Zircon Glossary
FIND STUD CENTRE
CenterVision® technology is the most exciting innovation to hit stud finding since Zircon introduced the original electronic stud finder back in 1980. Instead of the dual-scan-and-mark procedure, users need only make one pass to find the centre every time. CenterVision® tools will even find the centre of a double stud, although it will display a wide “centre” zone.
CenterVision® technology takes out guesswork of locating the best place to anchor into a stud.
FIND STUD EDGES
Stud finders work by measuring density. Your wallboard is one density; when the stud finder registers a higher density as you slide the tool along the wall, it probably means you’ve reached the edge of a stud. To find the centre of the stud, you must find both edges first.
Dual Scan and Mark Procedure
To ensure you find the centre of a stud, scan across the wall in both directions and mark each edge. The centre of the stud will be halfway between your two marks.
FIND WOOD OR METAL STUDS
Most residential construction uses wood studs, while metal studs are used for interior walls in most commercial construction. Zircon® edge finders and center finders can find the studs no matter what they’re made of. All Zircon® StudSensor™ tools find both wood and metal studs.
SCAN THICK WALLS FOR STUDS
Because of extra layers of wallboard or paneling, the studs could be too deep to be found by standard scanning. Tools with Zircon’s Deepscan® feature can be switched to a higher strength to detect studs and joists up to 38 mm deep. This extra power shouldn’t be used unless necessary, because on normal walls it is oversensitive and results in too many false positives.
WIREWARNING DETECTION
Tools with the WireWarning® detection feature continuously detect hot electrical wires (unshielded) up to 51 mm deep while you are scanning for studs or metal. The WireWarning® detection is always on, in all modes (except the dedicated AC Scan mode), to alert you to the presence of hot, unshielded AC wires behind the wall.
SCAN FOR ELECTRICAL
This AC Scan mode in Zircon® MultiScanner® products lets you search for hot AC voltage (unshielded by metal). Use this feature to find and trace wires. You can use you tool’s interactive calibration feature to get the most accurate results.
SCAN FOR METAL
Zircon® MultiScanner® stud finders with Metal Scan mode detect ferrous metal, such as rebar, up to 76 mm deep and non-ferrous metal, such as copper, up to 38 mm deep. Use the Interactive Calibration process to narrow and map metal.
ERASABLE MARKER
An integrated erasable marker makes it easy to mark the spot for anchoring without removing the tool from the wall. The marker is activated by a manual push button and can be used at any time. It does not mark the wall automatically.
SCAN FOR THERMAL
Thermal detection works by scanning for elevated temperature readings above the heat source. This mode allows you to detect actively powered hydronic radiant heating to scan for Pex Tubing before you drill, cut, or fasten.
Audio Indicator
Many of our products include an audio indicator as a complement to an LED or LCD display. This additional alert helps you get the job done faster. The device will give a steady tone when you find a stud (or other targeted material). Continuous beeping indicates a calibration error – move the tool to a new location and start scanning again.
Auto Correcting Technology (ACT™)
Checks calibration 10 times per second and recalibrates for the user when needed. If scanning happens to begin over a stud, the tool corrects itself and can find that stud when the user scans back over it. Some models will point an arrow back to the stud where scanning started.
Over-the-Stud Warning
Calibrating an electronic stud finder over a stud used to cause a problem that would lead to inaccurate results. In an effort to make our products as hassle-free as possible, we took that worry away.
Our StudSensor™ and MultiScanner® products are smart enough to know when something isn’t quite right. If you happen to start scanning over a stud and then move away from it, the tool will beep and blink continuously. This indicates a calibration error. Simply move the tool a few inches to the left or right and try again.
Signal Strength Indicator
Whether you’re after a stud, a wire, or a pipe, there are plenty of other things behind the wall that all have the potential to give the most sensitive Zircon® devices a false reading. To help the user filter out the target from potential decoys, the Signal Strength Indicator gives a reading of the strength, or the certainty, of the returning signal from the wall. Three bars (the highest level) indicates an obvious result behind a normal wall, while two bars (or below) indicates that while the device has found something, it may either be a smaller object than your target, or the target is behind an extra thick wall. Since every wall is built differently, and since any wall can have pipes, wires, or other objects behind it that can return a result, you can use the Signal Strength indicator to “map out” your wall to determine the target from the other objects.
SpotLite® Pointing System
This revolutionary feature projects a beam of light on the scanning surface when the target is located, adding an additional indicator to help you quickly zero in on the target in any scanning task. With the SpotLite® Pointing System, you not only see the target at the scan point, but you can also visualize how the stud edge continues up the wall.
TruCal® Instant Calibration
With Zircon’s patented TruCal® technology, you get instant and accurate one-touch calibration every time the tool is used, ensuring accuracy for each and every job. Simply place the tool on the wall, press the power button and wait for a single beep that indicates calibration is complete.
Interactive Calibration for Metal and AC
Interactive Calibration allows the user to locate metal or AC in any environment, and makes Zircon’s metal and AC abilities much more accurate than other brands.
When searching for metal objects or AC wiring, the target can be different sizes and varying distances behind the wall. This makes the target trickier to find than a standard stud. Interactive Calibration means you can start scanning at the highest sensitivity possible to locate tough-to-find objects, or customize the tool’s accuracy for easier targets.
We have a detailed guide on how to use Interactive Calibration for locating metal and AC with the highest degree of accuracy possible.