Bosch Cable Finder Truvo (Maximum Detection Depth Live Cable/Non-Magnetic Metal/Magnetic Metal: 50/60/70 mm, in Cardboard Box)
Digital detector
Truvo
How can we be certain where supporting elements, pipes or cables are routed in walls? The Truvo detector from Bosch detects ferrous and non-ferrous metals and live cables at depths of up to 7 cm.
Auto calibration
Practical auto-calibration for direct start-up and safer drilling.
Marking aids
Conveniently use the lines on the side of the tool to accurately mark results during operation.
Single-button operation
One-button principle with automatic calibration – simply use the ON/OFF button and begin scanning without further steps.
LED light
The LED traffic light system lights up red when an object has been detected, yellow when one is nearby and green when no object has been found.
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Switching on the tool
Switch on the Truvo by pulling down the slider and placing your hand against the wall.
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Keep moving
By moving back and forth, the Truvo memorises the course of the material and becomes more accurate.
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Detecting the materials
Live cables and metals can be detected (see next step).
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Traffic light system
Green: No object found
Yellow: Object nearby
Red (continuous tone): Metal
Red (flashing): Cable
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Setting the marker
Using the marking slots, the target areas can be easily and accurately marked.
The Truvo
Why does the tool indicate live cables everywhere?
The construction of commercially available cables causes fluctuations in the electric field strength at the surface, which influence signal detection, through to complete elimination.
What should I do if the tool displays different results for the same measurement?
Follow the step-by-step guide when using the tool and make sure that all measurements are performed in the same way. In particular, move the tool three times in each direction – under constant external conditions.
Why does the signal change when the tool is moved along a live cable?
The construction of commercially available cables causes fluctuations in the electric field strength at the surface, which influence signal detection, through to complete elimination.
Why do I have problems locating three-phase power cables?
In the case of live three-phase power cables (e.g. power connection for the cooker), the different phases of the cable cancel each other out so that the detector cannot detect the signal.
Why does the tool indicate metal objects on the entire wall?
The tool detects certain construction materials as metal due to the high iron content (e.g. aluminium foil on underfloor heating systems or metal-clad thermal glass wool insulation).
| Weight: | 150 g |
| Dimensions: | 14.3 x 6 x 2.9 cm; 149.99 Grams |
| Model: | 0603681200 |
| Part: | 0603681200 |
| Colour: | Green |
| Pack Quantity: | 1 |
| Batteries Required: | Yes |
| Batteries Included: | Alkaline |
| Manufacture: | Bosch |
| Colour: | Green |
| Quantity: | 1 |
It is a metal detector, so it will find cables, pipes and stud wall nails, got to sweep the are a few times slowly to get the most accurate reading, its a budget device but better than guessing where to drill.
Like many others, I had many false positives, especially over external brick walls. It flashed crazy like all wall was a live wire.
I found that touching a radiator while holding the detector completely removes false positives. Unfortunately, that only works near radiators unless you have very long hands 🙂 I think an antistatic wrist band would be very helpful
Nice product , well made , helps with works, unfortunately sensor is very basic, with proper discount is 100% good buy , it’s work on batteries why not usb charge? Overall good quality product with small things to improve
I bought this a bit cheaper as it’s secondhand but good as new. Does exactly what it’s meant to do and still had the batteries in it. Pleased with it.
I have needed this to detect where a ceiling joist is. It picked up the nails / screws to the plaster well and therefore showed where the joist was by inference. Pulley clothes drier installed without a problem.
The tool is designed to use one handed and self calibrates.
Yellow and red lights are hits, with an audible warning.
Avoid touching the wall with your free hand as you will get false results.
It seems sturdy. Seems accurate enough if you approach from all directions to be clear on where the wire is. Whilst it shows a cross hair it makes yo think yo can mark the spot that is either clear or a wire, but you can’t.
Arrived in super fast time. Had a specific job for this. I needed to track the run of my heating pipes under a concrete floor and it found them no problem so I could mark where they ran
Excelle
I hesitated before buying a Truvo given the mix of positive and negative reviews.
I live in a Victorian house that has thick walls. My Truvo has been without fault to help me find wires and pipes. As mentioned in other reviews it pays to read the instructions and to calibrate before using. For example there is a specific place on the Truvo to hold it while scanning.
Basic device to test if a powered cable is nearby.
Better than electrocuting yourself though.
Does not test fir studs in walls in case you wondered.
A good quality product. Simple to use. Easy to follow instructions.
A pretty good value detector. Fairly accurate and it will prevent major accidents but it does need to be used in combination with common sense and what you believe to be in the wall
Does exactly what it says it does! Well made, easy to use and 100% accurate. Great piece of tech for your tool bag.
There are cheaper options aplenty, but I’ve used this a lot in two flat renovations, and haven’t regretted it one bit. I even noticed the professional electrician installing a new circuit board had ‘borrowed’ it for a little while. It’s sturdy, very easy to use and seems highly accurate too.
Takes a little understanding but is a really useful piece of ki
ideal for the dii’r good cable finder, but still need care after locatio
It’s so important to check for cables before drilling. I’ve been using this extensively. The trick is to read the manual fully before using. Also, make sure you earth yourself to get correct results. I try to hold onto a radiator (or get my partner to and maintain contact with him). I’ve drilled dozens of holes and haven’t hit a cable or water pipe yet!
Simple to use, seems very sensitive. Able to confirm things I knew were there so knew it wasn’t missing things in unknown locations.
Went for this after two cheaper purchases which gave dubious results.
The Bosch was far more consistent in giving reliable readings.
We’ve just moved & my Grandson wants to start learing about decorating etc., so I’ve started to buy tools for him to help us around the house. He’s only 12 & so far He’s fitted a key safe & solar light outside, put pictures up & now he’s in the middle of putting up a metal shed.
This seems to work pretty well. I need to hammer some picture hooks into the wall and I was nervous to do so as my house’s wiring is… interesting. The place I want to put one picture up is above a plug socket, too.
This cable finder has shown me where the cables should be. I have no idea what the wall’s made out of — it’s quite hard/solid, so it could be brick. The finder emits a continuous tone for metal etc. and beeps for live wires. It’s quite sensitive so now I know where stuff is, I can hammer a few inches to the side.
I suppose if it’s missed anything, I might not be around to amend my review.
Easy to use and very accurate, even detects pins in plasterboard behind plaster – so very sensitive
Ordered for diy job and it was arrived on time with a good package and easy to use.
Had to move a fridge as it kept setting it off. Sometimes a little bit inconsistent.
It indicated metal and electric cable beneath an area I wanted to fit a bracket. It is a must for D I Y work.
Out the box it seemed to be faulty, it was beeping constantly and wouldn’t settle down. After reading the instructions I recalibrated it and it worked much better. I think having a rest button would help. Just one switch is possibly over simplified
Does the job, need to calibrate even though it says doesn’t, still not the most accurate on the market.
Cannot provide any info as I have not yet used it in anger, but item does appear to work as claimed
I advise all people who DIY to purchase one of these. You never can be 100% certain of hidden cables or pipe work. This identifies both with ease and makes drilling into your wall stress free. Budget friendly, so I definitely recommend you buy one to keep in your tool kit.
I don’t get where the negative reviews come from. Bosch don’t make rubbish and this cable detector is not some mad exception.
The tool works perfectly, with no difficulties. Insert the batteries supplied. Switch on. Run over wall. The steady green light turns red, with a whining sound, when it detects a metal object such as a pipe and flashes red when it detects a live cable. It gets more precise if you go back and forth over the detected item.
I had no false or random hits but then I only ran the gadget over walls, as intended, and didn’t just haphazardly wave it around.
I only wish I’d got one before I had stupidly drilled into a live cable (fortunately I didn’t get a shock). That won’t happen again.
This seems to work fine. I bought it as I need to drill holes in a wall which I know has cables in it.
I know where a number of my cables are around the house so I tested it first.
It’s not idiot-proof – you need to read the instructions for what each colour/beep means, and you need to understand the change in sensitivity when you hold the device – the cables in my walls aren’t deep (25mm) so finding them is easy but interference from nearby screws, tacks, nails etc needs to be negotiated.
I must admit that I was sceptical about buying this after all those negative reviews. However I needed a device in a hurry and went elsewhere, so was a little more expensive.
Now I am not a builder but am a confident capable diyer. I tested the detector and it showed what I expected and knew. Pipes, cables etc.
I fitted a cooker extractor hood and we have gas and electric in close proximity and didn’t want to chance a mishap. As others have said it takes time to use and understand, as do all metal detectors. Of course it picks up plaster/batten nails and this needs taking into account. If you have foil lined insulation inside your walls, forget it.
Overall happy with purchase.
Its ok. I don’t have anything to compare it to and I don’t think any of them are perfect
Live wires detection is good.
There are a few negative reviews about this product, but I found that it works well, as long as you don’t have any jewellery on the hand that you hold it with, and you scan back and forth a few times to pinpoint the cable or stud.
Works as it should, so far have found no issues eith the products function. Only annoying issue was the batteries supplied were completely dead do additional cost incurred buying new ones.
Have just used it once. Bought for a wall I needed to drill that had sockets pipes and a fuse box. It detected all the wires where expected them to be and the pipes where I was unsure. Checked many times to be sure and it gave the same readings each time so I felt safe drilling and didn’t hit anything. Seems a good produc
After moving to a new property, my parents came over to put up shelves for me. Accidentally drilling through the water mains and turning my beautiful new kitchen/lounge into a lake.
Bought this device to stop this happening again, been nearly 6 weeks and so far so good.
Super easy to use, pop the batteries in, flip the switch and move along the points where you would like to attack the wall. Green if good to go, Amber if close to something and red with intermittent or high pitched noise.
Definitely would recommend to preventing creating lakes in homes.
Bought elsewhere but thought this useful info for other buyers – worked fine at first then beeped at everything. We sorted it by holding it at the top end (i.e., not where the battery is). Then it worked as before – maybe the batteries are interfering? You’d think the company could protect that from happening lol
It probably covers most of someone’s DIY needs but one of my walls was complex so I had to call a professional.
We have moved into a modern home with stud partition walls and for the first time in years I have been faced with the uncertainty of where pipes and cables may lie within wall cavities on a plasterboard wall.
The unit is reasonably compact, very easy to operate following the simple instructions if required and simply works at identifying cables, pipes or anything lying underneath the surface which drilling into might cause harm to you or it.
Reasonable value in terms of the fact that it is manufactured by a reputable supplier – there are cheaper on the market, but perhaps not as well made or as accurate.
5 star for the fact that having installed over 30 wall hangings so far in our new home I have detected every cable or pipe which otherwise I might have drilled into.
Very accurate even at a depth of two inches. Excellent accuracy.
So it’s not perfect, and yes it does sometimes appear to beep a bit randomly, but I reckon it’s 90% accurate. I bought this after drilling through a wire- I tested this on that area, and it picked it up perfectly, so would never have made that mistake. I’ve been told they can’t be fully trusted, but definitely worth getting for just a bit of extra piece of mind!
Easy to use and very precise cable and pipe finder – would not risk not using this when drilling holes in walls – fabulous value for money for an easy to use piece of safely equipment.
As with some other reviews alarms different depending on how you hold the machine. Was more certain there was no cables or pipes in the wall before I used the cable finder. Alarmed for cables at the two locations I wanted to drill, checked them with another cheaper machine which indicated no cables, drilled and confirmed that there was no cables. Definitely not worth the money.
Very pleased with this cable/pipe finder. It works well and gives a good single when cables etc are found. Instructions must be followed to achieve best accuracy.
I’ve not used it that much but largely accurate when I have. However, it is also quite sensitive and occasionally gives a false positive.
For the money this is a good product if you’re a professional then get something more expensive but for the home DIY-er this is good enough. It’s reasonably accurate and I haven’t got any of the false positives that some reviewers reported. Just re-calibrate each time you use it and it’ll do the job.
This product is very good at detecting and does the job.
Easy to use , follow instructions as it will not work if you do not do as it says
To find live electric wires and water pipes, worked perfectly
After reading some reviews I was concerned it might not provide accurate readings. Having renovated my shower I knew where the pipes and electrical cables were. Unfortunately the joiner covered the power source to my bathroom mirror with a wet wall. Although I knew roughly where the power cable was, I wanted to be certain and it located it first time and I was able to make a hole and pull it thorough. It was spot on in it’s beeps so did the job for me.
Read some reviews about it being unreliable. I don’t k is about that, the indication system seems pretty clear to me! I found it really straight forward and easy to use!
I was wary of buying this after reading some of the reviews on here so I went to some popular tool shop sites to read tradesperson and DIYers reviews on it and it was highly rated. It works great and comes with batteries. I needed it to detect live wires in my walls before putting kitchen units up and it worked perfectly.
It actually works!! Well so far anyway! When I first took it out of the box what struck me was how cheap it looks and feels, especially the large on/off button. It looks and feels like it could break any second! Not what you’d expect of a Bosch product. I really didn’t expect it to work but it is pretty accurate. I’ve tried another brand and that was useless, and based on reviews I wasn’t holding out much hope in finding one under 80 that did work! I haven’t given this product full stars based on the cheapness of the build, but as far as doing what it’s meant to do I think it’s worth buying.
This is a very handy item too have if you need too locate hidden wiring
i recently had my kitchen renovated paid no attention to what the electrician was doing. then my partner said we needed some more cupboards. she wanted Three the meter pointed out the new cables the electrician had installed there was only room for two cupboards . so it saved me money in cupboards and proberly a expensive new electricians bill allso allways be safe when installing cupboards, showers, And shelving.
Needed to detect water pipes, gas pipes and electric cables (all poorly routed). If you follow the instructions to the tee, the results are superb. I was able to draw the routes on the wall, differentiating between 15mm pipe and 22mm pipe with ease. Same success tracking pipes and cables under the floorboards.
Make sure you pass over an area multiple times to allow the detector to focus on what it thinks is an object and you’ll quickly get a very good idea of what you’re working with behind the wall. I suspect those who are complaining that it finds stuff everywhere aren’t giving it a chance to work properly.
Best in mind also that you have to apply some intelligence to the work – the external walls in my house have insulation that has a metallic coating, so the detector sees this and shows yellow across the whole wall, but it still finds the pipes and cables OK – just needs to be given time and used properly.
Overall a really great piece of kit, nice and compact and has already paid for itself in my book by pointing out that I was about to drill through the central heating pipe it is quite interesting to use this to follow the pipes and cables around the wall to understand how the systems are installed for future reference too…
It works well but sometimes depends how you move it, the device bleeps
I have bought unknown brand item from ebay which was much cheaper than this one. But it did not work. So that I had to get rid of that one and ordered this one. Good quality. Work very well. Will recommend it to others.
To replace outdoor lights on a balcony without direct knowledge of electric supply location.
This is a great little device which helps you locate things behind the wall when you are drilling.
It detects everything, which is a good thing and a bad thing… Good because you will not drill into anything you don’t want to… Bad thing, if you are inexperienced it will make it difficult to find the right spot!
It has its moments to detecting things which are sometimes not there so take your time and double/triple check before drilling as it might bleeb where it said it was clear for some reason!
It can make it very time consuming, therefore not suitable for big projects. It is very good for occasional use and small projects instead.
Does what it says on the tin. Tested the job I bought for and it worked well. Seems very accurate.
i have not used this a lot but what i have used it for has been accurate – i used to have one of these back in the 80’s , when it stopped working i could never get another decent one for some reason – this is the first one i have been happy with .
After reading some of the reviews on here, I was a bit sceptical about this product. However, I really needed a device like this, and Bosch products are normally good, so I decided to get this. First impressions were good, it seems like a well made product.
In use, I have to agree, partly, to some of the comments about false readings. However, I managed to eliminate a lot of these false readings by putting my other hand on the wall, (like you’re supposed to), and also by moving slowly and methodically over the area in question. Doing this, the readings got more stable. The device doesn’t appear to give false negative readings, so if you get the green light, you’re good to go.
It’s still not perfect though, and it can take a bit of faffing to get a stable indication. I think a lot of this is simply due to just how sensitive the device is. However, the device does work, if there’s an electrical cable or metal pipe in the wall, it will tell you.
One final thing that people should be aware of: this device does not work with rechargeable batteries. It powers up, and operates for a few short seconds, but then shuts down. The instruction manual does say not to use rechargeables, but this isn’t mentioned in the product description on Amazon. It does come with a set of AAA alkalines, but I haven’t used the device enough to know how long they last.
Really easy to use and I’ve not hit a live cable yet. There’s a good review on YouTube.
Luckily we had seen a video , before we purchased this item, and noticed that your free hand has to be against the wall , whilst holding the device in other hand . Incorrect readings will show if the free hand is removed from the wall. This advice is buried deep in the small print of the user leaflet.
Used properly the Bosch detector is a very useful tool.
Simple, relatively inexpensive and perfect for someone like me who just needs some surety for those odd DIY jobs involving drilling, hole-making, hanging and avoiding blowing the electrics and puncturing water pipes. Recommended
In the end I just drilled the holes despite of the scanner. Luckily for me I didn’t have any issues.
So, the machine is good but not bullet proof. It can have false readings or be overly sensitive. Just use common sense.
Bought this to replace a Zircon scanner that didn’t give me confidence in detecting wiring and metalwork. The Bosch is easier to use and seems more consistent, although a more basic display.
The Zircon does have a stud-locating feature that seems to work ok and which the Bosch is lacking. However reliable detection of hidden wiring is much more important.
Sometimes beeps all over the wall. Its definately helped me but unfortunately not with my 100 per cent trust.
At the end of last year I purchased an alternate one of these detectors from Amazon at half the price because I couldn’t justify this much on something that I’d use infrequently. After using that device for over an hour trying to detect a drywall frame from it’s studs it was promptly re-packaged and returned to Amazon for a refund.
I was put off trying an alternate product, think they must all be hit & miss until I purchased this one from Bosch. After a couple of tests I can tell you there’s a world of difference between the cheap ones and this one. This one seems to be more consistent in detecting things in walls than the other one.
Yes, it may be more expensive but you certainly get what you pay for in this case. Recommended.
Sometimes beeps all over the wall. Its definately helped me but unfortunately not with my 100 per cent trust.
This device has had some negative feedback, and whilst some of the criticism is valid, particularly if you are a professional needing a very accurate method of detecting cables and pipes to an accuracy if a few milimetres. However, most of us DIY people are happy with something that alerts us to a cable or a pipe in a wall, within a centimetre or two. This device, if moved side to side from the position a cable was detected, actually allows you to ‘fine-tune’ the position of that cable to a higher degree of accuracy . . . just takes a bit more time than the professional kit (costing several times as much! ). One slight downside was that my kit came with ‘dead’ batteries. Not a problem though as I always keep some in stock.
After reading some bad reviews on this fairly pricey detector I reluctantly decided to give it a go and I was shocked how easy to use and accurate this product was, would 100% recommend!
This worked almost straight out of the box. After testing it in places where we knew there were hidden cables and metallic elements we assured ourselves that this was accurate – it picked up 100% of the test runs.
It showed its value by finding a wire right where we wanted to drill, so we moved over a few cm to the right where the light went green. Perfect.
Very easy to use, very reliable, very accurate, and great value for money. Don’t look anywhere else.
I bought this detector to trace cables on a lighting circuit that had been installed somewhat randomly by a previous owner of the house. The instructions are clear and it’s easy to use. I found that I could work out the rough track of the cables rather than their precise line … good enough for what I wanted, but if I had to drill near cables concealed in a wall I’d leave a bit of a safety margin.
Great product and an absolute essential for me when drilling.
Bought for detecting cable conduits, I used it today to correctly locate studs in a wall I’d previously, and wrongly, assumed to be plastered brick. Paid for itself in the first job.
Great product, it’s quite pricy for only needing to use a handful of times but super useful tools to have
Great bit of kit just what every DIY person should have
The product seems to work quite well but it takes time to get to know its features, i.e. distinguishing between metal in the wall and cables. Its important to read the instructions carefully
Haven’t drilled through any cables yet, so must be alrigh
This has been game changing, I’d highly recommend getting one if like me you’re a complete newbie when it comes to drilling holes into walls. A small cost now to save you a potential fortune later.
A little tip, plasterboard isn’t always earthed so I’m told. If you’re running it across the wall and it’s beeping constantly saying there’s live wires all over the place – put one hand onto the wall to earth it and then run it over. It worked for me!
This is absolutely perfect for my use at home does what it says and is easy to use would definitely recommend this produc
Product great and now works once we used new batteries which luckily we had. Batteries supplied were dud – can you please send replacement batteries.
Now, the problem I have with reviews on Amazon is that despite if a product having 4 and a half stars, it will still show a variety of fluctuating appraisals. For example, if I wanted a toaster, I’d get at least two contrasting reviews: one saying “This toaster is amazing! It does toast, cleans the sink for me, takes the kids to school, and is amazing in bed!” and the other “This is the worst toaster I’ve ever had. It burnt my toast, cheated on me with my partner, and caused a second Cold War.” The Bosch Truvo is unfortunately a victim of these kinds of assessments.
That being said, I decided to brave the purchase and put the reviews aside. The first impressions were good, in that they actually include the three AAA batteries required to power the scanner; very courteous. I slotted them in, flipped the massive “On” switch on the front, the green light on the front came on instantaneously, and I was in business.
The instructions detail that the light remains solid green when it doesn’t detect anything, changes yellow when there’s something close, red with a continuous shrill tone indicating metal that increases in tone as you get closer to said metal, and flashing red with rapid beeping for detecting wires. I decided to test it on both masonry & plasterboard (both are in my house) wall, and sure enough, it detected metal & wires. Now, it didn’t just do it sporadically anywhere on the wall, it did it consistently on every spot where it alerted me to something behind and stopped as soon as I took it away. To make sure it wasn’t just blind luck, I also tried scanning anything that was metal or wiring outside a wall, and again, it gave definitive results with the appropriate color & sound codes.
I really don’t understand how people who have used this product have had such varying results; I can only possibly put it down to different properties, walls, and even user behavior; who knows if anyone looked in the troubleshooting section of the manual or handled the devices like gorillas?
In conclusion, I would consider this device a successful purchase and I definitely got my money’s worth out of it. I would recommend it to anyone who needs to put up shelves or a TV, and I recommend to take online reviews with a pinch of salt; even this one you’ve just read. I got what I needed out of it, you possibly can too.
It would have been ideal for checking pipes and power in a new house where the walls are flat and you could get a clear reading but in a 16th century grade 2 listed property it was not so easy.
To check for wiring in new house before drilling etc and seemed to do the job intended
This is by far the best domestic cable and metal detector I have used but it is important to follow the instructions carefully and to experiment over areas where there are known cables and embedded metal to get a feel for how it works. Placing a hand on the wall, or equivalent, is important as described in the instructions.
No cable detector can substitute for common sense and an awareness of normal building procedures.
This seems to have a lot of negative reviews but works beautifully for me.
Very easy to use (simply a detector that switches to green, amber, red color and flashing light, plus a noise that becomes louder the closer you are to anything metallic/cable/tube). It detected all cables (connected with electricity or not), anything made of metal, (tubes or even a hidden screw), everywhere I tested it . The fact that the device uses AAA batteries instead of 9V batteries is a very big plus, because you can use rechargeable batteries. It comes with alkaline batteries. Very handy, well designed and stylish. Perfect.
Very good. Much better than the Black and Decker version I used previously.