We may earn commission from the links on this page.
When it comes to DIY projects, my enthusiasm and willingness to dive in has always compensated for a lack of what some people call “skill” – I’m a person who has to cut twice, no matter how many times I measure. Finding the studs in the wall is a perfect example: it should be the easiest part of any project, but fancy digital stud finders have always disappointed me – in fact, the fancier they are, the less useful I find them.
That’s why Studpop is so great. This is an incredibly simple stud finder—and incredibly inexpensive. It has become so easy to locate the studs in my walls that I have thrown those digital stud finders in the trash.
Studpop uses powerful magnets to locate studs
Using expensive, fancy stud finders was always a confusing experience – they always seemed to throw the right light after I had passed a screw, or mysteriously indicated there was no stud in my house. Studpop skips all the fancy stuff and uses a simple system: a powerful magnet attached to a plastic indicator. I’ve had magnetic stud finders before, but their magnets were usually quite weak, and they were just as frustrating as fancy electronic finders because they gave a lot of false positives.
In contrast, Studpop is so powerful that it will stick to the wall if it hits any metal. This makes it easier to identify the studs. You move the studpop in a lazy S-shaped pattern along the wall until the indicator pops up (you’ll feel it when it hits something – the magnet is very strong). Once you have a mark, you move the studpop vertically down in the same S-shaped motion until you reach another spot. This way you know you’ve found a stud rather than a protection plate or wire – three hits on the same vertical means you’ve found your stud.
What do you think so far?
marking a stud on the wall
Credit: Jeff Somers
The whole process takes about a minute, with (in my experience) zero false positives. The fact that it sticks in place when hit by a nail or screw leaves your hands free, and the simple plastic indicator is easy to interpret – it’s either standing or it’s not. The devices don’t get much simpler than this, and there are no batteries to replace or charge, no user manuals to read, and it’s small, so it doesn’t take up precious storage space. I haven’t dug in a vacant lot since I picked it up.
