Used to freehand all my ceiling grids, now I use a laser level every time

I spent like 2 years eyeballing layouts with a tape measure and chalk line, always ended up with a crooked tile somewhere. After one nasty redo on a job near Tulsa where the GC made me rip out 30 feet of track, I bought a $40 laser level and haven't looked back. Anyone else find that one tool that just saves your back and your sanity?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_laura1mo ago

Picked up a Dewalt laser after messing up a bathroom layout three times in one afternoon. The tiles kept drifting and I was fighting the level instead of trusting it. Now I set the laser, mark my lines, and zip through the whole grid in half the time. Never going back to squinting at a bubble level on a ladder. What tool made you finally stop working harder than you had to?

derekjenkins3d ago

Yeah "ladder dancing" is the perfect way to put it. I switched to one of those magnetic post levels after I kept having to rehang the same shelf three times because the bubble kept getting bumped. Now I just slap it on the metal stud and it stays put while I mark my holes. It's just way less annoying to not have to hold everything perfectly still while trying to check if it's straight.

tara_jones941mo ago

My first job with a laser level was for a 12x14 kitchen in an old house near Springfield. I had the cross lines set and dead on in under two minutes. @the_laura you nailed it with the Dewalt, I borrowed a buddy's and bought one that same week. My bubble level just sits in the drawer now collecting dust. No more ladder dancing for me either.