Best Gas Detector Reviews 2020

UEi is a family-owned business that was founded in 1954 by Douglas and Betty Kane. Since then, under the management of this family, it has grown from its humble beginnings to become a global brand that designs, creates, markets, and supports choice test equipment that facilitates the professional’s job. Its award-wining test and measurement tools are the tools of choice for home owners, business owners, and professionals seeking test tools that are of high quality, forward-thinking, and practical.

UEi’s CD100A Gas Leak Detector is a 9V battery-powered tool that has the capacity to detect gas as low as 50ppm (part per million). Its 18-inch ridged neck is flexible and has a red LED light at its tip that allows you to reach and illuminate those tight spots during your gas leak checks.

It has both audio and visual indicators; the audio indicator makes ticking sounds when the detector senses leaking gas. The faster the rate of the tick, the higher the concentration of the gas. It has often been compared to a Geiger counter, but for gas instead of radiation. It’s basically a sniffer, comparing good air (clean, outside air) with the air around pipe fittings, gas tanks, and basically wherever there’s a gas leak.

It’s simple to use, as all you have to do is calibrate it by turning the dial in clean, normal air, adjusting the sensitivity until it begins to click. It should be about 2 clicks per second in clean air. Then you begin gas leak detecting. However, it’s not designed to display the levels of gas leaks.

It comes with a headphone jack; this way, if you’re in noise-sensitive area, you still get to use this tool. To ensure optimal performance at all times, recalibrate it regularly. It comes with a manual that lists the gases it detects, some of which are alcohol, jet fuel, propane, methane, acetone, natural gas, butane, thinners, lacquer, etc. Products from this brand, including this gas detector, are covered by a 1-year warranty.

Other great gas detectors from this brand include:

• The UEi Test Instruments CO91 Carbon Monoxide Analyzer detects CO leaks, measures CO levels, and concentration from furnaces and residential appliances
• The UEi Test Instruments C155KIT Eagle X Long Life Kit which includes a flue probe, thermal paper infrared printer, true draft probe, two K-type thermocouples, etc., is all covered by a 5-year warranty

Amprobe was birthed in Long Island, New York as Pyramid Instrument Company, in the year 1948. Its current name, Amprobe, was gotten from its first patented product, the Amprobe. It was the first inductive clamp meter and soon, its name became synonymous with clamp meters. Its extensive range of digital multimeters, clamp meters, and industry-specific tools pass through rigorous testing to make sure that they comply with its high standard of quality and safety regulations.

Amprobe’s GSD600 Gas Leak Detector is a quick-responding unit which utilizes a semi-conductor sensor to detect methane and propane gases that are 40ppm and 35ppm respectively- that’s sensitivity at its finest. As a matter of fact, its sensitivity range for propane is 35ppm-580ppm and that of methane is 40ppm -640ppm.

It has a flexible, stainless-steel probe that’s 17.6 inches long and provides you with access to areas that are difficult to reach. To alert you to the presence of methane or propane gas, it has both an audio and visual alert system. It emits frequency beeps that increase in frequency as the concentration of the gas increases; you move it in a parallel line along the leak and listen to the beeps; the points at which it beeps fastest indicates the location of the leaks. Its LED display has a 5-level alarm that shows you how much of the leaked gas is in the environment. The levels, from the highest, are >640ppm, >320ppm, >160ppm, >80ppm and >40ppm.

For measurement accuracy, this detector automatically calibrates itself when powered on; it requires a 60-second warmup time, after power on, before it starts working or detecting any gases. It senses gas in less than 10 seconds after warmup. It automatically shuts or powers off after 10 minutes of inactivity to conserve the life of its 4 AA batteries. It has an indicator that alerts you to its low batteries so you can change them quickly.

Speaking of power, it can also be powered by a 9V power adapter which is not included. For work in noise-sensitive situations such as workplaces, it’s equipped with a headphone jack so that you can plug in your headphones and listen to its beeping without interrupting anyone else. The headphones aren’t included. For ease of storage and transportation, it’s got a carrying case; its sensor also has a protective cap.

Here are some other gas detectors from Amprobe:

• The Amprobe CO2-100 Handheld Carbon Dioxide Meter monitors indoor air quality, the performance of heating, air-conditioning, and ventilation systems
• The Amprobe CO2-200 Wall-Mounted CO2 Meter is designed with NDIR technology and measures CO2 up to 9999ppm, relative humidity, temperature, wet bulb, and dew point

The INFICON brand name is actually an abbreviation; its name in full is Instruments for Intelligent Control. It was established in 2000 by a merger in 1996 of 3 vacuum technology companies of international repute. INFICON is a provider of leading-edge instrumentation, advanced process control software, and critical sensor technologies that facilitate productivity and enhance quality in hi-tech industrial vacuum processes. It applies its experience in vacuum technology to the creation and supply of unique toxic chemical analysis merchandise for security, emergency response, and environmental health and safety.

Its Gas-Mate Combustible Gas Leak Detector is ultra-sensitive at 5ppm for methane, which is the main constituent of natural gas. It doesn’t require any calibration, and neither does its field-replaceable sensor.

To use, take it outside to ‘clean, fresh air’ then take it indoors and let it do the rest. If there’s a gas leak and it’s contained in the air, it’ll begin to tick. It’s got a warmup time of a few seconds, so allow for that. Its sensitivity is adjustable with a slow steady beeping as its default setting; when it senses leaking gas, its tick rate increases (the speed at which it beeps) and soon stops. Further adjustment in sensitivity will help you locate the exact source of the leak.

It’s equipped with a small sensor and gooseneck probe tip that allows for checking gas leaks in tight areas. This gas detector from INFICON also features an auto-zeroing feature that allows it to ignore background gases (gases that are not in themselves harmful) present in the environment, so that its sensitivity doesn’t become a problem. Apart from its audio indicator, it’s also got multiple LEDs that indicate the presence and level of leaking gas.

The gases this unit is designed to detect include: natural gas, forming gas (also called Trace-A-Gas which is 5% hydrogen and 95% nitrogen), propane, methane, ethanol, and butane. This detector comes in a quality, durable, hinged, plastic case with slots for the 2 D batteries (it’s a battery-powered device). This way, you get to store the batteries when the device isn’t in use, thus prolonging the lives of the batteries by keeping them from corroding.

The Gas-Mate detector is made in the USA and carries a 3-year over-the-counter warranty.

Other equally great detectors from INFICON are:

• The Inficon 715-202-G1 Carbon Monoxide Meter is a 9V alkaline battery-powered CO detector with Holster Case
• The AP29ECO Sampling Probe has sniffer flow and is an accessory to the Sensistor ISH2000 Hydrogen Leak Detector. It allows for automatic leak testing for hydrogen with tracer gas
• The Sensistor ISH2000 Hydrogen Leak Detector is both manual and automatic, and is an instrument for professional leak detection. It’s for use in medical, industrial, automotive, and aerospace fields

SGILE is a brand that puts quality over anything else. For it, customer satisfaction is key and it ensures that its product range fulfills this. This includes safety and security tools, household alarms and sensors, sports and outdoors packs, and a vast collection of educational and fun kids’ toys.

The SGILE Combustible Gas Detector has a flexible, 12-inch gooseneck probe with a high-sensitivity sensor that works, even in the toughest of conditions, while experiencing the least drift and interference. It’s a basic detector that makes up in functionality what it lacks in features.

It has a dual indicator system (an audio and a visual alarm system). The audio indicator is a siren alarm that goes off when the detector senses gas that’s as low as 5ppm in an environment. Its sensitivity is adjustable, and it requires a warmup time of 30 seconds after which it will instantly sniff out leaking gases in the air.

At 8.8 ounces, it’s a portable unit that’s powered by 3 AAA batteries which aren’t included in this detector. It’s designed to sniff out a wide range of gases which include: hydrocarbons (methane, propane, natural gas, ethane, gas oil, etc.), alcohol (ethanol and methanol), and halogenated hydrocarbons such as methyl chloride and vinyl chloride. This detector can be used by technicians, homeowners, business owners, construction workers, and even miners.

Arikon’s mission is to ensure that the everyday American has the right tools, equipment, or ingredients to complete whatever he or she sets out to do. It understands that its customers are usually well-rounded individuals whose day involves a variety of activities, and its desire is to make the right quality tools that are needed to complete them.

The Arikon Plug-In Combustible Gas Detector is a smart detector featuring a human voice prompt and a microprocessor control. It’s equipped with a built-in siren that will alert you to a leaking gas situation, and has a clearly visible digital display that indicates the concentration of the gas leaked.

It’s also got a hush mode that allows you to silence the device when it’s not necessary; the alarm will, however, reset automatically in 15 minutes. It has a warmup time of 3 minutes, (the voice prompt will welcome you with an instruction to wait for 3 minutes), after which the device will start up and the display will go blank, into idle mode. It doesn’t detect poisonous gases as it’s designed to detect combustible gases only, such as natural gas. It’ll detect natural gas over 1000ppm and at 2500ppm; the alarm will go off and the voice prompt will alert you with this message: “attention please, gas is leaking”.
Arikon makes other detectors too; below are some of them:

• The Arikon Plug-In Combustible Gas Detector has a microprocessor control and built-in alarm
• The Arikon Plug-In Combustible Gas Detector has voice warning, 9V battery backup, and a catalytic combustion sensor