[RE-wrenches] BOSCH

[August Goers]

Hi Dana –

We have a D-tect as well. We’ve had mostly good results with all kinds of
flat roofs as well as comp shingle jobs. As Mark mentions below, foil lined
insulation under the roofing material completely blocks the D-tect's ability
to find rafters. I haven’t used it on a metal roof but I suspect that it
might not work very well for a similar reason. 

Technique plays a really important role in successfully using the tool. It
has four wheels which need to roll smoothly in order to locate the rafters.
We’ve been using a thin flexible plastic cutting board under the D-tect to
keep it rolling smoothly – this works well. Rolling the device swiftly and
smoothly back and forth also tends to yield positive results. It is also
often necessary to use it over several different areas of the roof before
finding the real rafters. We typically use a building crayon and a tape
measure to mark and measure rafters as we go. The tape measure can help rule
out false readings since the D-tect will often spot objects other than
rafters.

All in all it is a great tool and saves a lot of time and headache on
difficult jobs but it doesn't work all the time. I'd recommend it for any
company installing solar on roofs on a regular basis. Don't expect it to
replace a good hammer (tap tap tap...), measuring tape, and patience,
however.

-August



August Goers


Luminalt Energy Corporation
O:  415.564.7652
M:  415.559.1525
F:   650.244.9167
www.luminalt.com
august at luminalt.com

________________________________________
From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org
[mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Mark Frye
Sent: Friday, January 23, 2009 4:56 PM
To: 'RE-wrenches'
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] BOSCH

Dana,
 
I own the Bosch D-tect 100.
 
I bought it from Lawson HIS LTD in England.
 
I bought it for a job with a flat built up roof, no access to the attic to
spot the rafters.  It didn't work quite as well as I hoped because it
detected the various nails used to hold down the varoius built up layers. 
However, I was able to locate the rafters using many passes and building up
a sort of a SETI project picture of the locations.
 
I have used it on other jobs as well. I really loved it on an exposed
sheeting job for a new roof.  The nailing was way off and it was very
accurate and fast finding the actual centerline.
 
As far as metal roof, I would say no. I was recently stimeded on a simple
comp shingle job because the sheeting had the foil radiant barrier on the
back side, total blank.
 
It doesn't do everything, but when it's good, it's good. When it's bad it's
sad because you know how much time it can save when it works.
 
Mark Frye 
Berkeley Solar Electric Systems 
303 Redbud Way 
Nevada City,  CA 95959 
(530) 401-8024 
www.berkeleysolar.com  
 

________________________________________
From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org
[mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Dana
Sent: Friday, January 23, 2009 4:41 PM
To: 'RE-wrenches'
Subject: [RE-wrenches] BOSCH
Hello All,

I have heard of a BOSCH rafter/stud finder [Euro product]  in the $1,000+
range that can “see” through a metal roof and find the rafters and it also
allegedly works on multiple layers of built up roofing, spray foam roofs
etc.

Has anyone seen one, used one, or owns one?

Does it really do all the above?

Does anyone have a source for this wonderful tool?

Thanks -

Dana Orzel

Great Solar Works, Inc
www.solarwork.com
E - dana at solarwork.com
V - 970.626.5253
F - 970.626.4140
C - 970.209.4076
“I'd put my money on solar energy
 I hope we don't have to wait 'til oil and
coal run out before we tackle that.”
—Thomas Edison, in conversation with Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone, March
1931