Zircon Stud Finders

[Boyd Gathwright]

Zircon Stud Finders


.... I wanted to put up some shelving on a given wall the other night. Over an hour later, I hadn't got past trying to find two of four studs in the wall. The bottom half of the wall is particleboard and the top half is sheet rock. I finally established a ROUGH line on one side of one of the studs. On the other side of the stud I could NOT establish consistent repeatable mark(s). Matter of fact, I now have a whole wall full of marks that I cannot draw a straight, vertical line down on the other side of this stud. I have two Zircon units that I was using and replaced the batteries in both (Studsensor 4 and the Triscanner). The Studsensor 4, which I think is slightly more sensitive than the Triscanner, have some differences between them. For the most part I could NOT establish a good repeatable mark(s), some would be 1/4 to 1/2” from the first original mark and some did repeat but NOT enough to feel confident enough about to draw a second straight vertical line on the other side of this stud. I did try using a piece of paper under the scanner and that did help in a smother operation, especially on the particleboard, but didn't seem to help with repeatability. I talked with the manufacturer ZIRCON and the bottom line there was to try a thicker slide like the backing of a (pad of paper [the cardboard]) which is a little thicker than what I used (piece of paper) and I will try that. The question that begs an answer now is - Is there anyone who has had the same experiences or frustration that I now share?

Thanks in advance

Boyd


:confused:

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[Aaron Montgomery]

Oddly, I experienced the same thing earlier this week with my Zircon (model unknown) after putting up 5/8 drywall. The Zircon I have was fairly inexpensive. Is there a better stud sensor out there somewhere?

[Ken Garlock]

Boyd, I have never had a problem with the Zircon I have, with the exception of when I get around electrical wiring behind the wall.

Go ahead and mark what the Zircon thinks is a stud width (1 1/2".) Then take a small finishing nail and drive it in the wall on and close to your marks, that should give you a good feel for the actual stud, and how well your device is working. A Little spackling will cover the holes.

[josh bjork]

I have tried to use them for work and it is desperate business. If you think they work bad in a wall, try a ceiling with insulation. Studs everywhere! The only surefire one I have had is a $4 stanley one with a magnet. They break easily but they definitely show you where the sheetrock screws are.

[skip coyne]

mixed results I had the 49 model worked sometimes then died after a couple of years , I now have a basic zircon I picked up for 2 at the flea market that works pretty good .

[David G Baker]

I have one of the Zircon stud finders and it works well most of the time. Getting the set-up reading is critical, electric wires cause bad readings, and cross bracing will drive me crazy.
I run a piece of the 2 inch blue painters tape in the area where I want to mount things. I try to get good readings from the Zircon and mark the tape. If I get strange readings I do the set-up again. If that doesn't work I use my hand to tap on the wall and listen for the solid sound of a stud. I mark that area. If this does not work I get the smallest drill that I have and make a few holes in the wall in the area or where I think I need to hang something from. Once you locate one stud, you can usually measure from the center of the stud 16 inches in either direction to find the next stud.
David B

[David Rose]

Almost everything I have is drywalled. Most of it is textured. But I had the same result with wood panelling. My experience with my (can't remember current make and model, but I've had about 3) model is that sometimes it is dead on and sometimes it just tells me something because I ask. If I will cover the area with a cleat or cabinet, I skip the finder and start tapping with the butt of a hammer. When I'm close, I use a panelling nail held tightly with vice grips and start punching small holes. Normally 4 holes and I'm dead on! Thank you stud finder! Lots of folks seem to have one that works. I'm still looking, but not very hard. I've been fooled 3x already, so...

David

[Lamar Horton]

Same results here. I bought one and tried to use it but it gave me the error beep every time I touched the wall. I sold it on that auction site for half what I paid for. I chalked it up to "lesson learned". I have since bought a stanley studfinder and it works fine.

[Aaron Beaver]

I have a Stanley one as well that seems to work pretty good. I wish I could find one that had a "deep" scan to read through carpet and padding and the sub-floor so I could locate some floor joist.

[John Huber]

My experience with many models of stud finders over many years is like the posts already here. To summarize: stud finders work well on smooth walls covered by homogeneous material. Textured surfaces and inhomogeneous wall board (chip board) throw back extra reflections that confuse the stud finder. In extreme cases, it is useful to know that the stud wall usually starts in one corner. Measure 16" from one corner and use the small nail method. If that fails, try working from the other corner.

Also, electrical outlets and switches are almost always mounted on a stud -- right or left. Sometimes taking off the wall plate and looking inside will help you find which side the stud is on. Then at least you have a home base to measure from.

[Jim Becker]

Some days mine works fine...somedays, well...it's a challenge. Of course, it never works at all when I can't find it!

[Lou Morrissette]

I've had the same hit or miss luck with the Zircon. I find that using my Little Wizzard II metal detector works the best.

Lou

[Ed Wana]

Lou your a genius! Why havent I thought of that? Had the darn thing in the tool box (shaking head and mumbling). Must be getting old.

[John Buzzurro]

I have a Zircon, and I find it to be unreliable.

[Tom Hamilton]

Boyd, thanks so much for this post. I thought I would keep my secret buried deep in my shop: I can't get the stud finder to work!

Now I find there is a support group, right here on the Creek.

That device, notice I don't distingush it with the term "tool", is the most unreliable item in my shop. I too often fall back on a few taps on the wall and a 1/16" drill bit. Toothpaste also fills the holes if you can still find plain white!

Tom, in Houston, relieved to know he's not alone.

[David Rose]

Tom,

How about designing a Toothpaste Color Separator? :eek:

David


Boyd, thanks so much for this post. I thought I would keep my secret buried deep in my shop: I can't get the stud finder to work!

Now I find there is a support group, right here on the Creek.

That device, notice I don't distingush it with the term "tool", is the most unreliable item in my shop. I too often fall back on a few taps on the wall and a 1/16" drill bit. Toothpaste also fills the holes if you can still find plain white!

Tom, in Houston, relieved to know he's not alone.

[Larry Conely]

I threw mine out a couple weeks ago. Absolutely useless. I was beginning to think it was just me.

Larry

[Tom Hamilton]

Hummm, David, an opportunity knocks! Let's see, a pressure application device to empty the tube, dividers to separate the colors, some type of container to catch the white.

Do we sell the other colors as well, or just discard.

Maybe we could put the red/blue/green back in the tube and offer speciality toothpaste without the white. Opps, that doesn't sound like a good marketing strategy.

This has potential, but not much OT content.

All the best, Tom

[Dick Rowe]

I have trouble purchasing those things 'cause every time I walk past the stud sensor displays in the store the damn things keep going off!

Actually I had an old Zircon (probably 15 years old), that was marginally useful as others suggested.

I recently had a need to hang a shelf where patching an oops wasn't an option, and I didn't trust the old unit to accurately locate the studs on the first try, so I went to my local BORG and bought a fancy new Zircon with 'deep' scanning and electric wire sensing.

Not much better to be honest. It did seem to locate the electric wiring every time which was nice, but as far as stud location, I ran the new and the old side-by-side, and both were erratic.

I finally found a stud that both said was there, measured back in 16" increments and was able to find what I needed on the first pass.

My experience now is that it appears that 15 years of technology advancement didn't seem to help with this particular tool.

[Boyd Gathwright]

.... (Part 1 of 2) :eek:


.... I went ahead and tried the Mfg's (ZIRCON) suggestion with the heavier piece of cardboard under the unit as I scanned. It did seem to improve it's performance, somewhat, but nothing to write home about.
.... What I did to find the TRUE stud position is I used a plywood blade set to a depth of 1/2” on my circular saw and scored the wall horizontally about where I figured the stud should be and compared the penciled marks from before. A STANLEY variable adjustable hand held square with a very thin knife-like blade was used to probe the saw slot on both sides of the stud and marked it with a heavy long black mark on both sides of the stud and with a tiny black mark as it's center. Here are the results (see pics)



53970



53971



53972



53973



53974

:(

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[Boyd Gathwright]

.... (Part 2 of 2) :eek:


53975

53976

53977

:)

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[Kevin Beck]

I had an older Zircon (10 - 12 years old) that worked pretty good. It quit working one day and I purchased a new Zircon unit and it is totally useless. It never works, ever, and it hasn't since day one.

Kevin

[Boyd Gathwright]

.... Just catching up to things, time has a way of getting by.


.... Update: Recently I purchased the STANLEY IntelliSensor (stud finder) and though I did not go to the same extent in comparing, I got about the same results.


.... Now to sum up the commentary from a quality and durability point of view, which I think is getting to be as rare as hen's teeth here in the good old United States, I don't know about you all but my disposable income (that which is left over after all the other bills are paid) is meant to buy non-replaceable, high quality products because that disposable income is NOT that easily renewed. Consequently, I CANNOT afford to make TOO many mistakes. But, there are a lot of minds out there figuring out how to loosen YOUR purse strings so their budgets and profit margins will increase regardless of your desires or philosophy of life. COST is the God of creation from a manufacturer's point of view. Times have long past where the seller is considerate of the buyer's needs over money. Most people today, in my option, are thrown to the wolves. They do not have the background nor insight to make the decision they are contemplating, hence large credit card debt. There's just too many dollar-conscious people working against them. And even for the experienced, it can be difficult.


.... On to the basic heart of this commentary (STUD FINDERS). From most everyone's experience here, including my own, it appears what we have is another ideal product that may work correctly under ideal conditions.. maybe. Apparently, and for the most part, the practical everyday application of this product is non-existent and non profitable for the user. But, good enough for the advertising department to declare it a winner. After all, it did it once and therefore it should be able to do it again... we have a seller. The Bible of manufacturing is ADVERTISING, if there is a legal way (not necessarily morally) to claim a product works it is saleable. Once again, if the hype implies, but does NOT necessarily produce the end result that's just considered innocent, noninvasive advertising. After all, it sounds good doesn't it. In the meantime, your money has changed from your hand to theirs!!


Anything to show a profit and make money and YOU get go back to work to make some more money.


If you have a constructive point of view of this post please share it.

Thanks

Boyd


:)

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[Pete Brown]

I have the funky stud scanner (http://www.zircon.com/SellPages/ScanAndSensor/i700/i700.html) that has the odd articulated head and the button you push to draw a pencil mark (also came with a DVD I never played)

It has done really well in my house, which is all 1/2" sheetrock. It had a bit of a hard time on one wall where the mud was really thick on the joint. I just moved it up or down until I got a good read. Previous small stud scanners couldn't pick up anything useful.

The zircon didn't do very well on electrical or pipes. I suspect the electrical is because (d'uh) the breaker to the kitchen is off during the renovation :)

Pete

[John Kain]

Well, I bought the i700 with a gift certificate this holiday season.

I worked well identifying studs on three separate occasions.

I suppose, I can't ask for anything else.................

[John Timberlake]

I have cheap Zircon stud finder that works great. Only time it didn't was on a wall that was painted black - too much carbon black in the paint, I suppose. Just have to make sure I activate it where there is no stud.

[John Schreiber]

Guys, I've been using one of these for years and it works just fine. I've always felt like a poor cousin since I didn't have one of those Zircon units or something else with LEDs and beepers and what not, but now I feel like I am wise beyond my years.

55838

If you haven't used one, it's about an inch and a half wide, and the yellow thing is a ballanced magnet that swings toward the nails or screws that hold the drywall to the stud.