I thought using a laser level for a simple garden wall was overkill, but it saved my bacon on a sloped site.

Last week I was building a 30-foot curved wall in a backyard with a nasty slope. My old boss always said to just use a string line and a level, so that's what I did at first. After laying the first ten blocks, I checked with a 4-foot level and saw I was already a half inch out of plumb from one end to the other. I borrowed a DeWalt laser level from the guy on the next site, set it up, and followed the beam. It took maybe 15 minutes to set up, but I laid the rest perfectly straight and plumb in one shot. Has anyone else made the switch from string lines to lasers for smaller jobs, or do you think it's still not worth the extra gear?

3 comments

3 Comments

bell.felix28d agoOG Member

I mean, my string line always gets caught on something.

faith_king27d ago

Getting snagged is just part of the process, it means you're actually putting your line in the water. Blaming the gear is a weak excuse for poor casting technique. Learn to work around the snags instead of complaining about them.

julia_anderson28d agoTop Commenter

My dog once ate an entire spool of fishing line, which was a whole different kind of caught.