Three Ways to Find a Stud Without a Stud Finder

**@Diagonal** · 09-21-2014, 00:09

I came across this tip on Lifehacker earlier this evening and thought it would be useful info since there is a lot of talk about finding studs in the forums.

http://workshop.lifehacker.com/three...8Lifehacker%29

I still think a good electronic stud finder is best.

**Xtrm tj** · 09-21-2014, 06:46

Very interesting read...thank for sharing.

**hutzelbein** · 09-21-2014, 07:56

I never had any luck with the stud finders I got here in Germany (maybe because they are really meant for finding cables). Are stud finders in the US reliable / easy to use? If so, I might order one from overseas. Since my stud finder didn't help, my method so far has been to knock and roughly locate a stud, then use a very thin drill to work out where it is exactly. However, this meant that I had a lot of small holes in the wall...

**Rat** · 09-21-2014, 09:34

I use a Stanley stud sensor (for home and work) and it works great.
Stanley Stud Sensor STHT77404. This one also locates live wires/circuits behind the sheetrock; since you may not need that I can recommend the Stanley Stud Sensor TSTHT77403. The 77403 doesn't locate as deeply and it doesn't have the live circuit sensor. Still a good sensor though.

The trick to using stud sensors is this: Approach from both directions. Find the edge of the stud coming from the left, then find the edge of the stud coming from the right; measure and mark halfway between these points. That will be the center of your stud.

Using the knock method I do this: I place a glass against the wall and then put my ear to it (glass opening to the wall). I then use a small rubber mallet (you can wrap a small hammer in duct tape) to tap the wall just below the glass. I move the glass until I can hear that the sound is the same from the left and the right; I know my glass is on the stud. A stethoscope works great for this as well.

**nothermark** · 09-21-2014, 09:48

Originally Posted by hutzelbein

I never had any luck with the stud finders I got here in Germany (maybe because they are really meant for finding cables). Are stud finders in the US reliable / easy to use? If so, I might order one from overseas. Since my stud finder didn't help, my method so far has been to knock and roughly locate a stud, then use a very thin drill to work out where it is exactly. However, this meant that I had a lot of small holes in the wall...

It depends on wall structure and the stud finder. If you have a sheet rock wall and studs under it the electronic ones work OK. If you have heavy plaster over metal lath less so. If you have a solid wall you do not have studs. In all cases they are looking at density or metal in the wall so they are more of an edge finder. Come in from both sides and look for the edge. Center is the middle of the two locations unless it's a doubled stud.

What I am not sure of is how walls are built in Germany.

**@Diagonal** · 09-21-2014, 15:42

Originally Posted by Xtrm tj

Very interesting read...thank for sharing.

You're welcome.

Originally Posted by hutzelbein

I never had any luck with the stud finders I got here in Germany (maybe because they are really meant for finding cables). Are stud finders in the US reliable / easy to use? If so, I might order one from overseas. Since my stud finder didn't help, my method so far has been to knock and roughly locate a stud, then use a very thin drill to work out where it is exactly. However, this meant that I had a lot of small holes in the wall...

I have a stud finder made by ZIRCON and all of the walls in my home are drywall. I've used it numerous times to locate the edges of studs, as Rat has clarified. I used it back in 2012 to install wire shelving and the brackets for an additional clothes rod in my walk-in closet. I recently used it to mark out the studs in my master bedroom in preparation for possibly hanging my hammock from the walls. I've got blue pieces of masking tape all over two walls.

"...had a lot of small holes..." that you then need to spackle and paint. No thank you, I'll stick with my ZIRCON stud finder.

**f k** · 09-22-2014, 15:56

Originally Posted by hutzelbein

I never had any luck with the stud finders I got here in Germany (maybe because they are really meant for finding cables). Are stud finders in the US reliable / easy to use? If so, I might order one from overseas. Since my stud finder didn't help, my method so far has been to knock and roughly locate a stud, then use a very thin drill to work out where it is exactly. However, this meant that I had a lot of small holes in the wall...

If you have a strong magnet you can also use that to locate where the screw that hold up the drywall are. That saves a few holes in the wall.

**The Tree Frog** · 09-22-2014, 18:26

Originally Posted by f k

If you have a strong magnet you can also use that to locate where the screw that hold up the drywall are. That saves a few holes in the wall.

Great idea. Thanks!

**hutzelbein** · 09-23-2014, 10:03

Great advice everybody - thanks a lot! For the moment I don't need a stud finder (my current walls are Ytong - very bad for hanging hammocks, but I managed to set something up), but you don't know when you need to find two studs to hang next

The stethoscope method sounds definitely worth a try.

Originally Posted by nothermark

What I am not sure of is how walls are built in Germany.

It differs. I used to live in a prefabricated house - I think that's probably similar to what you would find in the US. I have also installed pad eyes in a house built of brick and mortar. But since I was hanging under the roof, it was similar to the prefab house. I wish I would live in one of those houses with proper beams. I would not need to drill then, but would be able to just use my tree huggers...

**Gqgeek81** · 09-23-2014, 11:13

What you want is C.H. Hanson's magnetic stud finder. I bought mine after reading this review last year.
http://kk.org/cooltools/archives/11609

It sticks to the nails in the dry wall and it will literally just hang on the wall by the magnet. This IMO is ideal since (assuming the dry wall guy did a good job) the nail is centered so you're not just finding the stud, you're finding the center of it.

According to every stud finder I've tried to use, my walls contain a rapidly shifting network of hundreds and hundreds of studs