Cyberguy
Our home has exterior vinyl siding. Years ago, I mounted a piece of 3/4" plywood about 18" square on which to hang our garden hose. At that time, I could not locate any studs in the area, so I just used 2" long deck screws to secure the board. That worked ok for a few years, but gradually the weight of the water-filled hose started pulling the siding away from the wall. Before that became a much bigger problem, I decided it was time to make a new mounting board that was screwed into at least two studs.
The problem was that I could not locate the studs. I tried several methods. First I tried my 20+ year-old Zircon stud finder. It works pretty well on interior walls, but not on exterior walls that are too deep in the wall. Next I tried a powerful Neodymium magnet hanging from a thin string. That method has worked well for finding interior studs by locating the nail heads, but I had no luck on this exterior wall where the studs are set back about 3/4" - 1" from the surface of the siding.
I even used an infrared camera on a cold night. Sometimes the studs will show up because they are warmer than the siding. This "almost" worked - I could vaguely see the locations of the studs, but when I drilled some test holes I did not strike wood. I even tried using the stud finder on the interior side of the wall opposite where I wanted to mount the hose. I found the studs, but had to make assumptions about the offsets from the edges of the wall inside vs. outside. Again, no luck after drilling several test holes.
So I searched Amazon for a new stud finder. My hope was that more modern versions may be sensitive enough to locate studs 1" deep in the wall.
As soon as the new stud finder arrived, I did a series of tests on interior walls where I already knew where the studs were located. It passed those tests with ease. I took it out to where I wanted to mount the hose, and, at first, had no luck.
After reading the user manual (for me, always a last resort (-: ) I found that I could change the depth sensitivity. Wow, to my surprise, the scanner quickly located the studs! Drilling a few test holes confirmed that it even accurately located the stud centers.
So after hours of frustration, I now had a quick and reliable solution. I was able to get the job done and move on to the next one. This stud finder has earned a permanent place in my toolbox. When I find time, I plan to replace the mounting board with a bigger one that completely covers the 1x2s used to span the studs.
| Manufacturer | JAXWQ |
|---|---|
| Part Number | 410-A-GRAY-1 |
| Item Weight | 8.1 ounces |
| Package Dimensions | 7.8 x 3.23 x 1.73 inches |
| Color | Silver Grey |
| Batteries Included? | Yes |
| Batteries Required? | Yes |
| Battery Cell Type | Alkaline |
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