A quick update: Geiger Counter and HV Rescue Shield kits are back in stock, just in time for the holidays!
Tag Archives: geiger
Geiger Counter Kits are back in stock
Geiger Counter kits are back in stock and shipping again.
My apologies to everyone who has been waiting to place an order, it took a little bit longer than I expected to get all of the parts for this batch. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to keep up with the demand around the holidays, so if you’re thinking about giving a kit to someone (or yourself) as gift, it might be a good idea to order now.
To learn more about the kit or to place an order, head on over to the Geiger Counter kit page.
Flying with the Geiger Counter Kit
Shortly after my Geiger counter workshop at the Chaos Communications Camp in Germany, @tatzelbrumm sent me this video of his kit chirping madly on his flight home to the United States.
If you squint at the laptop in the video, you can see that his geiger counter is reading over 400 CPM!
Exposure to cosmic radiation is a well-known side effect of commercial airline flights, and is even documented in the xkcd radiation dose chart (click for a large version):
Christoph sent me his data logs, which clearly show the effect of altitude on radiation exposure:
The red trace is the background level on the ground in SFO and hovers around 20 CPM. The blue trace is the measured radiation over Greenland on his transatlantic flight. The peak readings are 25 times the background radiation at sea-level!
Caution: Unless you like being hassled by the TSA, I don’t recommend flying with the Geiger kit in your carry-on luggage, much less actually using it on the plane! On his DIY Geiger Counter site, Brohogan posted some good advice about traveling with a Geiger counter.
Look! Geiger Counter Kits! And shiny new cases!
Have you done something cool with your Geiger Counter kit? If so, post about it in the forums!
Behind the Scenes – Geiger Counter Case Fab
The new case for my Geiger Counter kit started with a CAD drawing of the top and bottom case panels, as shown above.
I am very fortunate to have access to a ULS laser cutter at ATX Hackerspace, which is perfect for cutting 1/8″ acrylic and has a 32×18″ bed.
I made a few quick prototypes with some scrap acrylic and hardware I had in the lab. The version shown here is the first iteration, which had taller standoffs and no battery cutout.
Once I was satisfied with the design, I created an array of panels. 18 cases (36 individual panels) fit on a 32×18″ sheet of acrylic, which just fits in the bed of the laser cutter.
The laser cuts out each panel in the array.
This is what the sheet looks like when the laser is done.
Mmm, freshly cut cases!
Add a few screws and standoffs and this is the result:
A beautiful clear acrylic case for my Geiger Counter kit!
New product: Laser-cut Case for the Geiger Counter Kit
I’m happy to announce the release of a custom laser-cut case for the Geiger Counter kit!
The case, which is made of high quality clear acrylic, comes with standoffs and all the hardware needed to assemble it.
The case includes access holes for the HV adjustment, the piezo beeper, and the mute button.
There are also cutouts for the battery compartment and the serial/ICSP/pulse headers.
A pushbutton switch with a 17mm long plunger is included with the case. This can be optionally installed in place of the existing microswitch S2 on the geiger counter. The long plunger makes the mute button easier to actuate with the case on.
Here is the kit with the new switch installed:
You can purchase a Geiger Counter kit with the case included or just the case by itself (f you already have a kit) over on the Geiger Counter kit product page or by clicking “add to cart” below.