Just realized I've been setting up my laser level wrong for years

I was helping a new guy on a kitchen remodel in Denver last month and he asked why I always put the laser on the floor. I told him it's stable, but he showed me his method of mounting it high on a wall bracket. We checked a 30-foot run with both setups and his line was dead straight while mine had a 3/16-inch dip. The floor wasn't level like I'd assumed. I've been trusting the wrong surface this whole time. What's your go-to spot for setting a laser on a big open floor plan?

3 comments

3 Comments

joseph_green1322d agoTop Commenter

That wall bracket trick changed my whole game!

hayes.wade23d ago

Man, how many times have I been the guy giving bad advice with total confidence? My go-to is a heavy duty tripod right in the middle of the space, but I check the feet with a torpedo level first. If the floor's really wonky, I'll sometimes clamp a pole to something solid like a load-bearing column. That wall bracket trick your buddy showed you is a solid move, I'm gonna have to try that one.

drew_walker23d ago

I saw a rigger use ratchet straps to secure a light stand to the floor joists in the ceiling once. It was for a shoot in an old warehouse with a concrete floor we couldn't drill into. That might work if your column clamp isn't an option.