Other than their colors, red and green lasers have significant differences when it comes to laser leveling. As the name suggests, laser levels are used in construction to help tradespeople maintain a straight and level line while they’re working.
Laser levels take a lot of guesswork and play out of construction. By using laser levels instead of measuring tapes or chalk lines, tradespeople are able to complete more work in a cleaner, more efficient way.
On a construction site, you’ll see both red and green lasers being used. While both lasers provide the same measuring accuracy, the key differences come in price, visibility range, battery life, and how bright they are. To help you make your choice here are the three main pros and cons of each laser.
Green lasers
Pro: They’re easier to see
The human eye is very sensitive to “visible light”, which exists in a relatively narrow electromagnetic region. How visible a laser is to the naked human eye is determined by their wavelength and power output. The wavelengths of visible light are between 400 to 700nm. If you measure a multiple lasers at the same wavelength to gauge which is brightest, green will always come out ahead, followed by red, blue, and violet.
Con: They’re more expensive
Green laser levels are always more expensive than red laser levels because they cost more to manufacturer. There is no such thing as a green laser. Instead, green lasers are created by converting a high-energy laser source into a combined green laser, as opposed to a red laser, which just needs a diode.
Pro: They’re better for outside work
Because of how visible green lasers are, they are the most popular choices for outdoor construction sites. Green lasers can be detected outdoors in ambient light up to 4 times better than red lasers.
Con: They’ll kill your battery faster
Green lasers require more more to run, which means that they’ll drain your battery twice as fast as a red laser. This is because the diodes that create green lasers require more energy to power.
Red Lasers
Pro: They’re cheaper
Red lasers are easier to build, require less internal components, and less complicated diodes, which makes them ultimately cheaper to purchase.
Con: the visibility distance is much shorter
As discussed above, green lasers are the easiest for the human eye to detect. Red, on the other hand, stops being visible at less than 100 feet. This is shortened further if you’re not in an ideal environment (outside in bright light, for example).
Pro: They’re available everywhere
Because of their cheaper cost, red laser levels are usually more in demand, which means that almost any hardware store or construction site will have them. This makes it a lot easier on people working in rural areas to pick up replacements, and also makes red laser levels more common just based on general availability.
Con: They’re not great outdoors
You’ve probably seen military movies where the interiors of ships or planes are flooded with red light at night? This is because red light doesn’t affect our night vision as much and is harder to detect from further away. However, take this same red light and put it outside on a nice sunny day, and you’ll barely be able to see it. Red laser levels just aren’t as easily detectable and are much more affected by other bright lights, making them less than ideal for outdoor work.
Other than their colors, red and green lasers have significant differences when it comes to laser leveling. As the name suggests, laser levels are used in construction to help tradespeople maintain a straight and level line while they’re working. Laser levels take a lot of guesswork and play out of construction. By using laser levels instead of measuring tapes or chalk lines, tradespeople are able to complete more work in a cleaner, more efficient way.
On a construction site, you’ll see both red and green lasers being used. While both lasers provide the same measuring accuracy, the key differences come in price, visibility range, battery life, and how bright they are. To help you make your choice here are the three main pros and cons of each laser.
Green lasers
Pro: They’re easier to see
The human eye is very sensitive to “visible light”, which exists in a relatively narrow electromagnetic region. How visible a laser is to the naked human eye is determined by their wavelength and power output. The wavelengths of visible light are between 400 to 700nm. If you measure a multiple lasers at the same wavelength to gauge which is brightest, green will always come out ahead, followed by red, blue, and violet.
Con: They’re more expensive
Green laser levels are always more expensive than red laser levels because they cost more to manufacturer. There is no such thing as a green laser. Instead, green lasers are created by converting a high-energy laser source into a combined green laser, as opposed to a red laser, which just needs a diode.
Pro: They’re better for outside work
Because of how visible green lasers are, they are the most popular choices for outdoor construction sites. Green lasers can be detected outdoors in ambient light up to 4 times better than red lasers.
Con: They’ll kill your battery faster
Green lasers require more more to run, which means that they’ll drain your battery twice as fast as a red laser. This is because the diodes that create green lasers require more energy to power.
Red Lasers
Pro: They’re cheaper
Red lasers are easier to build, require less internal components, and less complicated diodes, which makes them ultimately cheaper to purchase.
Con: the visibility distance is much shorter
As discussed above, green lasers are the easiest for the human eye to detect. Red, on the other hand, stops being visible at less than 100 feet. This is shortened further if you’re not in an ideal environment (outside in bright light, for example).
Pro: They’re available everywhere
Because of their cheaper cost, red laser levels are usually more in demand, which means that almost any hardware store or construction site will have them. This makes it a lot easier on people working in rural areas to pick up replacements, and also makes red laser levels more common just based on general availability.
Con: They’re not great outdoors
You’ve probably seen military movies where the interiors of ships or planes are flooded with red light at night? This is because red light doesn’t affect our night vision as much and is harder to detect from further away. However, take this same red light and put it outside on a nice sunny day, and you’ll barely be able to see it. Red laser levels just aren’t as easily detectable and are much more affected by other bright lights, making them less than ideal for outdoor work.
Hey, do you have the font of the first image? The guy with the laser pointing to the sky? I really need to know where did you get that image, it’s for a school project…