall, it will read what is the capacitance or density of the wall. When it notices that the density is high and that there is a stud it reports through the screen to the user.
What are the main types of stud finders?
There are mainly two types of stud finders- magnetic stud detectors and electric stud finders. In recent years there have been some development in this field and some new products have surfaced. They use sonar and 3D scanning to identify the location of the studs. They are extremely accurate but came at high costs than normal stud finders.
Magnetic stud detectors use magnets to locate metal in the walling material. Magnets are sensitive to metal, especially iron used as nails. When we place a magnet on top of a wall and if there is something made of metal inside it will get attracted to that metal. This stud finders can get the job done, however they are not as accurate as they seem to be. Sometimes nails on the wall can be put wrongly and stud finder will show that area or the stud might feature non-conductive metals. There many cases where this type might not work as well as electric ones. There are two main types of magnet stud finders a stationary and moving magnets. Stationary magnet stud detectors use a small stationary magnet to detect the metals inside the walls. The user will move this magnet on the wall and based on the attraction strength of that magnet identify where are the studs. This methods heavily rely on the user, as he has to decide based on what he feels is the right spot. Moving magnet stud detectors use a neodymium magnet that is suspended in an enclosure and free to move in response to hidden metal. This unique magnet has different strength than the normal magnet and it is better at identifying things inside the wall. This magnet also allows the stud finder be used at many different kinds of surfaces.
Electronic stud finders rely on sensors that detect changes in the dielectric constant of the wall. When the stud finder is placed on the stud it notices that dielectric constant of the wall have changed. Usually, this will be indicted by lower dielectric constant. When the readings are right the finder will let the user know by showing it on the screen and by sound. Since this method relies on sensors rather than a magnet, it can identify other elements inside the wall such as power lines or internet lines and so on. Electronic stud finders currently come in three types, which are edge finders, center finders, and instant finders.
Edge finders are the most basic internal capacitor detectors. They utilize only one sensor for the purpose of identifying the studs. To use this stud finder a user must start at the empty part of the wall and then move around until edges of the stud are found. That is why they are called edge finders. After the edges of each stud is found then a user can find the center of the stud. Center stud finders detect the center of the stud by using two sensors that register separate readings of the wall’s dielectric constant. Several readings are generated from the sensors and when they match it indicates that there is a stud. And lastly instant stud finders. They are very recent innovations. They use several sensor and do not need to be moved around the wall to find studs. The sensors will find and show the studs with their sizes and widths. This type is the most advanced and has many uses.
Wrapping Up
There are many great stud finders available out there. They feature many unique functions and can be used by professionals and newbies. ProSensor 710 is the best for professionals. CH Hanson 03040 is the best magnetic stud finder and it is the cheapest on our list. Zircon StudSensor e50-FFP is also great device and especially good for those who just want to learn how to use a stud finder. Zircon MultiScanner i520-FFP and Bosch GMS120 are both great stud finders with great modes and informative display. They are just best price for performance models.