I use a Bosch "disto" that I picked up at Home Depot for exactly this. Works great. Best method I've ever used, and I've tried a lot of different things. Will penetrate an inch or two of water.
Look for a model that can be set to measure in decimal feet, and measure in "indirect" mode. Their cheapest models won't do that.?ÿ?ÿ
What about some easy way of cleaning the rod tip without having to turn it up and wipe it off??ÿ Seems like it always has dirt stuck to it when I'm placing it on a point, just one more little aggravation ???? ?????ÿ
I saw something like that happen on a historical archaeology project. Several people were issued treasure hunter type detectors and assigned 10-meter squares to search and flag hits.?ÿ One crew was getting many times as many hits as the adjacent squares.?ÿ The leader asked me to verify their flags and most of them didn't check.?ÿ I went over and waved the detector at the other operator's boots.?ÿ Yup.