Leveling equipment

Opened shop in 1992 and I've never owned a level and have made use of my theodolites and/or TS for anything elevation and grading and topo.

The only difference is the time it takes to setup the equipment and the procedures you apply to the project.

A decent level is $500. I say it's worth having. I don't use mine often, but it's handy to have. Sometimes it's the right tool for the job.?ÿ

What level do you have? $500 is way less than the ones I was looking at.?ÿ

What level do you have? $500 is way less than the ones I was looking at.?ÿ

Is always good to have a level. We do mostly topos, design survey and some construction staking. Elevations are always set with level, benchmarks are always level within network. As it's been said, a decent level should not cost more than a couple hundreds and is always good to have. There are more expensive options but you should be good with a standard level. Perform a peg test when stored for a long period and you should be golden.

It could be a simple automatic level with no electronic parts.

Am just curious, for your topo are you required to have heights? do you just do trig leveling with your total station?

A Sokkia B-30 is around $500 and is good enough for general survey leveling.?ÿ Purchase a SECO rectangular SVR level rod and a SECO bipod and you're good to go.?ÿ Every surveyor needs a level. You may only use it twice per year, but it pays for itself when you need it.

If you do buy a cheaper level, one without metal wires for the compensator, remember their life span isn't great, so don't buy used.?ÿ The metal ones stretch as well, just not as fast.?ÿ I don't know the real time span, but, they seem to get less accurate noticeably after five years as where it might take ten for an old Zeiss from new.?ÿ Age does not seem to effect the digital levels anywhere near as bad and if someone knows the mechanics of that, I would love to know

Age does not seem to effect the digital levels anywhere near as bad and if someone knows the mechanics of that, I would love to know

My guess is that the mechanics are the same, but the electronics compensate for the inaccuracies every time you run it through its peg test.

?ÿ

Posted by: M.McBride

What level do you have? $500 is way less than the ones I was looking at.?ÿ

In my case it's a Topcon. I'm not sure of the model number. Not digital.

I second Norman Oklahoma's comment. I don't use mine often either, but when I need it I need it and it has more than paid for itself.

?ÿ

I have a Leica Sprinter 100. Typically accurate to within 0.01' with ease and I don't have to worry about trig leveling with my total stations. Although, they do just fine for most applications.

Posted by: Jim Frame

Age does not seem to effect the digital levels anywhere near as bad and if someone knows the mechanics of that, I would love to know

My guess is that the mechanics are the same, but the electronics compensate for the inaccuracies every time you run it through its peg test.

?ÿ

Sorry, but, I will ponder this kind of stuff...?ÿ If that were the complete answer, I would expect that digital levels would just cease to function one day when the stretch exceeded the allowance.?ÿ I haven't had one fail that way, so, while I think your lucid comment is partly correct, I don't think it is the entire answer.

If that were the complete answer, I would expect that digital levels would just cease to function one day when the stretch exceeded the allowance.

I don't know if it's the complete answer, or even a partial answer, for that matter.?ÿ But I do know that my Leica DNA03 reached a point at which it was applying a correction larger than the amount (10 arc-seconds, as I recall) acceptable under NGS specs, and had to be sent in to a service center to get it back into the acceptable range.

I would assume that this is a standard piece of equipment for a survey firm. A level, whether it be automatic or digital operates under a methodology which is traceable and accepted for its accuracy. When push comes to shove, results from a tightly closing level traverse carrys alot of weight when lawyers get involved.

We do trig all the shots from the TS and we run a level loop through the traverse. It is company policy to set BM with topos.

For elevation certificates a level is faster and easier than setting up a total station unless you can see everything you need to pick up from one setup.

If you are doing large or precise data sets go digital. They actually do have maintenance issues just like other equipment. Some of the old ones where the case was designed wrong will not stay adjusted unless you lay the case flat.

A decent autolevel will run a few hundred. You can peg and adjust it yourself and it will last until you do something bad to it...

I bought an expensive automatic level with a high power telescope and other features set apart from the ordinary types. It is well worth it to have long sights when leveling over miles. I would recommend it's use it for elevations over a surveying instrument used for traversing.