With This Home Depot Tool, You Can Skip The Hassle Of A Traditional Level

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Most experienced DIYers will tell you that you need a level for everything from fitting a shelf to laying a garden path. It's one of the tools that every homeowner should have. While it's hard to argue that they are wrong, traditional levels do have their disadvantages. Short ones aren't very accurate. Long ones are cumbersome. Over at Home Depot, there's an interesting alternative, the Klein Tools Digital Angle Gauge and Digital Leveler. It's capable of doing what a traditional level does and a whole lot more.

It's a compact unit, just over 2 by 2 inches and weighing under 4 ounces. It's difficult to tell how accurate a traditional level is because you have to judge when the bubble is exactly in the middle. The Klein Tools gauge has a clear display that is accurate to 0.2 degrees. What's more, if you attach it to something upside down using the built-in magnet, the display rotates automatically so you can still read it easily. The magnet is also useful for setting up the cutting angle on your table saw or miter saw blade, and a groove all around the body makes it easy to hold steady on pipework.

Right now, the Klein Tools Digital Angle Gauge and Digital Leveler costs $34.97. It comes with a soft carry case and includes two AAA batteries so you don't have to go hunting through drawers before you can use it.

If you want to create a gorgeous patio to turn your backyard into an oasis, you may think the compact size of the Klein Tools gauge would make it impractical. After all, if you lay it on one paver, there's no way to tell how level the next one is. The solution is simple: Use a straight length of 2-by-4 or metal bar and rest the gauge on top, effectively turning it into a traditional level with an accurate digital readout. You could use the same trick to measure across any two points.

Home Depot customers give the Klein Tools Digital Angle Gauge and Digital Leveler an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars, and 89% would recommend it. Most find it easy to use, accurate, and reliable. One buyer checked it against a 48-inch traditional level and was impressed that it worked straight out of the box without needing any calibration. There aren't many complaints, but a small percentage did report faults, either with the display or that it worked one moment and not the next.

The traditional level has been around for hundreds of years as the tool of choice for everything from installing kitchen cabinets the right way to building garden decks. The Klein Tools Digital Angle Gauge and Digital Leveler is more convenient, more versatile, and easier to read. It's just the thing the modern DIYer may want to add to their toolkit.