Hello guys,
I want to buy an ultrasonic leak detector.
Possible options are: Accutrak VPE or Amprobe ULD-300.
Both have quite the same price, therefore price is not a criteria for choosing.
I understand that both are good devices. I am interested to know which is better for finding leaks in vacuum bags.
Can any of you give advice?
Thank you.
I’ve got the Accutrak. I think it’s great, but it’s much the same as any other leak detector. You won’t find all your leaks using one. The tiny leaks that usually give problems tend to present themselves at a different frequency than these leak detectors listen for (which I believe is 40hz), so you can point the thing right at it and you won’t hear anything. You can also end up chasing ghosts a bit as the detector will pick up things like you sliding your feet as you move around the mould, and this sounds very much like a gust of air.
That said, it does make finding some leaks much quicker. The sorts of one’s that you can generally hear with your naked ear become very easy to find, and the ones that are just out of ear frequency also become easier. I especially like the LED indicator on the Accutrak which gives an indication as to how close you are to the leak.
I would recommend a good set of noise cancelling headphones as well, they make a big difference.
What Hanaldo said
I had the Accutrack and I thought it was a waist of money. Didn’t find the leaks I couldn’t hear with my ear. Used it for a few months and then sold it. It’s makes some thing easier but it’s not a magic product and it costs way to much for that.
I bought the Accutrack and hated it until I bought a good set of ear plugs. Now I can’t live without it. I just needed the ear (phones) plugs to be able to hear well. The head phones that come with them are junk.
I use the accutrak too, really good I think.
I usually start with the sensitivity reasonably high but hold back from the mould about a meter and then kind of zoom in on the area that you hear leaking rather then getting too close in the beginning. Once you have found the area turn the sensitivity down a bit and get much closer to find the leak.
Sometimes it seems like you can’t find the specific spot that is leaking but you can hear the leak stop if it get covered up with your free hand. So in this case I kind feel around by hand to find it this way. Sometimes I also need to shuffle your bag around a bit too.
It’s found plenty of leaks for me and much faster than I could of without one.
Yeh I feel like your last sentence sort of sums it up. It speeds up the process. If you are going to find a leak, you will find it much quicker with the Accutrak. But sometimes (and frustratingly, it seems to be the more frequent kind) you get the kind of leak that just won’t be found, leak detector or not.
All in all, if you play this game for a living I don’t think it’s a great expense and it can be a good tool. Mine has more than paid for itself in the 6 months I’ve been using it. But if you do this for a hobby, don’t waste your money. It will frustrate you.
Definetly for hobby use. But I like cool toys.
Looking at the specs, the amprobe has a bit more bandwidth. Up to 45 kHz, which should translate in smaller leaks being detected.
Any one owning an amprobe?
I bought a used Amprobe for $50. Old but works great. A good investment would be new noise cancelling headphones instead of the factory supplied headphones which are not that useful. I don’t use the rubber hose adapter as mine was missing and it still works fine.
You can use just the LED light scale or with headphones.
Definitely saves time looking for air leaks.
I have been using the Accutrac for a few years, got mine used on eBay for around $40 and couldn’t have been happier with it. The headphones that come with it are kind of a pain and there is a small learning curve to be able to distinguish between a leak and some other noises but it does a good job at finding leaks that can be difficult without. Earbuds or noise canceling headphones are a must. I also use the LED as an aid too.