Best "Main" light for a Home Inspector?

[spc smith]

FrankD,

What you want is an area light right? You want to see whats all around you at medium range But also enough throw (center hotspot) if need be to case deeper parts of a bigger house. As a general rule of thumb, XML based lights will give you what you need. With that in mind, if you want simplicity of use I recommend these lihts that I KNOW OF AND HAVE RESEARCHED. FYI, I prefer lights with brighter and wider spill and bigger hotspot (XML based lights). My first recommendation is the Klarus XT11 because that is currently the light I am getting and have been recommended by Andy at goinggear. Other lights as follows.


Olight M21X
Olight M20X
Sunwayman T20CS
Eagletac G25C
Fenix TK21

And many more out there. But at least give all these a look. I do strongly recommend the Klarus XT11.

 

[Eggebarwood]

I am a new home inspector....I see many of our guys using Bluecolt t400 's tried to look up info on them and there isn't much out there. Anybody familiar with it? Is there a better light that's cheaper and smaller?

 

[MichaelW]

I second the Fenix TK30 idea.
It doesn't have the exact same interface, but the 100/370 (single tube) & 100/630 lumen output (with extension tube) would be the main working mode, and you can switch to the 12/175 as the second most used mode.
Maybe you can trade, or sell/acquire.

 

[palmettoinspect]

I wanted to update here after using the zebralight sc600 for some time now. I don't really care for the light for home inspection use. Don't get me wrong it's a great light but compared to the olight m21 it's not as powerful. The sc600 will not light up a second story ceiling very well at all. The sc600 will light up the room better but the olight m21 is a much bright farther throwing light. The batteries in the olight last a lot longer than in the sc600. I am looking into the Klaurs xt11 or the thrunite tn11 since the tn11 has extension tubes for extended run times.

 

[keenism]

Imma go ahead and throw out a recommendation for the tk35 as I usually do when people are looking for an all around light with a nice mix of flood/throw. Should be great for any house you encounter...even a mansion with a 200y hallway :thumbsup:

 

[Ezeriel]

I am a new home inspector....I see many of our guys using Bluecolt t400 's tried to look up info on them and there isn't much out there. Anybody familiar with it? Is there a better light that's cheaper and smaller?

I found that light on a few sites.. $150-250!!

Yikes! Don't pay that! It's just a Raidfire Spear clone!



If you want a light like that, just google Raidfire Spear and find a budget one.

A X-Thrower from shiningbeam is only $35.. in fact the OP might want to take a chance on one too...
I just can't find the Lux rating for it, anywhere, so i cant recommend it's throw

 

[Dale P.]

I'm starting a home inspection business and just ordered two flashlights. One is a Fenix TK 35 UE 2000 and the other is a Klarus XT11. I will let you guys know which one I like the best.

Dale P.

 

[Dale P.]

I ordered the Fenix TK 35 UE 2000 and a Klaus XT11 last week. They are both great lights, but I would have to say the Fenix is going to be my first pick for my main light. It puts out a great white light with a nice wide beam. Still has lots of throw, but really lights up a room nicely. The XT11 is also a nice light, but lacks the wide beam that the Fenix has. Using them side by side, while looking up at floor joists I can see a much wider area with the Fenix light which will make my job easier to do.

Both lights can be easily placed in your back pocket when not needed but yet not too small so you can't get it out fast. I think I'm going to use the Fenix for my main light and the Klaus as a back up light, or as a light for my customer to use while we walk around together.

I also bought a Nitecore HC30 head lamp that uses a single 18650 battery and really like it. Will work great for climbing in attics or while performing tasks where I need both hands such as opening up a furnace or electrical panel.

I seen posts in the past about LED Lenser flashlights being a good choice, as well as Streamlight Stinger, but too me they seem like they are very out dated and have a really low output. I would love to do a side by side comparison against the Fenix TX 35. I bet the Fenix would win hands down.

Dale P.

 

[inspectCO]

Looking at the same sort of criteria. I'd like to have a rechargeable light. Looking at rechargeable flashlight itself - where I can plug in going from one job to the next. I'm liking the Fenix TK20R - the flashlight has a micro-usb port, so i can charge it from any usb port - car, laptop, home usb plug.

Recommendations on rechargeable light vs just rechargeable batteries.

Experiences with the TK20 in terms of whether this would be appropriate for home inspection.

Joe

 

[Timothybil]

Nitecore has a whole series of rechargeable lights, the MH series. I'm sure you could find one there that would meet your criteria.

Personally, I don't believe in paying the extra for the in-light recharging capability. For occasional use with a couple of hours between short uses it would probably work, otherwise you are just putting off the inevitable. I would rather get a good light that used something like an 18650, and just carry an extra or two charged up so I would have them if I needed them. To each his own, I guess.

Give my preferences, I would look at the Nitecore P30. It is a single 18650 light, which makes the main body of the light about palm size. It has a larger head to accommodate a bigger reflector for better throw when it is needed. I am not an inspector, but I have spent more than my share of time in crawl spaces and attics, and I think the P30 would work very well. It works very well on a belt without being cumbersome, yet could be carried in a pocket as well. More often than not you would be only using Low or Medium, but you would still have High and Turbo for when you really need to reach out and look at something with a blast of light. I don't know how often you inspect bigger buildings like barns or storage buildings, but some of them can get very large, and a P30 would allow you to light one end up from the other end. And the price is very attractive as well. I got a good code from M4D M4X, and it cost me about $50 USD.

Of course, for almost all of the time I would have been using a light for this, my original G2 with its Mountain Electronics P60 drop in with a Nichia emitter would have gotten the job done just fine. I guess it all boils down to what kind of reserve capability you feel you might need.

 

[LightObsession]

My home inspector lug around a 2D mag, I blow his away with my Mag 1C XML,

I think a 3-mode Mag 1C XML is an ideal home inspection tool.

A 1 C cell Maglite? Google didn't find one for me.

 

[18650]

A 1 C cell Maglite? Google didn't find one for me.

Very old thread here. Personally I would take a Fenix over Nitecore any day of the week. USB charging can be convenient and the battery can still be replaced in some rechargeable lights.