A tape measure is a tape measure, right? Ask anyone involved in a trade where they’re using a tape measure on a daily or regular basis, and you’ll find out that’s definitely not the case. For those in construction, carpentry and various other manual skilled trades, the tape measure is a vital tool, and when you consider the old saying “a workman is only as good as his tools”, it’s therefore important you have a measure in your box that meets the rigors of the job in front of it.
Tape measures come in many different shapes and sizes, and there are a number of different factors to consider than can make them suitable or unsuitable for a given task. Here, we look at the six elements that should define whether your tape measure is right for your requirements.
Length
Starting with the obvious, length matters. You have measures built for shorter, more intricate work that you won’t find near a construction site and longer measures that are of absolutely of no use to a dressmaker.
For construction, anything above the 8m/26ft mark is typically recommended, while carpenters may wish to find an intermediate at the 5m/16ft range.
Type of coating
Where building and construction is concerned, the quality of coating on your tape measure will allow it to say rigid for longer, in terms of both long-term use and the actual length of tape extruding from the measure. Cheaper tape measures are typically mylar polyester coated (which will do a job), however a nylon coated blade is recommended for anyone looking for a high-quality tape measure.
Some measures have no strength coating whatsoever – stay away from those all together when it comes to on-site work.
Durability
The coating plays a part in the durability and long-term sustainability of the blade of your measure, however it’s also important to consider the quality of the measure’s housing. With regular use, drops, often onto solid surfaces, are inevitable, so make sure the case of your tape measure is up to scratch alongside the blade.
Unit of measurement
Thanks to our inability here in the UK to decide on using metric or imperial units across the board, most UK measures reflect this confusion with both mm/cm/m and fraction of in/in/ft units available on either side of the blade. While the UK construction industry works universally in metric units these days, it’s useful in some cases to retain the imperial units on your measure – for example, if you work as a contractor and are given imperial measurements by a customer.
Make sure you get a tape measure that offers you the right measurement units to carry out your job clearly and easily.
Further elements of note
There are a number of other factors that are worth looking out for that make a tape measure user friendly:
- Easy to read measurements
- Light weight
- A quality hook that will stay fixed to its intended point (hook types can actually differ from tape to tape based on their quality and industry specialism)
- A quality locking mechanism
- ‘Standout’ capabilities – the ability to stay in a straight line for longer without breaking.
As we’ve established, there’s plenty more to picking a tape measure than first meets the eye. Finding the right tape measure will start with understanding the requirements of your industry and day to day work within it, but there are also a number of quality-related factors that you should consider when it comes to deciding how much you want to spend on one.
As with much of our industry, you do tend to get what you pay for, and you’ll find a high-quality tape measure will almost certainly pay for itself in the long run.