Best geiger counter?

Check out:

[link to www.mazurinstruments.com]

The calibration report (located on the right side of the page) for this device is very impressive. Look at the "OBSERVATIONS" section and look at the "True" reading versus the "As Found" and "As Returned" readings.

It is difficult to find a fully featured Geiger counter for less than $400 to $500. The chief reason for this is unlike all of the electronics around us, most Geiger counters in this price range rely on a Geiger tube that is made essentially the same way as it was 40+ years ago. While the tubes are rugged and reliable, they are expensive relative to the other parts of the device. Look for devices with American made tubes. You get what you pay for in Geiger counters.

While there are differences in feature sets of these $400 to $500 priced devices, they are all solid instruments that will help keep people aware of their environment. As an example, In the case of the PRM-8000, it actually monitors 24/7 and keeps a running average, minimum and maximum reading. Other counters rely on you to be looking at the device. If you’re away, and a spike occurs, you’ll never know it occurred. This device will not only capture the maximum dose rate value measured, but will also display the date and time that this occurred.

This level of intelligence requires additional components (built in computer) that adds cost. Another very important consideration is battery life. This varies widely among units. IMO one must read the specifications for the device and not just the price.

My father bought a counter in the late 70’s and it still works perfectly today. In inflation adjusted dollars he paid on the order of $750 for it. But, it lasted.

For that price range, I would get the Terra-P. [link to www.terra-p.com]
Thats what I have and I like it. I bought mine a couple years back for 145. Seems the price is much more now since the Japan reactor troubles.

This a fine looking instrument, especially for $145, but the device does not detect alpha particles and is essentially blind to a key spectrum of radiation required for personal/food safety and other contamination threats.
Once again you get what you pay for.

The other issue I've "heard" with many of these dosimeters, is that they are not as accurate as advertised. Now this is very easy to resolve and all one needs to do is send the unit in for an independent calibration report. However, this is problematic for the price conscious, because the $65 to $75 fee requires for a calibration with a certified radiation source is a considerable percentage of the purchase price.

The absolute low end of the market IMO would be the Monitor 4 (kit available for $245). This unit is based on a US made tube (LND 712) that detects alpha particles as well as beta, gamma. When shopping for a Geiger counter, the first aspect one should review is the tube.

[link to www.geigercounters.com] has a very informative comparison matrix - one of the few on the web.

Geiger counters are like guns: The best one to have is the one that's available RIGHT NOW. I like the Radalert series, though I've used the old V700 from the cold war era when necessary.

Geigercounters.com is a good site, with lots of info. I bought their GeigerGraph software and use it sometimes. I'd like to keep it on my system all the time, but the system is maxed out on other things. It allows a longitudinal plot of CPM over time(months or years if desired). It can also link to a national network(radiationnetwork.com) that is independent of gov't oversight or manipulation(I think).

It is important to read alpha if possible, but that's less important than having a counter at all. It requires a more expensive tube with a mica window. The pancake head tubes are MUCH more sensitive than the regular ones, but not really necessary for a first instrument. Today, there is still a massive demand for counters in Japan and Asia, so the prices are up and availability is limited. Best to get a good deal now than the best deal at some possible time in the far future.

that would be the last thing on my list to buy. I'd get food, water, filters, 1st aid, protection, clothes etc first. then again, maybe OP has all that....

[link to www.ebay.com]

One choice.

Thanks for all the excellent links and recommendations!

Here are the 4 best ones according to user reviews:

[link to www.survival-lists.com]

I disagree it should be almost one of the first things you should buy it 100% falls under the category of protection.

dont think i need a geiger counter as much as a simple
rad detector like the nukalert keychain for example.

I was shopping last year for Geiger counter and found site that helped: [link to best-geiger-counter.com.] Ended up buying the Inspector even though it cost more than $300. The unit worked out ok for me. The others seemed a bit flimsy and I didn't want to buy Ukrainian - too risky.

In my opinion the best Geiger counters in terms of Price / Quality / Usability are SOEKS models www.soeks-usa.com.

For example their SOEKS 01M costs only $175 and uses one of the best tubes on the market SBM20-1. These tubes proved to be very reliable and are used by the Russian army.

Other device Dosumeter Defender (currently $219) is similar to Soeks 01m, however it's able to store the radiation dose readings and show how much radiation was absorbed during specific period of time. In some cases it's even more important them current readings of the radiation background (e.g. your work or you live near a nuclear plant).

I belive their radiation detectors are manufactured in Russia, but they have a distributor in the US in Florida.

I have the Defender model, like it.

I think the best geiger counter, so far as I know is, iMetry.
It's cool, and stable.

[link to www.seeedstudio.com]

You can also execute spectrometry, simultaneously.
In tokyo, just putting iMetry on the ground surface, after te accident, already 2 years have been past, but,
basically, anywhere, you can find cesium spectrum, within 30 minutes.

I dont really need one but I want one now!

[link to www.seeedstudio.com]

Here, You can buy now.

my Uncle will be coming out with a new exciting brand soon.

more info coming!

.

But it read only Gamma Rays,
Fukushima released mostly Alphas and Betas!

But the price is still interesting,
300 USD sounds fair, even when you need a IPad!

I think the best is still the Inspector Alert,
it is more expensive but i observe that many People
are selling their GC because of the low Radiation!

This one also looks very interesting and maybe my Favorite
for the next Money Rain:
[link to medcom.com]

I have the PRM-8000, really high quality instrument. Love it. The user replaceable 9v battery lasted a year with moderate to heavy exposure, it has alert alarms, continuous monitoring and data interface. Best in its price class by far.

Last Edited by EscapeVelocity on 06/13/2013 10:24 AM

What's the point? Are you going to test everything you eat, wear, or use all around you?
Find hot rain and post it on Youfailtube to get a bunch of bots telling you about radon?

Do you know how to calibrate one? Even know what you are looking for? How to take long count measurements? Use software to see exactly what you are looking at? Convert and understand your readings into all the different measurements types?

It's made to be confusing so mouth breathers won't look farther than what big sis tells them.

Yes, confuse the People and distract them from being a bit Active, you Shill!

To have a Geiger Counter is better than having no Geiger Counter!

You don't need to calibrate a new Geiger Counter,
they should be working well and when they don't you should change them!

Because yours are calibrated by your .gov and you can only buy state calibrated ones doesn't mean the rest of us live in your Hills have eyes lying ass country.

[link to www.youtube.com]

Google “Foreign dosemeters are banned to sell”

"You don't need to calibrate a new Geiger Counter"
Tard.

[link to www.youtube.com]

Do you really believe this Bs.?
Japan is not a closed Country behind a Iron Curtain.

You Sources are, as usually, more than shitty!

Why do the People believe such a Bs Story,
i really don't get it!

You cannot tell digesting matelial radiation anyway,
if the geiger counter did not have resolution below 0.001uSv/h.
In this reason, the only available geiger counter to roughly screening
digesting material is iMetry.
But at the measurement, to do such faint level measurement,
you need to have another control material, which seems to be the safe, made by the same material, and roghly same amount.
If there were enough volume of several digesting material from
diffrent source, you can roughly tell what is safe or not,
if geiger counter did have high resolution below 0.001uSv/h
and you could check control materials and in case,
you could compare with control materials.

And you can recalibrate iMetry, in Tokyo, just putting
iMetry closer to the ground, whereever it were around Tokyo
Area, spending one hour, you can have a definite Cesium spectrum,
and you can recalibrate, energy calibration, without
having any radiation source.
Its quite convenient in Tokyo.
You can easily try by yourself.

[link to xively.com (secure)]

Look, amazing stability of imetry, put in a stainless pod.

Why people is still so attracted by Geiger counters even years after Fukushima ? do they detect ebola too?

I heared about an app that is developed by the University of Hannover in Germany a year ago, Dunno if they have released it allready, but it turns your smartphone into a Geiger-counter using the cameras, filtering rays and so on.

The article i read was plausible but maybe it was a hoax.

It is not an hoax: radiations really can be detected by an LCD or CMOS camera but the precision is really bad and sensibility ridicule

Thread: Cigarettes are radioactive!

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Spend a bit more and youve got best Geiger Counter for money. Very accurate and reliable..

[link to www.amazon.com]

N'uff said..

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Best quality Geiger Counters...

[link to www.seintl.com]