Stud finder for plaster walls?

[Jamie Buxton]

Does anybody have a recommendation for a stud finder that works on lath-and-plaster walls? Mine works well on sheetrock walls, but isn't reliable on lath-and-plaster.

[John McClanahan]

I haven't tried this yet, but I heard somewhere to use a handheld metal detector. It will detect the nails, and that's where the studs are.

John

[Tom Hammond]

Most of the ones I've seen have two settings, regular and "deep." On mine, you have to press the on button twice to put it in deep mode. Make sure you have the unit prssed against the wall first.

[Steve Baumgartner]

Sorry, I've tried a lot of them an never found any that was consistent on old plaster and lath walls. Any of them that work by detecting density are confused by the "keys" of plaster that protrude between the laths. Ones that detect metal can be better, but many of them can't see a nail through 1/2 inch of old plaster.

[Lee Schierer]

I've used my metal detector216773 on plaster walls. It isn't perfect, but it works better than thumping with a hammer. It is $20 from ROckler.

[Myk Rian]

I've used this with good results.
http://www.harborfreight.com/9-volt-metal-detector-wand-94138.html
Got mine for about $20.

[Floyd Mah]

Use a metal detector. I just finished repairing my mom's house. The ceiling had too many cracks to tape and replaster, but I was able to map out all the ceiling rafters with a metal detector and apply a sheet rock veneer. The laths are nailed on with metal fasteners. Similarly, I was able to locate the studs on a sheet-rocked wall with a metal detector. Harbor Freight sells an inexpensive metal detector (http://www.harborfreight.com/metal-detector-97245.html) that works really well. If you want to avoid marring a finished wall by scraping the end of the detector over the wall, just glue a piece of felt to the end.

[Peter Quinn]

I use my lumber wizard metal detector for the parts of my house with wood lathe. Unfortunately the kitchen and bath are slightly newer and done on metal lathe, so nothing helps there.

[russell lusthaus]

I use a large handheld magnet. Where ever it sticks to the wall is a stud / nail.

[Peter J Lee]

A down and dirty, emergency technique is to hold a light against the wall or ceiling and shine it at a right angle. There is a subtle wave pattern created by the plasterers.

I have a U shaped piece of wire made from a coat hanger that given access at the edge of an outlet or crack or whatever I insert and then spin which gives me the location of the edge of the stud.

[Harry Hagan]

This one’s a little messy but it works well and doesn’t require batteries.




216910

[Jim Matthews]

This is a workout technique suitable only for those without security deposits.

One rare earth magnet (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM7eO0K85yA) and a 4 foot level works for me.
I don't need a dustpan, afterwards.

Check out the guns on that guy!

[Larry Rasmussen]

I've got sheetrock with a layer of mud sprayed on to texture. After loosening up the wallet and spending $20 on a better two level finder at Home Depot I found that it didn't work any better than the ten buck versions I've picked up over the years. Finished my project by hammering in a locator nail as usual. I'm getting kind of loyal to the Depot these days because of their easy going return policy.

On the other hand you can go to stud finder emporium. After returning the electronic Zircon E-50 yesterday I found the CH Hanson 03040 Magnetic Stud Finder at Amazon for $10.49.

Getting a lot of reasonable sounding positive reviews like: "Our house has lath and plaster walls that are covered by Sheetrock. It has always been very difficult to locate studs for hanging heavy items because of the thickness of the walls. The electronic studfinders are undependable. This one works astonishingly well. Just hold it somewhat loosely and move it around in a sort of figure-eight motion. When it finds a stud, it pulls out of your hand and hangs on the wall. You can double check it by trying the same process a foot or two lower. Great product!" - OK out of the 300 something reviews there are some one stars as well but looks worth a try at 10 bucks since it latches on the wall and hangs and has a level in the middle. I have Amazon Prime, which pre pays shipping for the year so I think I'll give it a try.

Good luck, have a great Christmas Holiday.

Larry R,
Seattle