Magnetic Stake Locator

The Magnetic Locator is built for finding property stakes and buried septic tanks

The locator finds ferromagnetic objects by sensing the magnetic field radiated by the object. It contains two sensor coil assemblies that are precisely spaced and electronically balanced to achieve a near magnetically-balanced operating condition. In a uniform magnetic field, such as the earth’s field, the two sensor coils maintain a magnetically-balanced status, because both of the coils experience the same magnetic lines of force. However, when a ferromagnetic object is approached, the field strength and angle of the magnetic lines upon each sensor is different. This difference, although minute, is enough to offset the critical balance and produce an audible indicating signal.

When no ferromagnetic objects are present, the speaker emits a steady low frequency tone. As the object is approached, the audio frequency increases until the center of the object is directly beneath the locator’s lower tip sensor. The frequency peaks and then decreases as the object is passed. The peak indicates the exact location of the object.

Nonferrous objects do not affect the locator. Objects made of brass, aluminum, copper, etc. are ignored.