[Inspired]

So some of you have been using a Laser Tape. If it will help speed up the lot survey/measuring process, I definitely want one. I really want to be as cool as Y'all anyway, so I bought a Stanley at Homo Depot today. I'm not sure I like it. Anything over 50' and it takes three of four tries to get a measurement and many times the measurements differ quite a bit... like as in feet. It states it has a 100' range, but you better have a nice big barn door or similar to reflect off of. Is it just a weak laser maybe?

What are you guys using?

[agla]

I have the same one -Fat Max by Stanley for about $100. It is not perfect. You can't get every shot, but you can get a whole lot of measurements a lot faster than you can with just a tape. But don't lave your tape at home.

I havetaken shots in the 80-90' range, but it is not easy and you can't get them every time. You also have to keep it warm. I have to put mine inside my upper sleeve for a few minutes from time to time to warm it up this time of year. It also does not get a read on really bright surfaces in the sun, or really rough surfaces. I usually have a big white plan on a 2'x2' clipboard with me that I sometimes use as a reflector. Sometimes you just can't see the beam to know what you are targeting either.

The engineering company I work for bought a couple of Leica lasers. I believe that they actually manufacture the one made for Stanley, but it is a lower end device. The Leica is supposed to be good for 600', it has a view finder so that you can aim it whether you see the beam or not, and it has a level bubble in it. I've used it, but only once or twice without giving a real test. The price was about $500 for each. That is more than I can justify for the difference.

I just take the shots that I can and bust out the tape for those that I can't get.

My method is to measure up the building and sketch it on graph paper. Then I label the corners alphabetically. I do a rough sketch of what is there using circles with numbers in them to represent the things I want to locate. On the side of the paper I list those items and take at least 2 shots from those items to corners of the building. Then I write the coordinates next to the description and number.



Crude but quick. This is an actual note page. Keep in mind that I have a clipboard in one hand, a cigar and pencil in the other, and a laser sitting on the clip board and it was about 20 degrees that day.

I keep a 100' tape tucked in the back of my pants and a 25' on my belt and I have to use them because the laser won't get every shot. I think I get 80-90% done with the laser.

[Inspired]

Thanks Agla. Maybe I'll keep it for the smaller yards and the shorter reach measurements.

Your survey sheet looks like mine. Thats funny. I think I may still have you on messy measurements. I'll scan my last one and post it. lol.

[agla]

I went out today and located 40 trees and shrubs. I had 100% good results with the laser. It was a nice day,clear and mild. You are looking at that weather right now on the tv I'm sure.

[secondnature]

This little tool sounds like what I may have needed for my large, steep sloped backyard!!

When you are measuring with the laser, will it account for slope? Do any of you have a formula you follow for accounting for slope? When you measure from a higher point to a lower point you gain more footage due to the length created by the slope, so hard to get a true measurement (and carrying a ladder is alot to schlep around!).

I have a little line level that I can clip onto a string and could base one end at the house, and the other at the lower destination then raise it to level to get my slope. Once I know that is there a formula you all use??

Thank you!!

[agla]

The laser tape won't help with elevations very much except that you can measure horizontally to taller objects on the lower portion from the higher part of the property and then use them as references when measuring the lower area. If there is a two story home below, it would work very well.

[secondnature]

Thanks...I ought to look into one of those!

For instance, if I were to shoot a measurement line from the house at the high end of property straight out to a tree in the lower area, then I can get the true measurement rather than having to schlepp down there and measure to the bottom of the tree at ground level (which gives me an incorrect measure).

I could then use that measurement as the base for other triangulations rendereing a more true measurement.

Originally Posted by agla

The laser tape won't help with elevations very much except that you can measure horizontally to taller objects on the lower portion from the higher part of the property and then use them as references when measuring the lower area. If there is a two story home below, it would work very well.

[dandyliondancer]

Looks like i'm going to have to buy a new toy. hurray! my question is: can you really hit the corners of the house accurately? intuitively, it seems like if you are shooting at an angle the reflected beam would bounce off the wall in the opposite direction. i guess there must be enough variability in the surface texture that some of the beam get reflected straight back at you. thats a rhetorical question i suppose. i was also musing about how you could get a reading as close to the corner as possible, as opposed to 1 or 2 or 3 feet from the corner, if you are just aiming by sight. seems like you might slowly sweep the laser towards the corner and when the distance reading suddenly jumps then you know that you are there. is that how you do it? and have you checked the results against a tape for accuracy? just wondering . . . actually i'm aleady sold, and can see that i will be doing some experiments on my own here . . .

[secondnature]

Futhermore.....is it possible to have a surface board that you could place in the ground (on a stake or whathave you) and place it where you needed the measurement? That way there would be no "bouncing" around. And, you could still be fairly accurate.

K

[agla]

Karla,

Yes, measuring out to the tree somewhat level will get you pretty close. It would be better to take a shot from two different corners of the house to the tree so that you could draw it accurately on your plan using the intersection of arcs.

I sometimes use my plan on a clipboard for a target because the red shows up pretty well on it.

Dandylion,

It does not give you a constant reading. You shine the beam and push a button when you are on target. Then you have the result on the screen for a few minutes. It is helpful to hold it against an object because it is pretty easy to get of target when you push the button.

One of the hard things is to see the beam which is a faint red light shining on your target. I can't just aim it intuitively when I go to use it. If there is not a lot of light on a surface and the surface is big (like a house wall), you can see it pretty easily. If it is bright, it can be harder. After using it for several shots, it is much easier to intuitively aim.

[papercutter]

ok, I finally broke down and bought the Stanley laser measurer. The first fifteen minutes, I was like "this is utter crap, I better keep it clean so I can return it on the way home." Then I got the hang of it, and oh my damn! Awesome. It still has its shortcomings (thick brush, etc.) but it really sped up the process. I was having trouble seeing the red dot, until I remembered I had a pair of those red glasses that come with some laser levels bouncing around the toolbox. Did I look like a complete doofus? Sure, but I looked like a complete doofus who was banging out measurements in a fraction of the time. It was worth it just for measuring under a low deck. So, thanks for the recommendation.

[agla]

Where can I get those glasses? It won't change my look much. My brother says that my sun glasses usually make me look like a "bad guy" from the original Charlie's Angels series. ...retro?

[papercutter]

do a search on amazon for "laser glasses." DeWalt makes a wraparound looking pair- tell your brother you can update your look to the mid 90s!

[msfxJeep]

Thanks for the thread. Since I'm design-only, I'm usually trying to round someone up to help me. I think this (even faulty) could help me out a ton when I need quick measurements and don't want to try to find help.

[jshilan]

Call me old fashioned, but why isn't everyone initially working off of a property survey?

I'll be the first to admit that I don't locate my trees perfectly on the survey (my feeling is that they actually move after I leave) but I know that I am in the ballpark as long as I have a scaled plan of the house, driveway, property lines etc.

I'm all for new gadgets and technology, which I have plenty of, but if a client isn't willing to get you a copy of their survey, then how serious can they be about the work. Besides that, there is less accuracy in field measurements so when it comes time to build, your sf's and other quantities will be inaccurate too.

If you do have to collect some site data by hand without a survey at least do yourself a favor and invest in some 8x8 or 10x10 graph paper (it's cheap), depending on which scale you work in. You can measure the site and draw to scale and you don't need to write things like 22'-6 1/2" or 5'-2" off of sidewalk, etc. The two great things with the graph paper is that you will have a scaled base map to work with (and not some notebook paper that you have to convert back at the office) and if you missed something or measured wrong you will quickly see your mistake (ie. the house doesn't end where it began) at the site and not have to run back at some later time.