Stud finder

Try it and see. The location must be known approximately to the members of the household, surely?

I was hoping for some advice before I went out and purchased a tool that I don't really need for anything else...

Borrow one?

Thanks for the offer! I work till' 3. you can stop by any time after that. Or I can pick it up if I have to.

I'm actually interested in how a stud finder works. I know the cheep ones are magnetic and detect metal fasteners in the studs. But do the better ones work by sensing differences in density?

Guest (Or should I call you Mr. Vila),

The three types of stud finders on the market that I am aware of work on different principles:

The first type actually detects the metal of nail heads placed in the stud (to affix wallboard or other wall sheathing) - these can also detect rebar in concrete to some extent;

The second type detects variations in the density of the underlying wall - It works on a capacitance differential generated by density difference between the stud and the wall sheathing - the dielectric constant is different;

The third variety employs a type of radar.

(I have the first two types of stud sensors, and find that they work pretty well. )

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Given your circumstance, I am not certain which type would give you the most reliable results.

Do you recall if you removed the air discharge/diffuser grille from the ductwork before you installed the flooring? Was the grille magnetic?

Either way, as a first attempt, you may want to try suspending the strongest (rare earth) magnet you have from a string, and slowly move it across the area of floor where you suspect the duct to be, suspending the magnet just above the laminate surface.

If you are lucky, the magnet might be attracted to either the discharge grille, or to the sheet metal ductwork itself. You could then repeat this process, marking off the floor with pieces of masking tape, until you fine tune the location where you will make a plunge cut through...

Similarly, if you have a good quality (magnetic) compass, you might be able to detect the ductwork by slowly sliding it across the floor, and look for the needle to deflect.

Good luck to you!

is this dowsing?

JMan's low tech cheap suggestions are brilliant in my opinion. Listen to him, or crawl under the house and find the register vent and pound a nail up in the center, or run screws from a screwgun from the four corners and cut the hole in your floor.

Possibly the cheapest Radio Shack Metal detector would be fun.

In my opinion the density dectector studfinder is best. Mostly I just tap on the wall with my hammer, but since I have never covered a register in the floor I am inexperienced, though I admire JMan's suggestion.

thanks!!!!!!! The diffuser grill is removed, but I'll try to detect the duct work with some sort of magnetic object.

"Until next time on This Old House..."

You'll find a really strong magnet inside an old hard disk drive.

Tapping on the floor for hollow spot.

If you have access to the duct from below (basement or crawl space), disconnect the duct where it turns up and you will see the bottom of your new floor. Use a small bit to drill up through the laminate floor, then stick a paper clip up through the hole. Go back upstairs and find the paper clip (and the heating vent ).

Just curious. What DOES the 4th line of his question say? The line that starts with: OOPS

Someone had to get under the house to put the duct work in. I am sure that the house was not set on the duct work. I don't think that it is he "can't" get under the house, it is he doesn't want to.

Ah!

You could just turn on the heat and feel for a hot spot....no, too lo tek

Borrow a metal detector, there are small ones that will find screws or nails if the duct is plasic, or it will find the duct if metal.

But personally, I preferred the method of disconnecting the duct from below and drilling a hole....

Once you know where it is, you really need to destroy the old one and replace it with a new one that is inserted from above to cover up the edges of the hole in the new flooring cleanly.....

By the way, are you the same person who painted a floor and himself into a corner with no door or window nearby recently? How can one forget or overlook a vent??????

Like he said he installed it in RECORD time. Meaning he didn't have make any special cuts in any of the boards. The only problem is he missed a rather important one.

One thing about laminate flooring is you can always pull it up till you get to your vent.

Not a fun prospect but it can be done that way.

Stud finder may work. However, I have a quick thing to try.

I would turn the heat up to high and when the fan is running for a few minutes see if you can detect air through the floor.

Chances are you will get a warm spot on the floor after a number of minutes. Even if the vent is completely sealed, warm air will raise up and heat the area by convection at some point.

If you really want to impress your lady, borrow an IR camera and you should be able to see it in great detail!

I would employ a stud finder, too, just for confirmation, but you may be surprised how well turning on the heat works, particularly if you shut the other vents in the house.

Found it! I used an old speaker magnet and thought I was picking up something, but it was hard to tell for sure. The magnet was kind of heavy so it made it difficult to detect an attraction. Turned on the heat and confirmed by feeling for a hot spot. Then I drilled a little hole to make sure I was in the vent.

My ego thanks you for all the advice...

P.S. I have never painted myself into a corner.

You wrote:-

P.S. I have never painted myself into a corner.

Not yet!!!

I am happy that you were able to find the vent with a tip from the CR4 crew.

By the way, if you do paint yourself into a corner and you still have some paint, you can paint yourself back out of it I am told!!!

Great, well done. Round us you could now sit down and relax while rodents do the rest!

Don't ask me how you stop the hole expanding when it's got to the size you want.

Obviously!!!!!!!!! Andy doesn't have a clue on what he's talking about. Heating (Boots or Take-offs) are inserted from below and are NOT used to cover up unfinished edges of a finished floor. A decorative grill that comes in different sizes and colours is used for this purpose. A small metal detector as he states is known as a Magnet to the rest of us. Any home electronic metal detector will work for you reguardless of its size. Try using another vent somewhere else in your house with the same type of finished flooring. Remove the grill and place some laminent over the exposed hole and experiment with either a Detector , Magnet or Stud Finder to see if it will help you in locating the hidden one. A Home use Metal Detector is likely your best choice. As stated perviously, removing the flooring is likely your next best step. And lastly.....being in a little bit of a hurry even some small distractions or simply covering the vent with foam underlayment ( out of site out of mind) can sometimes make you miss an important step in a project, a contractor or a do-it yourselfer . Of which Andy is obviously neither. Life must be boring being as perfect as he...Good Luck..........Rescue

I have seen the vents, but we in europe are not good friends with warm air heating. I know of several people who have had it removed and replaced with normal radiators.

While on visits to friends in the USA, I have seen the vents, mounted from above, with a possibility to slide them shut or to control the amount of air coming through. I guess you are talking about a different type to the ones I have seen, they may be of a type that you have not seen up to now....possibly.

But I do know metal detectors and you are partially right, any detector will find it, but only a pin pointer will give you the exact layout and where the rim or the holding screws (for a plastic version) actually are....!

But according to what I have read, the problem is solved, byeeeee.....

So Bob Vila covered up the heating grill on His old house?

IS this april 1 or what?

milo