Toolbox: Tapeless Measures

How often have you had to ask a customer to hold the end of your tape measure while you were scoping out a job? With an ultrasonic measurer that reflects sound waves off a distant wall or ceiling, you may be able to wow that customer instead. But be careful; these devices are limited. You can’t measure from the ground to the peak of a gable end, for instance. The ultrasonic “beam” must hit square to a surface or the echo won’t be reflected back to the sensor. Furniture, curtains, or pictures on the wall can absorb or scatter the beam, giving an inaccurate measurement or none at all. Even if you aim the instrument correctly,