Bosch D-tect 120 professional wall scanner
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- čas přidán 9. 10. 2021
- The Bosch D-tect 120 is a wall scanner which uses radar technology to detect objects buried in walls, concrete or drywall partitions. I picked this up from a seller on ebay for £150 a few months back. Drilling into walls always carries a risk, especially for inexperienced people. The Bosch D-tect reliably picked up all objects that I tested, although there are some issues with detecting live objects.
If you need to locate studs to fix a heavy item to plasterboard/drywall, this video should help- • How to fix heavy items... - Jak na to + styl
I watched the promo video and from what I can tell the ‘Live’ logo is used to basically tel you NOT to drill into the object. That means it will show up LIVE for any object that isn’t a stud (aka Live or Non-Live Wire, Plastic Pipe Filled with water, or Copper pipe). I ordered one myself - haven’t used it yet - but I presume this is how it is intended for use.
Basically it will tell you if something is there and whether or not you should drill into it.
The static electricity on the wall can be picked up. So place your hand on wall to discharge what is effectively a large plate. You must also be grounded. So touch radiators or make sure you are discharged. It works perfectly, so long as you remember that it only checking for differences in properties. Keep the sensor against the wall at all times. I think people don’t like it because they are unsure how to use this. Remove your hand unless it beeps indicating a live signal. Only then place hand on wall and see if discharging static will change the detected signal. It really is great if used properly. Lath and plaster will obviously have variable density/stiffness below the wall surface. Even so with care you can find studs, but thus takes practise
Also in Multi mode/ or plasterboard mode the max depth is only 60 cm. Another tip is to move it vertically to. I.e. scan the whole area of interest. Try using concrete (even if not concrete) for deep structures/thick walls.
damn someone who knows what they are talking about. god bless.
Man.. thank you so much for that tip. I was wondering why my wall was FULL with cables
Have you tried this to find copper pipe in concrete floor? thanks
If it uses radar instead of induction why it needs to avoid the static electricity? I experienced the phenomena you talked about with a simple induction based sensor device, but why for radar?
Got to be worth it. I can imagine it saving the day regardless of the live function. Sure looks better than cheaper ones. Thanks for video !
Yeah, at least it found everything and was very accurate.
Thanks for the comment 👍
I've had several different types of these annoying "detectors" .
Never been fully satisfied with their performance.
Although never tried the more expensive ones, as one off jobs don't seem to warrant the cost.
......However. these videos of yours are brilliantly explained and extremely specific.
So glad you do not waste a second on the usual CZcams faff of playing to the gallery.
Keep up the good work.!!!
Thanks for the comment 👍
If several don't work then it's user error chief
You are the first handyman that can detect wooden studs with a magnet. I have never seen that before lol.
The plasterboard is fixed to the studs using steel screws or nails 😉
You just saved me money was going buy one today! Need it to work 100% ,👍
It does work and detects everything, but does not reliably indicate when a cable is live.
Thanks for the comment 👍
Great review. Thank you. It’s a lot of money for the enhanced features (live/type) that clearly don’t work as advertised. But useful to see if ‘something’ is in the way.
Thanks for the comment 👍
It does work, you just need to ground the wall first with your hand
Always enjoy your videos and appreciate this review. Project Farm had a stud finder review that may also interest some people. Cheers
Thanks Mark ;-)
Is this Bosch D-tect 120 shows the electrical problem also ? or only detects the metal wire.
When your spending a lot of money on this you want it to work 100%
Yeah, you can't fault the accuracy of the detection, but if the live cable detection bit worked better, it would be superb. (perhaps I was sold a faulty unit)
Thanks for the comment
@@ultimatehandyman Thank you for showing your experiences with this wall scanner. Unfortunately this seems to be a fault in general. With my Bosch D-Tect 120 there is the same Problem with the live cable detection.
Same here, the accuracy of live cable identification is not good here too
Same as cheaper versions of detector gsm 120 just with fancy screen, no improvement in sensor 🤑
@@woodplay13nah the gsm takes ages to find it band on, I tried it. This is much faster
I just wanted to say thanks for reviewing this product. I ordered one myself, and it arrived on Monday. To be honest with you, am not inpressed with it. Sometimes it shows me where live cables are.. Other times not. I went above light switch, it tells me a live cable is present, when I go Into next room on other side of wall, it tells me its clear! I went over another part where a live socket is present, it completely missed it. Told me its clear when in fact its not. I went over a part on wall where it says a live cable is present. That can't be the case as I have a pic hanging up at the same spot. I just don't thing the technology is there on theses things yet. Feel gutted as I paid £ 243. I think I will send it back
That is not good!
I've used mine a few times and have not hit any pipes or cables (yet). If you are not happy and can get a refund, I would do that 👍
Mate it's 9 in the morning on a Sunday go back to bed, just kidding you're great, keep up the good work
To be honest, I could do with going back to bed, after cutting out some leaking gate valves on my central heating system yesterday with Josh, it was about 7pm when we finished 😂
Thanks for the comment 👍
It really matters little and nothing that detects whether it is electric or not. Nobody wants to drill any kind of pipe. Whether or not you have electricity. If you tell me that I can drill accurately, that's already a blessing.
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what would happen if you were to start scanning whilst over a cable/pipe/timber? i think scanners like that calibrate themselves initially, right? would you know how accurate this would be if you were to do that?
Not sure, this scanner is supposed to calibrate itself when switched on.
It finds all the objects accurately, it's just the live detection which is a bit of a problem.
Hopefully I won't hit any pipes or cables when using this (not that I have done in the past)
Thanks for the comment 👍
I managed to pick this up from eBay for about £150. At least it will ensure that I don’t go drilling into any pipes or cables (although I have never hit one in my life).
I hope everyone has a great Sunday 😉
I bought this during lockdown so for once you’ve not cost me money like you normally do!
I justified it because it’s cheaper than drilling a pipe or cable!
Yeah, it's great at finding things, just a pity the live function does not work better.
Thanks for the comment
Is the updated version of the bosch dmf 10 detector you tested before, but couldn't couldn't get that one working either. Seems Bosch should give up on detectors.
At least this one is accurate and seems to find burried objects, it's just the "live" function that lets it down!
Thanks for the comment 👍
Would you recommend buying this? I already have the cheaper Bosch GMS120 which I find not worth the money as usually I end up undoing sockets to check whether cables run up or down, and checking where Heating pipes run manually. Cant trust the GMS120.
It does seem to find anything that is hidden, even though it does not always indicate that a live cable is live.
If you are doing a lot of drilling into walls, then yes, I would get one of these.
If the "live" feature worked better, this would be perfect.
I got mine for £150 on eBay, so it's worth checking every now and again, as they are often over £200+
Thanks for the comment 👍
Thanks for the Honest Vid. Some units I've bought in the past, calibrate by placing the unit on the wall first. I've never had any luck with these units, and the trouble is, some of the places I've found live pipes and cables is astonishing nowadays. Thanks again 👍
Yeah, it's amazing where some people bury pipes and cables!
Thanks for the comment 👍
We sent a man to walk on the effing moon in 1969 but 50y later we still can’t build a decent detector to look through 1/2” of plaster 🤷🏻♂️
It seems to find everything that is buried, it's just the "live" bit that needs improving.
I'd be quite confident of drilling into a wall after scanning it with this, as it did detect everything, but did not indicate that the cable was live.
Thanks for the comment 👍
it was made by a company who never set foot on the moon. they haven't reached our level yet in engineering. all jokes a side this has 100x times the computing power of anything from 1969 haha
How to check pipe, wires, stud .....horizontal way?
All reviews only talk about vertical way.
Thanks you
Question: Where is the actual point of the reading?
By that I mean - is the detection point in the centre of the crosshairs ? If so how do you mark that point on the wall?
Yes, it's the dead centre of the cross hairs.
I think there is a mark at the top of the detector, where you can mark studs etc 👍
Thanks for the video =)
You are welcome
Thanks for the comment 👍
Hi ! 2 years later do you recommend this product ? Or can you think of a better one for a similar range of price ? Thanks.
This is ok for the money (obviously you can get proper wall scanners, but they are really expensive). I used this a few weeks back when fitting a shelf above an area that was known to have live cables (the consumer unit was below the shelf). I managed to fix it without hitting a cable, so I was happy 👍
A great video, I have a cheap (£40ish) Bosch truvo detector and honestly it's no better or worse than this as far as detection goes so I'm not convinced this tool is worth the extra money. It does the exact same beeps and light as this one and has the same issue where the detection is reasonably good but it struggles to tell the difference between live cables and other items. The main advantage of this tool seems to be that the display gives you a bit more accuracy in where the center of the item is but I'm not sure I'd trust it that closely anyway (I wouldn't personally try drilling 2cm from the center of an item or something).
Also normally I buy Makita tools as they tend to offer a good range of tools for my budget but they only sell 1 detector and it's £1000!! Curious if that one is any better...
Yeah, I would not drill 2cm away from anything either!
I've not tried much Makita stuff, I borrowed my mates 18v grinder once, but it was embarrassingly useless ;-)
Thanks for the comments
The Truvo doesn't claim to detect water filled plastic pipes, that's the key difference between these two. Also the Truvo isn't as powerful, and can't detect things as deep - Detection to ferrous metal 70 mm, non-ferrous metal 60 mm and live wire 50 mm
@@alexanderbuckland exactly!!
How does it determine what is a stud, pipe or cable
It doesn't- it just tells you that there is something there.
When the Led illuminates green, it means it should be safe to drill in that area.
Thanks for the comment 👍
The very big minus of this detector is that it can't recognize the nature of the material in the wall. Would be very usefull when looking for timber frame in the drywall to hang some heavy units. A big question if there is a timber or plastic water pipe behind the drywall when you're going to screw in something. LOL
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I've never got your magnet stud finder suggestion to work. Is this because the magnets are not powerful enough and, if so, can you recommend any?
I use these now, as the additional bit at the end makes them easy to move- fave.co/3AzO3pV
I think I used them in this video, when fitting a TV- czcams.com/video/awuqDum0ay8/video.html&t
Thanks for the comment 👍
At over £200 that’s pretty steep. Question is, is it significantly better than the £20-£30 ones on Amazon.
Yeah, I managed to get it for £150.
I've tried cheaper ones in the past and they have been totally useless, although many of those have been "stud finders" rather than a detector.
I'll see how well it works over the coming months!
Thanks for the comment 👍
I'm subscribed and set up for alerts ... but I have not seen your videos recommending or notified in years?
I know that you are one of my regular commenters. I'm not sure what's going on with CZcams to be honest, their comment system is certainly not working correctly since they introduced "CZcams studio", Now people are not getting the notifications!
Thanks for letting me know 👍
There is not much I can do about it though, as even I have to go through the same help system as everyone else!
Should you put a hand against the wall or not.
What is the science (ie static)
Do the instructions tell you to put a hand against the wall
Do you put hand against both stud and solid walls or just one
In your excellent video, putting hand against the wall makes a big difference to the readings. I would welcome more clarification on this aspect.
Many thanks
You just have to try it, to see if it makes a difference.
I used this last week to find some studs and it worked great, but I also tried it when putting up a picture and it was indicating live cables in the middle of a wall with no known sockets etc 🤔
@@ultimatehandyman I received a reply from Ralf Woerdenweber (Bosch Customer Service Team) which states ‘The reading would be more accurate by placing the hand on the wall first to remove any static before the scanner is applied.’
@@mattbower4725 I don't recall seeing that in the instructions, or in their promotional videos.
Thanks for the comments 👍
(Sorry for the late reply, CZcams comments has been playing up AGAIN, So I have just seen this)
Bought this to detect pvc pipes in brick wall behind tiles. The bloody things screaming all over the place. Back in box, going back to the shop !!!
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We need to post another video👍
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I use the slightly cheaper bosch gms120 every day at work and i all ways have to put my hand on the wall to remove the static, must be a common issue with these. Works just as well as the more expensive one!
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Charlie, can you detect plastic water pipes with the gms 120?
@@angelmachadobernal6966 No, it can not. I switched from GMS 120 to D-Tect 120 for first water pipe detection and second calibration free process.
Thank you for sharing your experience. I guess it’s the same as moisture meters for example. One has to learn how to use them.
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They should call it “The Bosch Defect”.
To be fair, it did find everything, but the live function is not reliable (there is a chance that my unit is faulty, although it was brand new, in the box)
Thanks for the comment 👍
It will also detect a pencil marking as it’s led lol. I had measured and marked walls to drill then used this detector and it will trigger of. So use it before using a pencil as it is led and will trigger off.
😂
bit like the tricorders captain kirk used....little bit un..reliable.....
but with captain kirk.... we knew there were monsters nearby anyway.....
I guess it finds somethings there...soo dont drill there..
do bosch make tricorders..?
N x
Don't know, never watched star wars, or star Treck 😂
Yeah, it seems to find everything that is hidden, and you can't be too careful these days as wires and cables seem to be placed in walls at random 😂
Thanks for the comment, Neil 👍
I'm not sure about tricorders but they apparently make phasers. See their 'Ultimate Humid' moisture meter product. Someone must be a big star trek fan at the product design department. 😄
Im sitting here with a new unit and it’s bloody awful. It’s all over the place. Basically everything creates signals and alarms. Will return it.
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How does it read through CONCRETE? Very poorly I bet, never seen a video on concrete, always some clean setup, never real life situations.
I bought the consumer ‘Truvo’ Bosch detector a couple of years ago and found it’s LIVE detection unreliable as it used the body’s path to EARTH as a reference. Depending how you hold the detector and wall, what you’re wearing on your hands/feet or standing on, it wasn’t reliable so I returned for a refund.
I'm quite happy with this detector being able to find buried objects, but the "Live" function is useless. I'll make sure I use it from now on, and if I drill into anything I shouldn't I'll report back!
Thanks for the comment 👍
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Artex wall or rough plaster true test £150 not a chance
I have a couple of Artexed ceilings here, I'll try it on one of them later ;-)
Thanks for the comment 👍
@@ultimatehandyman you are the man true up front guy
@@Allegedly2right Thanks 👍, I tried it on an Artex ceiling and it seemed to work. It seemed to indicate where the studs were and the cables going to the light fitting!
Cheers I wouldn’t get my moneys worth but if you hit a water pipe haha
Buy a submarine and just get it to do a ping, 1 ping only...... I'll get my coat.
😂
It's even October.
I prefer Hilti one
Blimey, I'm a working man, I can't afford Hilti 😂
Thanks for the comment 👍
Mine D Tect 120 are absolute useless… in my walls everthing are electrical appenrently 🤷♂️ so Im not screwing anything…
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I'd ask for my money back!
At least it can detect things, hidden in walls.
It's amazing where some tradesmen run cables and pipes!
Thanks for the comment 👍
So is it completely useless for finding stud to screw or drill into since it doesn't make difference between things behind the wall? Brilliant video. Appreciate your effort! Thank you
It's good for finding pipes etc. But you never know what it actually is- you just know that something is there. This is how I find studs- czcams.com/video/h1adPjsah5w/video.html&t
No, you just need to remove the static from the wall first