Using Laser Levels for Shower Layouts

Hello Chris,

My name is Dan, my wife Holli and I own a glass shop in Anchorage AK you can visit our website at auroraglassak.com we have enjoyed your blog and your story. we started our shop in 1991 doing anything in glass including vinyl windows and auto glass. In recent years due to shortages in qualified help and price slashing with competitors and the overall grind of that type of business we did something similar to you and streamlined our business to just her and I doing custom Showers, tabletops, back-splashes, custom glass basically anything indoors for obvious reasons and we really enjoy it. To the point we really have focused on the shower doors and noticed a reference to laser levels in you blog we are trying to get info on the best type to use for meas and install I am currently looking at a Bosch GLL3-80 I wondered if you had any insight on the best types w/wo tripod and applications with respect to things like no-angles and step ups. A distant colleague looking for a step up.

Thank you

Dan DeLucia

Owner – Aurora Glass

Hi Dan,

I first started using a laser level six or seven years ago. I found something that was pretty affordable (around $200) that worked well for me. It was a Craftsman self-leveling laser that came with a tripod. It shoots your choice of a level line, plumb line, plumb/level cross hair, and a cross hair that is not self leveling (actually helpful in some situations.) I still have that level to this day, and have actually purchased a second one within the past year. The cost of these has actually come down since I bought the first one, but it is a good, rugged, and inexpensive device.

I’m sure the one that you are looking at (or have probably bought by now) is at lease as good. As you know, a straight line is better than a plumb line in most instances. A customer will rarely put a level on your work to check it, but will always look at the lines and reveals. That is the thing that makes using a laser so nice. Even if it gets out of calibration over time, you know that the line it shoots is perfectly straight. The cross-hair feature is awesome for laying out mirrors. In the old days, we would take a level and draw a plumb/level intersection on the wall to do a layout. This is really only necessary when all four corners are out-of-square. With this laser, there is no need to mark. You just project the intersection on the wall and measure to the lines. Very nice!

Thanks for writing, and best of luck with your enterprises.

-Chris