Home Gadgets
Black & Decker’s Thermal Leak Detector
Older homes have a tendency to have all kinds of drafty areas and sealing them up tends to be a nightmare. However, if you want to bring down your heating bill it becomes necessary to take care of the problem. Installing new windows can help, but finding the specific problem areas would make things a lot easier. Well this Black & Decker Thermal Leak Detector can help you with exactly that.
To use it, point it at a wall for a reference temperature, then go to the areas you think might be letting in the cold air. The gadget will then turn either red or blue depending on if it has found a cold or a hot spot. I’m sure you can guess which color indicates which. It only changes color when it detects a temperature change of 1, 5, or 10 degrees Fahrenheit (it can be switched to Celsius). It will also display the temperature on the LCD screen. To go with the detector is a guide on how to insulate and seal up your home. You will be able to purchase it on Black & Decker’s site for $39.99. As of now though, it’s still classified as coming soon, so no word on when it will actually be released.
Source: OhGizmo
Join 3 Comments
Electronic Gadgets Says: December 7, 2008 at 12:22 pm
This would be great if it can spot real heat/cool leaks but there will always be a difference between a wall and a window and almost all windows will show leaks around them.
Richard Hollister Says: December 20, 2008 at 12:27 pm
I have been fighting the “dreaded drafts” for years and can see where this B&D detector can assist in isolating the actual location of leaks. I have tried the “hand in the air” routines and it will show the direction, but not isolate the exact spot. I have used the “candle” routine also. There was an old Popular Science article back in the 60’s that showed a scamatic on how to build a leak detector using a thermistor, but I have not been able to find it again. I will be giving the B&D detector a try as soon as it comes out.
brian Says: December 6, 2008 at 3:43 pm
I don’t understand why cant people just put their hands where they think there is a leak…it is simple and saves you a lot of money…this device is applicable maybe for high accuracy construction/engineering purposes
http://www.livbit.com